Shrimp Happens

[CJs Aquatics]

Hey all, gonna be trying shrimp again, (in the past they have always died on me). Eighter 2.5 gallon no filter or a 10 with UGF is what I’m thinking. Taking all tips as I’ve struggled with them before, shrimp happens…

comment what color neo you think I should try with an emoji for the fun of it I was thinking 

🔴

or

🟡

or

⚫️

thanks in advanced 

-CJ

[TeeJay]

I like having my shrimp in a 10 gall. Easier to keep the water stable. Mine is shrimp and snails only. I run 3 nano sponge filters with 2 being double stacked. They like grazing on the biofilm growing in them. For plants I like hornwort guppy grass and Java ferns and moss. I want with red since they seem to stay healthier.

[lefty o]

id also go with the 10g. a larger tank is always easier to keep stable, and clean.

[redfish]

I recently set up a 10g for shrimp so I'm interested in this thread.

[The Arthritic Aquarist]

Have also recently set up a 10 gallon with Fire Reds.  First time with Neocaridinas, so also interested in this discussion.  I've had them for about 2 months now and have read that they are easy to breed.  I have at least two males with the remainder being females.  Any tips on getting these critters to reproduce?

@CJs Aquatics I'd obviously vote for the reds.

I have mine with an HOB and the tank is pretty heavily planted, though a work in progress. Plants include Java Fern, Crypts, Italian Val and Dwarf Sag.  Tried Java Moss, but just seems to die back in my tank, though still a bit left.  Also have some Cardamine floating, which is doing quite well.

Have to say that I'm really enjoying the shrimp.

[The Arthritic Aquarist]

Just to add that I have a pre-filter sponge on my HOB intake and, like @TeeJay mentioned, they like to graze... ditto for lava rock.

[tolstoy21]

10 UGF hands down. I'd not go with anything smaller.  More water the better as you'll have more stability. If you don't do a UGF, then do a simple sponge filter. Sponge filters are nice as they give more grazing area. 

As for shrimp color, I'm partial to red, blue or orange.

Edited November 10, 2022 by tolstoy21

[AllFishNoBrakes]

On 11/9/2022 at 9:19 AM, The Arthritic Aquarist said:

Any tips on getting these critters to reproduce?

They’re pretty hands off, in my experience. I feed every other day, and other than that just let them do their thing. I also water change my shrimp tank the least out of any of my tanks. In my experience, just give them time and you’ll have more. Shrimplets are tiiiiiny, so it may not seem like you’re getting more, but I bet you are. Once you notice any berried females it’s game on!

@CJs Aquatics Go red to start! You literally can’t produce enough to keep your LFS stocked. I started with 30, and traded hundreds to my LFS. 
 

The only reason to start with anything other than red is to potentially get more store credit/shrimp or more $/each if you sell them, but cherry shrimp were an easy proof of concept for me. Now I’m looking to do something else for more store credit per each that I’ve proven I can do reds 

[CJs Aquatics]

Can I put them in my red lizard whiptail breeding tank that only has those, snails, and about 6-8 guppies, or should I dedicate a tank to them and them alone? Only reason I’m asking is bc the whiptail tank is suffering an algae issue so it’s got nothing but grazing area where as the other tank will be new and not seasoned… pros and cons to each I suppose but which would be the best?

[AllFishNoBrakes]

I haven’t kept whiptails, so I can’t speak on that specifically, but I really think it depends on your intentions. 
 

For me, I did a species only tank as I wanted them to breed so I could trade them or sell them. I did a 20 long, let it grow a bunch of algae, had some Java moss, and then started with 30 shrimp and just let it go crazy. If you’re wanting to breed/trade/sell I’d say species only. If you just wanna keep some shrimp, and probably produce a few more, you could throw them in with the whiptails and guppies and see what happens. I have shrimp in most of my tanks, but the species only was the one tank that produced a ton. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 11/8/2022 at 11:04 PM, CJs Aquatics said:

Hey all, gonna be trying shrimp again, (in the past they have always died on me). Eighter 2.5 gallon no filter or a 10 with UGF is what I’m thinking. Taking all tips as I’ve struggled with them before, shrimp happens…

comment what color neo you think I should try with an emoji for the fun of it I was thinking 

so.... shrimp enjoy (typically) cold, oxygenated water.  If you aren't running a filter at least run 2 airstones in a 20L.  10G is "fine" but you're better off with more floor space if you can manage it. A pile of different textures, specifically wood, moss, and some rocks is best.

