Keeping A Largemouth As A Pet

[KyakR]

I miss the Bass Professor.......he kept bass too. "He remained a student of the largemouth bass all of his life; he kept a swimming-pool-sized tank in his backyard where he observed giant fish, hand fed them--and tried to raise one to world record size, exceeding the accepted 22 pound, 4 ounce record. He never did succeed in that venture, but he did in many others."

[Woody60]

My buddy used to keep a bass or two in his tank (not quite sure of the size) and it was interesting to see how they responded to weather changes, pressure changes etc.  We would also see how they reacted to different lures (no hooks) and soft plastic presentations.

[speed craw]

I had a spotted bass for a good little while 2/12 lbs or  so I would guess. I named him earl like my name is earl since my tank was his jail cell . I got him from a guy that gut hooked him and just left him for dead near the bank . I was able to free him up and then felt bad for him since he was showing signs of about to die from stress.  He wouldn't eat for the first few days after that he would eat a little . I eventually just dumped 2 dozen minows in just to see how long it would take for him to eat them . I assumed it would take a few days but it litterally took 30 secs. The surprising thing is he seemd twice as active at night as during the day . I studdied him for a few months , light , temperature and colors ... learned a whole lot . Every morning I would find him in the back looking guilty for knocking my pump tubes off the pump with the expression , it was like that when I found it .

[AK-Jax86]

I had a spotted bass for a good little while 2/12 lbs or  so I would guess. I named him earl like my name is earl since my tank was his jail cell . I got him from a guy that gut hooked him and just left him for dead near the bank . I was able to free him up and then felt bad for him since he was showing signs of about to die from stress.  He wouldn't eat for the first few days after that he would eat a little . I eventually just dumped 2 dozen minows in just to see how long it would take for him to eat them . I assumed it would take a few days but it litterally took 30 secs. The surprising thing is he seemd twice as active at night as during the day . I studdied him for a few months , light , temperature and colors ... learned a whole lot . Every morning I would find him in the back looking guilty for knocking my pump tubes off the pump with the expression , it was like that when I found it .

 

that's pretty cool, did you end up releasing Earl?

[speed craw]

Yes he eventually out grew my tank , given he nearly almost doubled his weight .  However when I did have him he new what day feeding day was some how and would pace back and forth until I would open the lid  . He also like flashing light , I think transformers was one of his favorite movies . Kinda makes me thinks thats why I have seen certain  jerkbaits with a shiner side.

[boostr]

There Is An aquarium store by my house, and they have tank That's about eight foot high and 6 foot wide cube, and they have a huge Pacu, Peacock bass and a few huge cat fish Swimming in that thing. That definatly look like a job and a half maintaining that thing.

[dougie511]

This is a good point. Dougie's probably got a basement in Illinois (likely not the case in Florida, eh?) but even so, if that tank goes you can kiss all the finishes good-bye, not to mention possibly furniture or other personal property. I'd check with my insurance agent to see if such an event were even covered under a normal policy; even if it were, coughing up my $500 or $1000 deductible over a pet bass would really burn. Yeah, buy new.

I had originally planned on the 350 tank being in my garage but after a lot of thought im not even sure i will run the 350 tank still debating on the situation!

[dcorp]

I have a 1000 gallon koi pond in my backyard that I have some green sunfish and a bass in along with a number of koi and goldfish. I caught the bass (with a net) in a private pond when he was about 2 inches long. I put him in a 30 gallon tank and later a 150 gallon tank to grow him out so my green sunfish wouldn't eat him. Once you get the bass eating koi food he will grow about an inch every other month for the first year (and more if you keep your water warm). once they reach about 12" long they slow down on the growth. In my opinion, if you want to keep a native fish, sunfish are the way to go. They require less space, more likely to take koi food, and are more active in a aquarium setting. If you do keep a bass, I've found they do better if you get them when they are really small. make sure you find out what the laws are in your area about keeping native fish. The worst thing you can do is release a fish in a lake once its been in captivity, that is how diseases are spread. Anyways, here are some pics, these are older, I don't have any recent once of the bass but he is about 11-12 inches now. I've had some form of native fish in a tank or pond for the last 15 years so hit me up if you have any questions.

 

 

 

[rippin-lips]

I recently was thinking of having a pet bass. There's a bunch if videos on YouTube. It seems like a fun idea. There's not a lot of info online about it for the details. From what I've read so far. Once a month you'll need to drain 1/2 the water and clean the stuff out from under the gravel that's settled on the bottom. Also keep your ph level in check. I believe 6.5-7 is what I read. Also maintaining the temperature of the tank. For food I've seen goldfish,worms,pellets,minnows. For a 1lb fish 5-10 goldfish a day. For tank size it seems 150g is about the smallest you should use and that good for a small bass. I might try a few sunfish/pumpkinseeds first to see how it goes. If it fails then I won't feel terrible about it haha

[Bluebasser86]

I had a 55 gallon tank with a small flathead catfish in it, coolest aquarium fish I've ever seen. I caught him when he was at 4.5" long and started out feeding him nightcrawlers. I named him Brutus kind of as a funny because the little guy acted and looked tough just like a big flathead, but was so small a big crappie could have eaten him. He was such a pig, he'd eat nightcrawlers until it looked like he swallowed a golf ball and swam around like a big tadpole. After he got to about 6 or 7 inches I started putting fathead minnows or young of the year bluegills in the tank with him, they never lasted long. The first time I bought a dozen minnows and turned them loose I figured they'd last a week or so. That night I kept hearing bumping noises and sand getting moved around, I assumed he was having a hard time catching the speedy fatheads. The next morning there was nothing but an extremely fat flathead in the tank. 

