Companions:
Companions for the Dwarf are generally avoided, as they are easily out competed for food and make obvious targets to be picked on.  However, tiny hermit type crabs, red shrimps (the ones from Hawaii) and snails make suitable tank mates and will help provide a healthy tank balance.
Housing:
Seahorses spend most of their day hitched to plants so they will need plastic plants such as sea grass or live marine plants such as Caulepra to hold on to.  Dwarfs do best in smaller tanks.  You can happily house them in anything from a fishbowl with filtration all the way up to a 10 gallon.  The use of the 10-gallon is not recommended for beginners due to feeding concentrations.  Newly hatched brine shrimp are very small!!  The larger the tank, the more brine shrimp that is needed to concentrate feeding. When using the 10-gallon tank you would also need to house at least 10 dwarfs to even out the concentration so there is less die off.  I find a 2 or a 5-gallon to be the best size and food concentration is easier.  A 2-gallon tank can easily hold 5 pair including any babies that they may have.

Substrate:
After considerable research and trial I find sand to be the best choice in substrate.  Although rumor may indicate differently associating that dwarfs may snick up sand, I personally find this folly because if you consider their natural environment sand is unavoidable.  I presently use black sand, which really significantly improves the tank aesthetically and allows better visualization of the dwarfs making them a lot more noticeable.  Other substrate such as crushed coral or sand may be used alone or with sand as well.  Live rock and sand should highly be avoided as they may hide creatures that may harm or pick on the dwarfs and also may house and abundance of hydroids, which may not be visible to the eye, but add some newly hatched brine and presto you now have a happy colony of hydroids that will plague your tank.

Filtration:
I find that sponge filters work best.  I do not recommend bio wheel filters or power filters unless modified, because they are too strong and will suck up the baby brine and fry and even adult dwarfs.  However, if you personally feel the need to use these types of filters, either placing filter floss in the intake cap or using a sponge filter over the intake may be used to modify them.  You also need to consider the outflow current as well.  There are ways to modify this by placing dead rock (which will in time be live rock without the unwanted critters) under the outflow or even a breeder container/net.  There are other ways of modification as well, but I find the sponge filter to be virtually maintenance free outside bi-monthly rinsing in tank change water.

Feeding:
Feed your seahorses daily with live brine.  You can hatch your own in a small clear separate container in salt water.  I use a juice container with the spout (the kind you get at Wal-Mart, please see my hatching method) and add some decapsulated eggs into it.  There are many other ways to hatch brine, just find a system that works best for you.  I do not recommend the use of the little black box with the brine cysts kits because the cysts are not decapsulated, the black box maybe used to hatch brine cysts that you have decapsulated yourself.  You can also buy or raise brine to adult, however they seem to enjoy the smaller ones most of all.  Brine takes about 18-32 hours to hatch.  For the first 48 hours the brine still have yolk sacs and do not have mouths so enriching is not needed, but after this I encourage enriching the brine because the really do not provide enough fatty acids as a staple.  There are many preparations on the market to do this, algae pastes, green water, Naturose (www.petwhse.com) and Vibrance (www.oceanrider.com) are my favorite choices.

If you plan to be away for a few days you can add some decapsulated brine eggs to the tank, which will hatch within 24-36 hours.  I like to add some decapsulated brine the night before and right as I leave because this will provide different hatch times.  I also supply a liberal amount of live brine as well.

For adult brine try this:

• Take any size clean container fill with salt water
• Keep outside under a covered area and drop some decapsulated eggs in
• 4 weeks later, Presto! you have adult brine
• No need to feed them as the pollen and fallen leaves and algae will feed them however, you can throw a few pieces of flake food in there
• Do not do water changes on the brine as it seems to kill them off, but do add fresh water as needed to maintain proper salinity

Brine Shrimp Note:
During my independent study and work with Dwarfs I found a correlation with hydroids (colonial polyp type critters with stinging nematocysts) to undecapsulated brine.  I decapsulate all my brine cysts prior to feeding and have actually noticed a decline in hydroid infestations.  This is an easy extra step that may look intimidating at first, but truly is an easy procedure that offers many benefits.  Outside the decreased risk of hydroids you will have much cleaner water without the hassles of shells.  I also notice a higher hatch rate with this.  Please see my instructions on brine decapsulation.  Basically you soak brine cysts in aerating (using an air pump and allow to aerate during the whole process) tap water for an hour or so.  Add some bleach about 1/3 of the amount of water they have soaked in and in about 7 minutes when they are a yellowish orange you rinse until the bleach odor is absent.  Use of dechlor or Sodium Thiosulfate if you have may be used to speed up the rinsing process.  After completion you may hatch the eggs right away in whole or in part.  Leftover eggs may be stored in the refrigerator for about a week in a small amount of salt water.  Try using your water change water to hatch brine.

