[bear40doux]

I was looking on youtube and saw some videos of people who have bass as pets and were feeding them all kinds of stuff. How does one go about keeping a bass as a pet? Any ideas on tank size, environment, water, lighting, etc? If you have any advice or info or site I can check out please let me know. Thanks.

 

[Tubes77]

Let me be the first to say it.. Make sure you BUY the Bass from a supplier, do not take it from local waters which is illegal. There are definitely guys on here though that can give you more infor on the actual caring of the fish, but I thought I would clear that up right away.

 

[fishkid14]

i have a pet bass abaout half an pound ive had it since last year and its in a 30 gallon tank and it feeds out of minnows and worms worms worms. hope i gave you some help?

 

[fishkid14]

i have a pet bass abaout half an pound ive had it since last year and its in a 30 gallon tank and it feeds out of minnows and worms worms worms. hope i gave you some help? oh and it freaks out when i put the light on so i wouldnt recomment that ands its been en 60 degree water all year long.

 

[Cluricaun]

One thing to keep in mind, if you keep bass as pets or not, is that they grow according to the level of food available, not by age or space. A 2lb bass and a 10lb bass can be the same age, it depends on how often and at what quality they eat. Bass grow rather quickly and will reach "adulthood" at as little as 3 or 4 months of age. They are voracious eaters (No really?!) and may be difficult to keep with other species. Your "pet" bass will have little to no compitition for food and will most likely grow very quickly. I'd think that you would need a tank of at least 75 to 100 gallons to keep an adult bass along with some cover (lack of cover can stress bass).

That's a pretty big commitment, but cheers to you if you feel you're up to it.

 

[fish56]

A few years back, I was at Scott's Pet Shop in Westchester, and they were selling smallmouth bass fry, as well as baby northern pike. Don't know if they still carry them.

 

[Ejoe]

I believe the regulations have been changed where you can now catch and keep wild fish for aquariums. As long as they are with in size limits for the lake you take them from. I had a 200gal tank. Put in natural gravel, a bass some gills, a crappie, a small carp and a couple gar. Very relaxing to view!

 

[Tubes77]

I believe you're right Ed, but I was referring to his desire for a "baby" bass. By that, I thought he meant one that was under the size limit. If he wants to catch a legal sized bass, then yes I think he can but that won't exactly be a baby....

I believe this topic came up here before and I too seem to remember someone saying that Scott's Petshop carried them at times. If you're reasonably close, that is one very good shop. Very knowledgeable, very friendly. I live a bit over a half hour away but still make the trip there for my supplies and fish.

 

[axis_roll]

Agreed.

My lake has a slot limit and ENCOURAGES removing juvenille bass under 12" (far too many of them!)

actually, a 12" bass is good eating: big enough for a good chunck of a fillet, not too big to be fishy.

 

[FishArt]

I believe the regulations have been changed where you can now catch and keep wild fish for aquariums. As long as they are with in size limits for the lake you take them from.

Tubes, I believe Ejoe is correct. I asked a CPO last year about the legalities of keeping a LM for my fishtank and he told me it was perfectly legal. Since there is no size limit on LM in Illinois any size I wanted to keep is fine. Now granted, you may get seven different answers from 7 different CPO's, but at least this is what one told me. Although you will need to alwyas have a current license (and in fact, a CPO COULD ask you for a copy of your license you possessed when you harvested the fish even if it was 5 years ago. MOST however will not be this much of a stickler and just request a current license).

Watch Smallies. They're very aggressive and pretty much will harrass anything else that's in the tank.

 

[JJ99]

I have a LM that I bought from Scotts about 9 months ago. I keep him in a 60 Gallon tank, but am looking to upgrade. He eats feeders from the pet store or left over minnows. I also feed him worms and freeze dried Krill. It is interesting that he would aggresively eat anything in the tank in the fall and this spring, but in the winter minnows could almost swim past his nose and he would not bother them.

 

[FishinMatt]

When I bought my 125G on E-Bay it came with a small largie that the owner wanted to part with. I ended up sticking him in 55G for a few months before releasing back to the wild. I had a juvenille Green Terror in the tank along with a juvenille Red Terror, and they picked on the bass quite a bit. IMO largemouth don't stand a chance againest any South American chiclid. They just aren't fast enough. Anyways, like others said, they do have big appetites. As long as you don't spoil them, they can be conditioned to freeze dried foods like jumbo sticks, krill, crickets, shrimp pellets, ect. If I ever decide to go with a native tank, it would be a 125G minimum. The width is 18''s which at least gives a big enough footprint for gamefish such as bass/walleye to turn around (at least for awhile ) IMO pike/musky do not do well in a tank. They are skittish and will constantly bang themselves up when startled. Unless you are rolling with a 200G+ tank like Ejoe, chances are you will end up with a dead fish sooner then later.
Keep in mind that the baby bass will eventually outgrow your dimensions and you will have to upgrade or part with the fish.
JD has a really cool tank in the Spinner Lounge with some cool gamefish. I'll let him eleborate if he sees this thread.

