• Looking to buy a cephalopod? Check out Tomh's Cephs Forum, and this post in particular shares important info about our policies as it relates to responsible ceph-keeping.

Just about to start off...

Davy Jones

Hatchling
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Nov 28, 2008
Messages
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Hello, I am new to this site and was wondering if someone could help me out with some questions and concerns about having a octopus as a pet.

How much should I be looking at spending on food, tank, accessories, and of course the octopus?

What should I feed it and how often?

How big should the tank be? (LxWXH or gallon wise)

How do I clean them up and how often?

Are they agressive and if so do they bite? (I just heard they had a beak)

What type of octopus should I get and where can I get one?

And really anything else that I should be aware of.

Thanks very much for reading this.

Davy Jones :sink:
 
Davy Jones;128622 said:
Hello, I am new to this site and was wondering if someone could help me out with some questions and concerns about having a octopus as a pet.

How much should I be looking at spending on food, tank, accessories, and of course the octopus?

What should I feed it and how often?

How big should the tank be? (LxWXH or gallon wise)

How do I clean them up and how often?

Are they agressive and if so do they bite? (I just heard they had a beak)

What type of octopus should I get and where can I get one?

And really anything else that I should be aware of.

Thanks very much for reading this.

Davy Jones :sink:





First things first. We have some excellent articles on all aspects of octopus husbandry. They are available at the top of the page under articles. After you have read those, check out the forums under octopus care and also under tank talk. Probably all of your questions have been asked and answered many times, and while no one here objects to answering questions, we prefer that you do your homework first, and then ask if you are still unsure about something . It saves a lot of duplication of effort, and you will more than likely find the answers to all of your question. AS far as food costs, that can vary widely based upon many factors. Some people live near enough to the ocean that they can catch much of the food their octopus will need. Some octopus will adapt to eating food that is already dead, others will only eat living fiddler crabs.
Any octopus will bite given enough provocation, but very few of our octopus keepers have been bitten. The key is caution. That too is a subject that has been covered many times. The one absolute about species is DO NOT buy a blue ring, no matter what an LFS might tell you. We also highly discourage certain other species because of their rarity and uncertain status in the wild. There is a great deal to be learned before you should even think about beginning to invest in a system, and you will probably be much happier with the end results if you take your time, learn all you can by reading, and then get the biggest tank you can afford (and that your floor will hold).
Happy reading. :smile:
 
:welcome:

Be sure to check the ceph care articles under the ARTICLES button at the top of the page. Also, there's a thread somewhere in "Tank Talk" about costs and expenses needed, I think it's "How much do you have invested in your setup?" or something like that.
 
there's not really a beginner octo, there is just hard (most octo's) and really hard (zebra's, mimics, wonderpus, etc) which we don't suggest getting anyways... there are however octo's that will be more rewarding and "worth while" for the beginner as they are interactive and out a lot (bimacs, aculeatus, briareus, etc.) others are very nocternal, never come out, aren't very interactive, etc (blue rings, mercantoris, and most other dwarf's) This is from the stand point of a person that has never had an octo, but has done a lot of reading on them, so just my :twocents:
 
It will take you long enough to do the research, buy and set up the equipment, and cycle your tank that you shouldn't be worrying about that now. Octopus availability will have a lot to do with what you can get. When possible, we recommend that you go with a captive bred octopus, for more than one reason. You will know exactly what breed you are getting, and you will know exactly how old it is. Many a person has gotten his "new" octopus home only to have it die of old age within 2 or 3 weeks.
 
Cool. I am a bit concerned with handling it. Reason being is that I dont want to put my hand in there to clean it or feed it real quick and it bite me or something that involves harm. How do you guys handle it?
 

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