Tank care:
As with any tank whether fresh or salt water, monthly water changes are essential.  This is because debris and waste get collected and accumulate over a period of time creating an increase in nitrates which may harm your fish thus a 10%-25% monthly water change is essential.  I recommend bottled distilled water or RO/DI.  for water changes and to mix your salt water 24 hours prior to water change.  I use Instant Ocean and although they say you can use this mixture right away I feel that mixing ahead of time allows for better oxygenation and settlement of essential trace minerals.  I have also heard freshly mixed synthetic salt water contains a small amount of ammonia.  For this reason I usually keep a several gallons of premixed salt water at all times.  On top of monthly water changes, fresh water needs to be replaced as evaporation occurs.  To watch this I mark my tank at the top of the water line with a grease pencil or eyeliner and as water evaporates I add in fresh water.  Do not use water straight from your tap.  Salt does not evaporate so do not add extra salt.  I usually keep my specific gravity at about 1.019 and basically the ratio of 1/2 cup of synthetic sea salt to one full gallon of water will meet this standard.  You can purchase a hydrometer, which is essential in proper salt-water maintenance.  This will measure the correct SG/salinity.

Breeding:
Breeding is very common with Dwarfs.  Just get a couple pair and watch them court.  They typically will only breed in groups of at least 4 but not always the rule.  I recommend using trace elements, although not necessary and supplied in good synthetic sea salt they seem to be happier with trace elements.  I use SeaLab# 28, 1/2 pound box in small blocks.  One pack will last a very long time.  I get it from www.petwhse.com.  However, again, this is not necessary and if you use trace elements you can get them at most marine fish stores.

Courting:
Courting rituals are very fascinating to observe.  It begins by the male approaching the female and turning a very light color (seahorses will often change outfits many times to match their environment or favorite plant).  I have seen them go from a dark brown to a pale yellow or white to a pea green and very light pink!  He will then start to shake and raise his head over his mate's; she will return his courting by doing the same.  Courting may take from a few hours to several days.  You will notice at this time the pouch of the male will balloon up and fill with water and he will start pumping to cleanse his pouch and prepare for the transport of eggs.  YES!!  The males get pregnant.  Mamma will usually look plump as she prepares her eggs for the male.  It only takes a female a few hours to do this and you will notice the happy couple hold tails and dance their way to the top of the tank and down a few times.  She will then deposit her eggs into the pouch of the male.  Gestation is typically from 10-14 days, although I had a male wait 18 days!  Fry are born alive and are totally independent at birth.  Normal birth rate is from 3-30.  Fry success rate is 60% or more depending on water quality and good care and plenty of food.  Just like with any fish fry.  The male will be ready to mate again in 3- 4 days.  It is recommended during breeding to carefully monitor bubbles from the filter as they can enter into the male pouch and cause complications.  I usually face the bubbles towards the glass or just don't run the filter during this time.

Dwarf Seahorse Fry Care:
If you have Dwarfs you will most likely have babies.  When they are born they are tiny exact miniatures of their parents and are totally independent at birth.  Most will hitch right away and some will seem to hang down at the gravel.  You can keep them in the same tank with the parents.  Provide them with plenty of newly hatched brine less then 18 hours old for the first few days.  With proper care you can enjoy them and watch them have babies as well.  Maturation for them is approximately 3 months old.

Important Items to Have on Hand:

• Turkey baster for cleaning the bottom of smaller tanks, water changes on smaller tanks, sucking out brine and moving Dwarf fry
• Brine shrimp nets
• Containers for hatching and decapsulating brine
• Medications such as Kanacyn, Paragon II, Neomycin and malachite green or Formalin in case of illness

Caution:
Avoid sudden temperature changes.  Do not keep your tank near the window or heat source.  Do not use soap or other detergents remember what is on your hand as well, if needed, highly diluted bleach to clean supplies can be safely used, but must be rinsed off thoroughly until there is no odor of bleach.  Do not use beach sand and avoid colored gravel.  Do not use metal objects in tank as salt corrodes metals leaving behind toxins.

Conclusion:
Seahorse keeping is a very enjoyable hobby, however it is a responsibility and proper tank management is vital.  Should you feel that you might become bored or even have the possibility of being over whelmed with the work involved please do not indulge in this hobby.  Seahorses are threatened and the vast majority are collected and depleted from their natural environment.  Please make all efforts to purchase tank-raised horses.  These horses are healthier and are acclimated to living in tanks.  Wild caught horses are more prone to disease and most hobbyists are unable to properly care for them.  If you do decide you are ready for the challenge of seahorses you will be rewarded with timeless amounts of pleasure.  They are sociable and all seem to have their own personalities.  They enjoy the company of each other and it is one of the most spectacular sights to watch them court.  We as seahorse keepers have a great responsibility to educate and offer this species the best of care.  Reproducing healthy tank raised species is a goal that all seahorse keepers should consider.  Let us try to keep nature healthy with seahorses and not deplete them.  It would be a dreadful conclusion if one day our children read a book, "Once upon a time there was a creature called the Seahorse..."  Let us be responsible and help this wonderful fish.