# Another Gar question (pond)



## Baladude (Jul 16, 2006)

I was wondering if I could move my long-nose gar into an outdoor pond when he gets a little bigger. Is there any reason I couldnt? Thanks


----------



## bob351 (Oct 23, 2005)

i dont see why not just make shure hes big enouf so that the local raccons or cats cant have a nice lil sanack if you have a problem with them


----------



## gar~spaz (Jul 21, 2006)

not a good idea. he will jump out and try to find a different body of water. if you do put him in a pond, put somthing around it about 18" tall to keep him in.


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

I have several gar being housed "outside" (Actually greenhouses) in ponds it is fully possible to keep them in one and IME none have ever showed an inkling of intention toward jumping out.

How big of a pond are you thinking? and what part of the country are you in? Climate can make a difference in how well this will work.


----------



## Wide_Eyed_Wanderer (Aug 22, 2006)

Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????

I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

check_ya_self said:


> Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????
> 
> I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


That is an Alligator gar _Atractosteus spatula _not a longnosed so no it would not.

While Longnosed gar are the second largest North American gar they do not reach anywhere near the size or girth of an Alligator.


----------



## eiji (Sep 16, 2006)

Death in June said:


> Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????
> 
> I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


That is an Alligator gar _Atractosteus spatula _not a longnosed so no it would not.

While Longnosed gar are the second largest North American gar they do not reach anywhere near the size or girth of an Alligator.
[/quote]

you mean that pic was an alligatorgar?? how could that grow into that size, thats so huge...luckily i didnt bought one last day, the shop owner told me he would only grow about 2 feet..that lying bastard...

here that alligator gar cost 5-7 dollars, how much would that cost you there guys??


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

fish lover said:


> Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????
> 
> I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


That is an Alligator gar _Atractosteus spatula _not a longnosed so no it would not.

While Longnosed gar are the second largest North American gar they do not reach anywhere near the size or girth of an Alligator.
[/quote]

you mean that pic was an alligatorgar?? how could that grow into that size, thats so huge...luckily i didnt bought one last day, the shop owner told me he would only grow about 2 feet..that lying bastard...

here that alligator gar cost 5-7 dollars, how much would that cost you there guys??
[/quote]

Where is here? for me an Alligator runs about 40 dollars retail (However I can personally get them for the price of shipping)

It should also be noted that often "Alligator gar" is a catch all common name that is applied to many other lepisostid gars in the hobby. It is not uncommon to find Longnosed, shortnosed, spotted, or florida listed as "Alligator gar". One really needs to know Gar ID when shopping around for these fish as they will 99% of the time be mis-labeled.


----------



## Baladude (Jul 16, 2006)

Thanks for the replies. I was thinking maybe a 4ftx6ftx3ft. He is around 9in now. Also I live in NC. I know I would need a heater and what-not. Anything else?


----------



## blackrules (Jan 20, 2006)

hey frnd ur shop fellow said rite if u keep it in ur pond then till grow big if in ur tank it will grow 2 ffeet no problem wit ur shop problem wit ur infromation man


----------



## Baladude (Jul 16, 2006)

What did this dude just say?


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

Baladude said:


> What did this dude just say?


I have no fricking clue what that dude said









As for the pond is that 4 foot wide 6 foot long and 3 foot deep? 
Living in NC you may need a de-icer over the winter but thats about it.


----------



## lastgreengarden (Sep 13, 2006)

Rolly said:


> hey frnd ur shop fellow said rite if u keep it in ur pond then till grow big if in ur tank it will grow 2 ffeet no problem wit ur shop problem wit ur infromation man


Hey friend your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in your pond it will grow big. something something something, your shop is giving you bad info









well i tried...

--steve


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

lastgreengarden said:


> hey frnd ur shop fellow said rite if u keep it in ur pond then till grow big if in ur tank it will grow 2 ffeet no problem wit ur shop problem wit ur infromation man


Hey friend your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in your pond it will grow big. something something something, your shop is giving you bad info









well i tried...

--steve
[/quote]

Have to at least give you credit for trying Steve


----------



## Doddridge (Aug 7, 2006)

fish lover said:


> Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????
> 
> I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


That is an Alligator gar _Atractosteus spatula _not a longnosed so no it would not.

While Longnosed gar are the second largest North American gar they do not reach anywhere near the size or girth of an Alligator.
[/quote]

you mean that pic was an alligatorgar?? how could that grow into that size, thats so huge...luckily i didnt bought one last day, the shop owner told me he would only grow about 2 feet..that lying bastard...

here that alligator gar cost 5-7 dollars, how much would that cost you there guys??
[/quote]
maybe it was a short nose gar. i hear they dont grow very large (about 31 inches) and i have seen them labeled as alligator gar before.


----------



## lastgreengarden (Sep 13, 2006)

> Have to at least give you credit for trying Steve buttrock.gif


thanks haha

----steve


----------



## eiji (Sep 16, 2006)

Death in June said:


> Would it reach this size in a good pond environment???????
> 
> I would absolutley love to have one this big in a pond!