 

[bear40doux]

thanks

Thanks for all the input so far. I was wondering if anyone had more specific info on filtration systems, plants, gravel type and brand, should I do no lighting at all or is there a way that will not bother them. The thing I absolutely do not want to do is get in the tank and have it die b/c of something I did. Does anyone have the phone number for Scott's Pet Shop? Thanks again for all the great input.

 

[axis_roll]

Keep in mind that the baby bass will eventually outgrow your dimensions and you will have to upgrade or part with the fish.

This is a fallacy. As someone earlier pointed out, the tank will not limit the fishes size, it is limited by the amount of oxygen and food, not swimming room.

 

[mrb]

Dont use algae destroyer! I put some in and my Bass was gulping air when I came home from werk. I did an emergency water change and all was good.
They will eat any and everything, they are monsters! LOL! they will eat anything that they think they can fit in their mouth and they poo alot. Mine outgrew my 55G tank in less than a year. He couldnt turn around completely. They are fun as hell watching them eat.

Now I have a BG that is just as bad and he is big and fat eats like a piggy too.

 

[FishinMatt]

Keep in mind that the baby bass will eventually outgrow your dimensions and you will have to upgrade or part with the fish.

This is a fallacy. As someone earlier pointed out, the tank will not limit the fishes size, it is limited by the amount of oxygen and food, not swimming room.

If you look closely, that is partially what I said, but I will back up my statement further. Oxygen really has nothing to do with the equation of growth. If the tank is not properly filtered, waste builds up and the byproduct from the waste eventually poisens and kills the fish. Of course, if a fish does not eat properly, growth rates and body condition will be bad. Same thing goes for anything that breathes.

I'm actually speaking on behalf of Mr. Bucketmouth here because he has a hard time forming words.

Q:Will a small tank stunt a basses growth and lead to health problems?
A: Yes, it will. It will grow to max size allowed by the tank and stop growing. This is not healthy for the fish or ethical on the keepers part. For an example on a fishing scale, think of a small pond loaded with stunted bluegill and magnify that a few thousand times. Or on the human element, think of living in a room so narrow that you cannot turn around.
To continue on that note, the fishes own waste will build up faster in a smaller tank because it does not dillute as quickly with the smaller water volume. Larger cannister style filters will help, but it is only a band-aid to the problem unless you want to change you water every 3 days. Ammonia, nitrates and nitrites will build up from the waste and eventually sicken and kill the fish. This can be a long process. As someone who has kept multiple large tanks for over 20 years (I sound like Manboy ) and has kept individual large predators in those tanks alive and healthy for 10+ years I do have a little first hand info on the topic. Besides fishing, it is my other passion. Just like any other pet, you should not consider it if you cannot properly care for it. I could get more scientific on it, but that really is the bottom line and what is important. I don't mean to sound like a blowhard, so sorry if it came across that way. I am just an average guy with an above average interest in fish keeping.

 

[fish56]

Re: thanks

Does anyone have the phone number for Scott's Pet Shop? Thanks again for all the great input.

Here you go. Great petshop to visit, even if you don't buy anything. Good selection of fresh water, as well as saltwater, fish. Also a pond inside that usually has koi and fresh water rays, pretty neat.

http://www.scottspetshop.com/

 

[Jaxon]

Scott's is alright, but the best place I've found in chicagoland is Aquarium Adventure in Schaumburg, SW corner of Golf and Roselle. I've tried them all, and unless you're driving to Hoffer's in Milwaukee, AA is the place to go for anything FRESHWATER aquatics related.

 

[TaterToT]

i have kept bluegill and bass in my g/f's fish tank (baby's)

of the biggest things to remeber just like anything thats living it can adapt. i have noticed that when you get the fish at every young age they pick on quicker to feeding on flakes or w/e you drop in the tank. (adult bass take a long time to get to eat flakes)

my friend has kept larger bass and pike in tanks before and had no problem keep the pike alive and well and it got use to the tank and didnt hit the walls.

if you get a pike make sure you get it young for it can deal with being in an open area or from a lake with very little cover.

BLUEGILL ARE CRAZY MEAN FISH dont put them in a tank with anything smaller then them. and with the bass dont put anything that you dont want to get eaten if its half the size of the bass or smaller.

 

[Outdoor_Adventures_740]

I was looking on youtube and saw some videos of people who have bass as pets and were feeding them all kinds of stuff. How does one go about keeping a bass as a pet? Any ideas on tank size, environment, water, lighting, etc? If you have any advice or info or site I can check out please let me know. Thanks.

Always check the laws in the state you live in as all states have different laws when it comes to keeping game fish I have a couple pet bass I got at 2 inches from my local Hatchery in October 2022 . I started them off in a 55 gallon tank over the winter of 2022 and by the time summer rolled around I had built an above ground pond in the backyard .They grow fast in just a few months they went from 2 inches to 6 or 7 . As you mentioned youtube I have started posting videos of the pond on there myself if you want to see what its like keeping different native fish .