Captive Octopus?

[Arie]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Live-Saltwater-...ryZ66788QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I'm totally unfamiliar with this, and have actually never seen an octopus in captivity. I've emailed the seller and they've yet to respond.

Is it morally/ethically/legally okay to have one in a tank? Also, if they are, has anyone had them?

 

[Anonymous]

It is legal. I would submit it is not ethical.

 

[mr_X]

morally, no. legal, yes.
they are hard to keep, and will eat whatever else is in your tank.

 

[Anonymous]

Actually, after I read that, it sounds like they came in as hitchhikers on this guy's rock. So I would say if you can keep it alive, it might be cool. They are escape artists.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes, and the small ones have very short lifespans.

They are for sale quite often here (Taipei), including the lethal Blue Ringed. Why anyone would keep one of those is beyond me. :roll:

 

[WRASSER]

WITH the right conditions they are a joy. My cousin cought a baby that bis and kept it in a 125g tank. The same day he had cought three high hats, damsel and a couple other fish and put them in together. They lived happyly togehter. He had low lighting and high oxygenated water.
I havent talked to him for like 5 years so i dont know what has happened since, but it was fun to interact with it

 

[Anonymous]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Live-Saltwater-...ryZ66788QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I'm totally unfamiliar with this, and have actually never seen an octopus in captivity. I've emailed the seller and they've yet to respond.

Is it morally/ethically/legally okay to have one in a tank? Also, if they are, has anyone had them?

There is an entire website devoted to these animals with a large section dedicated to husbandry - www.tonmo.com

Generally, keeping a ceph, provided you provide adequate housing, food and filtration, is just as ethical or unethical as keeping any reef animal. There are a few exceptions such as the flamboyant or the wunderpus because we don't know how large their populations are in the wild or what effect their collection has on those populations, so these animals are, in general, best not brought to home aquaria. Legally, there are no issues currently.

I have kept lots of cephs over the last 4 or 5 years, mainly breeding dwarf cuttlefish, but I dip into the octopus land from time to time.

The best species is the bimac because captive bred animals are often available. The only drawback is they need cooler water than we are used to so a chiller is necessary. Check out tonmo.com for more detailed info.

 

[Arie]

Thanks for all of the replies guys.

I'm going to go with a no on the baby pus for now.... I don't have my tank set up, for one, and secondly I've yet to purchase a chiller.

Thanks though