That is an Alligator gar _Atractosteus spatula _not a longnosed so no it would not.

While Longnosed gar are the second largest North American gar they do not reach anywhere near the size or girth of an Alligator.
[/quote]

you mean that pic was an alligatorgar?? how could that grow into that size, thats so huge...luckily i didnt bought one last day, the shop owner told me he would only grow about 2 feet..that lying bastard...

here that alligator gar cost 5-7 dollars, how much would that cost you there guys??
[/quote]

Where is here? for me an Alligator runs about 40 dollars retail (However I can personally get them for the price of shipping)

It should also be noted that often "Alligator gar" is a catch all common name that is applied to many other lepisostid gars in the hobby. It is not uncommon to find Longnosed, shortnosed, spotted, or florida listed as "Alligator gar". One really needs to know Gar ID when shopping around for these fish as they will 99% of the time be mis-labeled.
[/quote]

maybe you're right maybe they were just mis labelled but it really looks like that one in the pic...
BTW im from Philippines and they cost 5-7 dollars


----------



## gar~spaz (Jul 21, 2006)

i think shortnose gar are the most attractive fully grown gar. i dont see many here, but i could order one via my lfs no problem. that being said that alligator in the above pic isnt even fully grown. they can get to about 14 ft. and when those sobs bite you it frickin HURTS. i was bitten by one just over two feet and still got ten stitches in my hand.

and maybe it wont jump out, but i would still take precautions.

f*ck there's only 1 more at bat for detroit. i hate the cardinals.


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

> i think shortnose gar are the most attractive fully grown gar.


Why?

yeah they are damn cool fish but the Most attractive? I'm not sure I'll go that far..... (then this is just my opinion). I'll take an adult longnose, Spotted or Tropical (Centeral American variety) anyday for the attractive factor. Shortnosed are rather bland fish as adults with no patterning and have little to really be desired as a show fish.

Does not mean I personally do not love them..I do and they are one of my very favorite fish. they are just not in the top tier of gar attractiveness and variability to me.



> they can get to about 14 ft.


_Atractosteus spatula_ do not get 14 feet long... 10 maybe in an extreme case.... but not 14.


----------



## gar~spaz (Jul 21, 2006)

ive been to the virginia dam and you can see their bodies poking out of the water near the spill ways. trust me they are bigger than 10 ft. ill admit i may have over exagerrated. but they're at least 12 ft, and thats counting only what you can see sticking out of the water.

ill give you the 270ib. 10 ft. world record, but just because someone hasnt caught them doesnt mean that there is nothing larger...much larger.dont get me wrong, im not trying to get into an arguement. i do however think that they're bigger than just 10ft though.


----------



## ethnics (Sep 10, 2006)

lastgreengarden said:


> hey frnd ur shop fellow said rite if u keep it in ur pond then till grow big if in ur tank it will grow 2 ffeet no problem wit ur shop problem wit ur infromation man


Hey friend your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in your pond it will grow big. something something something, your shop is giving you bad info









well i tried...

--steve
[/quote]

LOL nice try! i think he meant more like:

"Hey friend, your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in ur pond then it will grow big but if you keep it in your fish tank (not knowing how big it is) it will only grow 2 feet long (meaning its gonna look retarted and hella stunned growth). there's no problem with your shop, maybe a problem with ur information man"

there you have it, and i don't know how i knew what that meant lol.


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

ethnics said:


> hey frnd ur shop fellow said rite if u keep it in ur pond then till grow big if in ur tank it will grow 2 ffeet no problem wit ur shop problem wit ur infromation man


Hey friend your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in your pond it will grow big. something something something, your shop is giving you bad info









well i tried...

--steve
[/quote]

LOL nice try! i think he meant more like:

"Hey friend, your shop fellow (LFS) said it right, if you keep it in ur pond then it will grow big but if you keep it in your fish tank (not knowing how big it is) it will only grow 2 feet long (meaning its gonna look retarted and hella stunned growth). there's no problem with your shop, maybe a problem with ur information man"

there you have it, and i don't know how i knew what that meant lol.
[/quote]

your my translator from now on.....


----------



## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

wow..what filter didi you run that through?????LOL

Excellent translation..but I hate that only grow to the size crap.
Two things dictate growth......genetics, and nutrition....other variables can have impact, hormones, stress, etc...but they do not stop growth from happening....that has to be the number one all time biggest load of crap...and I can not seriously believe it is still spouted.....

...sorry I got on a soap box again didn't I?.........


----------



## Polypterus (May 4, 2003)

CrocKeeper said:


> wow..what filter didi you run that through?????LOL
> 
> Excellent translation..but I hate that only grow to the size crap.
> Two things dictate growth......genetics, and nutrition....other variables can have impact, hormones, stress, etc...but they do not stop growth from happening....that has to be the number one all time biggest load of crap...and I can not seriously believe it is still spouted.....
> ...


Better you than me.....


----------

