Freshwater trout
- Thread starter bigboy
- Start date
best thing i can tell u is go fishing. or you can talk top your local fish hatchery and see if they will sell u some. how big of a tank u got. i know they need cold water so your gonna haft to get a cooler to keep the water at the right temp. how ever big you want is gonna tell you how big of a tank, and if your gonna keep them if they get big. if you are then you gonna need a monseter tank like 300 gals or more. but to start of with and u have little trout then at least get a 150 or a 180 gal. i would put some baby walleys and some channel cats and stuff. well good luck to ya
Welcome to MFK!!!
You'll need a large tank to keep just a couple of trout (if permitted in your state). They require clean cool water with a heavy flow providing a high DO. The temp would have to be kept between 60-65F so a chiller is needed. They can tolerate higher temps for a short duration but would need cooler water for proper maintenance. Filtration would have to be oversized as these fish have little tolerance for poor water quality. Trout are territorial so, the tank size and vision breaks (caves, rocks, driftwood, etc) would have to be sufficient to allow rivals some cover from each other.
Unfortunately, the farms that can provide you with trout have minimum purchase requirements mostly around the $200 range or a minimum number of 50 specimens you'd have to buy. If you don't live near a trout farm, the shipping costs will be astronomical.
As far as native fish setups go, trout are among the most difficult. I suggest hitting the web for trout care and maintenance before you try setting up a system for them. Also check out NANFA (North American Native Fishes Association) for lots of info on maintaining native US species.
You'll need a large tank to keep just a couple of trout (if permitted in your state). They require clean cool water with a heavy flow providing a high DO. The temp would have to be kept between 60-65F so a chiller is needed. They can tolerate higher temps for a short duration but would need cooler water for proper maintenance. Filtration would have to be oversized as these fish have little tolerance for poor water quality. Trout are territorial so, the tank size and vision breaks (caves, rocks, driftwood, etc) would have to be sufficient to allow rivals some cover from each other.
Unfortunately, the farms that can provide you with trout have minimum purchase requirements mostly around the $200 range or a minimum number of 50 specimens you'd have to buy. If you don't live near a trout farm, the shipping costs will be astronomical.
As far as native fish setups go, trout are among the most difficult. I suggest hitting the web for trout care and maintenance before you try setting up a system for them. Also check out NANFA (North American Native Fishes Association) for lots of info on maintaining native US species.
Here in Oregon it is not hard to talk the state hatcheries into giving yo a couple 6"ers, you need to show up in person and be able to tell them of your set up, an acquaintence did this, he has a spring fed pool about 8' fong, 4' wide and 3' deep, the water temp stays near 58 degrees.
USMCtanker said:
the problem with catching them is that trout are very fragile so if you plan on fishing for them and transporting them you have to be careful. if you live more then an hour away from the location minus well not even try. barbless hooks are a must and bait should be avoided. if you can find small circle hooks they would work great. if you gut hook a fish cut the line and throw that sucker back in the lake. i dont suggest attempting to keep ne trout that isnt lip hooked, its possible but its just better not to try. handle the trout as little as possible and be sure you bring an aireator with you. i generally put two trout (5-10") maximum in a full five gallon bucket. good luck.
I thank everybody for all the replies,I live in Texas so catching them is out of the ?.Also the species Im interested in keeping is the native brooktrout. Im planning a 300 gallon tank with a sumpsystem with bio-balls,also a nitrate reduction filter,as well as a chiller with a rating for double the tank size.I really interested in anybody that can help me get the fish.In case somebody is interested in why Im willing to go through this trouble,its because Im originally from upstate NY.I love these fish.I donot think any other fish can even come close to these little gems.Again thanks for the help,anymore advice would still be a great help. 
how big is the tank and how big are they. thats awsome i got to see some pictures. post some uptrout guy said: