How to Prepare for a Pet Octopus

An octopus is an exotic creature which requires more effort than your average fish tank. They have special needs in both their tank setup and their diets. Octopuses they are the most intelligent of all invertebrates, considered on the same intelligence level as dogs, but in a different way. Perhaps the biggest difference is that dogs have a pack mentality and octopuses are anti-social and cherish their solitude. Octopuses are very high-maintenance, but with proper care, owning one can be a unique and rewarding experience. They are very fascinating creatures.

Instructions

Difficulty: Challenging

Things You’ll Need:

• A tank with a secure lid that can overflow into a sump
• A mechanical power filter
• A large protien skimmer
• Tester fish, such as mollies or damsels
• A source for fresh molluscs and crustaceans

1. Be sure to set up your tank at least three months before you get your octopus. The tank must be "mature." You cannot just set up a tank and plop the octopus in, as you can with most fish. It just will not survive long in this environment. So set up your tank and let a few mollies or damsels live in there. But keep in mind that if you leave these small fish in there once the octopus is in there, they will end up as snacks.
2. These eight-legged sea creatures are infamous escape artists. Even an octopus with a melon-sized head can slip through a hole the size of a nickel. Pygmy octopuses can fit through any hole, no matter the size. So when setting up your tank, be sure that the lid is tightly secured. Even if it has no holes or openings in it does not mean it is secured. There have been several reports of octopuses figuring out how to lift the lid and wriggle out. If you have other tanks nearby, an octopus can escape, get into another tank for some munchies, then return to their own tank! This is because octopuses are also active hunters.
3. You will also need to check or get the water checked for copper or other concentrated heavy metals. Copper specifically is highly toxic to octopuses and cuttlefish.
4. Make sure the water overflows into a sump and you get a mechanical power filter. Without this setup, the oxygen replacement will not be able to keep up with the amount of oxygen the octopus uses. This will cause suffocation and you probably won't know there is a problem until your poor pet is dead. The filter is also important because octopuses are shedders and messy eaters. They will leave debris from food floating around, as well as pieces of the skin on their arms and suckers which they constantly shed. If these pieces are left in the water, they will rot and cause a nasty mess. You will need to clean the filter often for these same reasons. The bigger the octopus, the messier the tank will be. A large protein skimmer is also recommended by most octopus enthusiasts.
5. Inside the tank, make sure that there are many caves or cave-like hiding places, since octopuses love to squeeze themselves into small spaces. These hiding places should be a variety of sizes, considering that your octopus will grow. Use rocks, jars, tubes...anything you can think of. Be creative! If you can, find ways to give them challenges (for example, put their live food into one of those spherical plastic containers that you get out of a quarter machine with a cheap toy inside. Take out the toy, obviously, and watch the octopus cleverly open the container and get to the food). Without challenges and "toys," an octopus can get extremely bored, therefore increasing its desire to escape.
6. Also, octopuses are nocturnal, so make sure that in the daytime their tank is either shaded or completely dark.
7. Once your tank is prepped and matured, you can choose your octopus. When you are at the pet store, be sure to find out what species of octopus you are getting. Without good information on the species, it is hard to know whether you are getting an adult pygmy octopus or a baby that will grow to be three feet in diameter. Plus, octopuses change color like chameleons do, so it is nearly impossible to tell some species just by looking at them.
8. Octopuses have short life spans, averaging only a year or two. Pygmy octopuses and Hapalochaena will only live six months, and if you purchase your octopus at three weeks old, it will die on you in another three weeks. It is not wise to buy an adult for this reason.
9. All octopuses require a high-quality diet of mollusks, crustaceans, and even sometimes small fish. Some people think that they can simply feed their octopus feeder goldfish, but goldfish are very fattening and will shorten your octopus' already-short lifespan! Fresh shrimp, small crabs, and even crayfish are the best for feeding your octopus. It is okay to buy high-quality frozen shrimp (thaw before feeding), but live prey is not only healthier for it, but it will allow the octopus to exercise its desire to hunt.

Tips & Warnings

• Never by a blue ring octopus, for they are lethal to humans.
• Never put more than one octopus in one tank, and keep fish in separate tanks if you don't want them to get eaten. Good tank mates for octopuses are starfish, or pencil-type urchins. Never put anemones in your octopus tank, because they will sting the octopus, which can lead to stress and even infection.