New Octo...Any ideas????

[scwt914]

I received my new Bimac from Octopets 2 weeks ago.It is a tank raised octopus and is 8 weeks old. I have him in a 29 gallon tank that has been running for approx. 4 months with 30lbs. of live rock and a Fluval 204 for filtration. The temp. is 69 degrees and the water tests fine. My SG is .025 and I use a single flourescent for 9 hours a day and 2 moonlight lights for 5 hours at night.I have been feeding live clams(which I purchased from Octopets) and some crabs from my LFS. I know he is eating because I find the empty shells outside of his den. The problem that I am having is that I have not seen him come out at all.I have tried different rock formations and different lighting periods with no success. Any ideas on how to get him to be more active?

 

[Nancy]

He may be "out" in the sense that he's in or on the live rock and looking around. They are experts at matching the rock colors and textures. One person recently reported that he looked at his tank for one half hour before he recognized his octopus in front of him.

They gain more confidence and come out more on the sand when they are older. You need to develop your "octopus eyes" and learn to spot him as he's sitting there - it takes some practice. You can eventually introduce pieces of thawed out frozen shrimp and maybe even use a feeding stick.

Nancy

 

[scwt914]

He is living in a small hole in one of the pieces of live rock and usually has an empty crab shell in front of him. I can see where his den is and he has not been out of it that I know of. I even check it at night with a small flashlight and he is still in there. Like I said, he is eating so I know that he is alive.....but not very active.I wasn't sure if maybe there was a problem with my setup or my water quality.

 

[Nancy]

Sounds like everything is OK. He's still very young. Just be patient.

Nancy