I had Brutus for a few years, he ate a ton of minnows, bluegills, goldfish, and nightcrawlers. I also added a silver dollar sized soft shell turtle I found swimming hundreds of yards offshore. They were quite the pair, the turtle got pushed across the tank several times in the flathead's mouth when he'd try to dig around the half a hollow log that Brutus called home. It was really a cool experience watching Brutus grow but as they do he got big and once he was about 2 pounds I knew he was too big for his home. So one day I scooped him out of the aquarium and took him back to the little community lake he came out of. I'm sure he's still in there terrorizing the abundant bluegill and sunfish. 

[Comfortably Numb]

I keep central and south american cichlids (predatory fish)

 

This summer I put a 10" bass, a 6" crappie, and a 6" bluegill in one of my 75g.

 

Was cool but as said the bass was a bully and the crappie and BG hid all the time.

 

It ate ALOT too. Shiners and nightcrawlers were getting expensive. They would not touch pellets. I couldnt pass the tank without him begging for more food. It has been said in nature it takes 10 pounds of food for a bass to gain 1 pound

 

Also fish tanks need maintainence. Although tank is filtered, bass are very messy (pee and poop). These byproducts must be removed by large weekly water changes.

 

I would say get a 55g tank on craigslist for $100 or so and give it a shot.

 

Read up on http://www.cichlid-forum.com/ Learn about the bacteria cycle in a tank.

 

Some people get large rubbermaid tubs or horse water holders and put in a basement or garage.

[Texas bassman]

I have a 12in pet bass in a 20 gallon tank. He seems fine but I sometimes think of throwing him back in a pond. I feed him about 15 goldfish a week

[PotomacBassin]

Not to get off topic, but I wonder if there is an old Snakehead forum that started just like this outside the Potomac River.  Ha. 

[boostr]

Not to get off topic, but I wonder if there is an old Snakehead forum that started just like this outside the Potomac River. Ha.

Thems some vicious soms a b!tc#€$

[boostr]

I've seen them eat an old sick bass in a tank.

[Fishguy101]

On 10/30/2013 at 9:16 PM, dougie511 said:

I know it sounds crazy but i have read a lot online of people having bass as a "pet" in a fish tank and ive been seriously looking into it for the fact that it would be really cool and that ive never had fish tanks and stuff growing up so it would be a cool project all together! Im needing some help though my first idea was a like 350 gallon or so water tank that farmers usually use from like rural king or somewhere like that and i got lucky enough to find one from a farmer for free that had been busted out at the bottom so i was gonna use it and cut the bottom off and make it a fish tank! The problem im having with that are two different things! 1) i cant find any filter systems at any local stores or online big enough for 350 gallons but i have heard it will be around 400 dollars for it 2) ive been finding 150-almost 200 gallon tanks all day for around 4-800 bucks which is what i would have in the custom 350 gallon tank! So im debating on if i should stick with the 350 gallon tank or just buy the biggest inside home style tank for around the same price and it might possibly be a little easier to maintain being inside! If ANYONE has any pointers or any of there projects please share your experience with me im really interested in trying this! My first project was to take a bass out of a private pond that doesnt have very good size bass they are still really small and see how it goes and maybe try a 2-3 pounder out of my families pond depending on how the first project goes and what insight i get from you guys!

I personally want one aswell just have to wait to go fishing I would recommend getting a 150-200 gal to start with a bass and while they grow you'll be building the D.I.Y. fish tank

[Darth-Baiter]

I caught a tiny bass fishing for bluegill as a kid.  I put that thing in a 20 gallon fish tank with a proper filter system.  
 

that thing lived a long time and grew surprisingly fast.   I find out later it was not legal. But we had fun.  I let him go into a small reservoir.  We dumped in crayfish and more bass and a crap load of shad.  I really needed more parenting.  Lucky I didn’t go feral. 

[scaleface]

I use to seine all my aquarium fish . I had bass , bull head , channel cat , sturgeon ,bluegill , drum , crappie all kinds of minnows , crawdads ...The bass ate all the minnows the bluegill sucked the eyeballs a out of the sturgeon , the crappie would not eat . The drum and catfish were good aquarium fish . Next I'm going to turn it into a turtle tank complete with waterfall . 

[flatcreek]

Mike Long kept Largemouth in his tank in his carport.that didn’t turn out so good for him....

[J Francho]

 

I mean, seven years later...

 

You better check your local regulations for housing native fish.  You often need permits.  Same as it was in 2013.