Things You'll Need
- Large aquarium or outdoor pond
- High-flow aquarium filter
- Aquarium heater
- Sealing plastic bags
- Water siphon
- Large plastic bucket
- Dechlorinating chemicals
- Plain bleach
- Untreated sand
- Untreated gravel
- Large fish-safe rocks
- Sinking logs
- Pond pump
- Biofilter cartridge
- Floating catfish feed or live foods
Instructions
Aquariums for Blue Catfish
Calculate the gallons needed for the catfish that you wish to raise. You'll need a minimum of three gallons for every inch of fish; since captive blue catfish normally reach a size of 2 feet, each catfish would need at least 72 gallons. Determine if you can afford the cost of the necessary tank, which can be thousands of dollars, and have the space for such a large construct.
Cover the bottom of the tank with a mixture of untreated sand and gravel. Place large rocks and sinking logs in the tank to provide hiding places for the catfish; aquatic plants are not needed.
Maintain a water temperature between 70 and 82 degrees Fahrenheit; blue catfish can tolerate significantly lower temperatures and slightly higher ones, but this range is the ideal for aquarium-kept catfish. Use a large, covered aquarium heater to raise temperatures if necessary. Lower temperatures by floating large plastic bags filled with crushed ice in the aquarium or pond and removing the bag once all the ice is melted; never put ice or cold water directly in fish-inhabited water.
Use a large filter to maintain high water circulation and flow, as blue catfish prefer strong currents.
Change 20 percent of the aquarium water each week. Use a strong water siphon to remove tank water into a large bucket for disposal. Allow your water tap to run for at least five minutes before filling the bucket with replacement water. Add dechlorinating chemicals to the bucket water, or allow the water to sit for a day or two to allow chlorine to dissipate naturally, and add the new water to the tank. Make sure to add additional water to compensate for evaporation.
Use the water siphon to vacuum debris from gravel and sand every two weeks. Clean algae-covered rocks in a mixture of 2 tbsp. of bleach to one gallon of water. Rinse rocks thoroughly with water until there are no traces of bleach odor before adding them back to the tank.
Ponds for Blue Catfish
Choose a pond at least 6 feet deep, and use deeper ponds of 8 feet or more if your area experiences regular freezing of water surfaces in winter. Calculate the number of catfish that will fit in your pond. Keep in mind that pond-kept catfish are more likely to be larger than aquarium-kept fish, so you'll need four to five gallons of water for every inch of catfish.
Cover the bottom of the pond with sand. Place several rocks and sinking logs in corners or along the edges of the pond to provide hiding places. Make caves out of stacked rocks and sinking logs to provide breeding areas for catfish pairs; each pair should have at least one cave available, and more available caves will give the pair more selection and increase the chances of breeding.
Use strong pumps to aerate the water and provide some current for the catfish. Use a biofilter to reduce pollutants in pond water.
General Care
Keep blue catfish only with other blue catfish of similar size in both ponds and aquariums; they will eat smaller fish given the chance, and they can be quite aggressive.
Feed blue catfish daily with fish meat, shrimp, mollusks and live feeder fish, such as minnows; frogs that are stunned or killed by freezing can be used as a treat. Feed the fish as much as they will eat in five minutes. Reduce the food quantity in subsequent feedings if excess food remains after that time period. Large quantities of blue catfish, such as those in large-scale breeding or fishing ponds, can be given floating catfish feed.
Reduce feeding frequency as the water temperature in a catfish pond drops. Feed them once every two days for temperatures between 56 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Feed them twice a week for temperatures between 51 and 55 degrees Fahrenheit. Feed them once a week for temperatures between 45 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Feed them every 10 days for temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit.
Keep ponds from being fully covered by ice during winter. Apply hot water to melt areas of frozen pond surfaces; never break the ice, as the loud noise and shock can harm or kill the fish.
Allow catfish to remain with any eggs that they produce; males, and females to a lesser extent, will fiercely guard the eggs and the newly hatched fry. Offspring should be netted and moved or sold no more than a week or two after hatching to avoid predation or crowding.