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retech

Cuttlefish
Registered
Joined
Oct 13, 2004
Messages
20
Anyone else have problems with bubbles in the tank with an octopus or is it just me? We are down to one octo now as the smaller one was cruious and played in the current created by a bubble wall that was in the tank for him. I didn't think anything of it until I came in one night and saw he fighting to stay submerged because of a well of air that had been captured in his mantle. Not knowing what to do I gently manipulated him with the net until the bubbles seemed to be gone, but it was too late and the little guy died a couple days later. The other octo is doing fine but did seem a little depressed after the death of his tankmate.
 
i have often had an octo sit in the bubble stream, sometimes for mins or hours at a time with no ill affect... what age size is the octo?
 
I'm not sure how old he was but his mantle was about an inch to an inch and a half long. He was fine other than the bubbles. He ate, swam around, was very personable and even more outgoing than the larger octo that was sharing his tank. I think if I would have noticed it earlier and known what was wrong I would have been able to save him, but I think he was trying to use the PVC tubes to keep himself submerged because he started staying under them. not even hiding really, he would reach out a tentacle just not leave the tubes.
 
the other octo is fine, by the way, but I got nervous and took out the bubble wand and put in a small airstone at the top of the tank where he can't sit in it like the other one did.
 
I'v got a bubbler in my tank. got the idea in a zoo in germany. their octo seemed to like bubbles.

my octo plays with the bubbles too, but just tries to grab them, he doesn't hang over them.

I find it difficult to believe it are actually the bubbles that killed him. unless maybe the bubblestream is so powerful that it could injure him, but I didn't think there are bubblers on the market that powerful
 
i can imagine a mantle getting an air bubble stuck but cant imagine why?
 
I think I've seen that happen once, it was in those cheap chinese restaurants in China. They were kepping about 30-40 octos that had a mantle length of a few cm in one those bleach buckets. It was so crowded that one octos got bumped away by a large octo and he coudls only settle on the pump with a tiny air stone. Bubbles got in the mantle and it floated up, unable to stay submerged... :sad:
 
That was kindof like what happened to Seeker. I didn't really think anything of it because like everyone seems to agree he did enjoy it. He was having trouble staying submerged and probably would have lived had I been able to catch him earlier. It was alot of stress for him to go through but he seemed fine otherwise, the tank peramiters were all good, he was eating, water changed quite often because his big roommate Kraken kept inking at me. Thankfully he has stopped that and now only inks to get my attention or to protect his food.
 

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