[JettsPapa]

I posted some guidelines in another thread (see below).  You might get some useful information from it.  One thing mentioned there that I can't stress enough is to let the tank "season" for several months before adding the shrimp.

As far as colors, I'd say just get whatever color you think you'd like best, though if the tank you're planning to put them in is already set up you might want to let your substrate help decide.  Red and yellow shrimp show up best on dark substrate, but blue ones just about disappear on dark substrate and look much better on lighter ones.

 

[TeeJay]

Yes if your just looking to keep small numbers of shrimp you  can try starting  in the established tank. See how they do while you set up a shrimp only tank to start the seasoning process and can move some over as you numbers increase. I like a species only tank with snails. When I started the season process for there tank I took all the sponge filters from my other tanks and squeezed them into it. Yes it looks a mess at first but will give you a big boost in getting it going. I would also add tiny amounts of bacter ae to help the micro flora and fauna get going 

[CJs Aquatics]

@TeeJay that’s a great idea I think that’s a winner 

[TeeJay]

And if you like you can check out my shrimp journal in the journal section of the forums and see how I started and how it has progressed

[CJs Aquatics]

@TeeJay thank you I’m going to check it out 

[TeeJay]

On 11/10/2022 at 8:49 PM, CJs Aquatics said:

@TeeJay thank you I’m going to check it out 

It's my first ever shrimp tank so I thought it would be helpful to see what worked for me. And also not break the bank in setting it up. 

[BlueLineAquaticsSC]

A tip I learned from one of Cory’s videos is to put a Tums in the tank once a week as a calcium supplement. Inverts need calcium for healthy molts and a lot of prepaired foods don’t have enough. 

[Rita]

How exciting! I tried yellow Neos in one of my oldest tanks, but all of them ended up dying... appeared to be a failed shed. I have a bunch of Amano shrimp in a few tanks and they are bullet proof... I can't kill one of those if I tried. I've even stopped drip acclimating them when I get new ones since they just refuse to die. No clue why the two kinds react so differently in my water.

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 11/9/2022 at 10:47 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

so.... shrimp enjoy (typically) cold, oxygenated water.  If you aren't running a filter at least run 2 airstones in a 20L.  10G is "fine" but you're better off with more floor space if you can manage it. A pile of different textures, specifically wood, moss, and some rocks is best.

My tank is a mess of anacharis and water sprite, and the shrimp are never on the ground. They are constantly up in the plants. Try to find 4. Bonus point is you find a 5th one.

Edited November 11, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[nabokovfan87]

They are cleaning @Chick-In-Of-TheSeaLLol

I could make a joke about how my shrimp are never on the plants because of the algae, but yeah. Makes me sad. 😞

[Rita]

On 11/11/2022 at 3:22 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

My tank is a mess of anacharis and water sprite, and the shrimp are never on the ground. They are constantly up in the plants. Try to find 4. Bonus point is you find a 5th one.

Tell me why this picture reminds me of a Christmas tree with its lights on 😂 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 11/10/2022 at 11:20 PM, BlueLineAquaticsSC said:

A tip I learned from one of Cory’s videos is to put a Tums in the tank once a week as a calcium supplement. Inverts need calcium for healthy molts and a lot of prepaired foods don’t have enough. 

Do be careful with Tums. If they have color or flavor, or other ingredients, it may harm your inhabitants. Go with Wondershell or cuttlebone instead. Also if you want to be super cheap, rinse some egg shells to get the membrane out of them. Then crush them into powder and put that in the tank. Not pretty looking but it does the trick. Some foods containing calcium include Zoomed banquet blocks and Hikari crab cuisine.

Edited November 11, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[The Arthritic Aquarist]

@Chick-In-Of-TheSea I've been using the egg shell approach for some time.  Seems to work.  Started doing this for my snails and, more recently the shrimp. I boil the egg shells for a few minutes, then cool them down with cold water and remove the membrane.  I then crush them into a fine powder with a rolling pin and cutting board once they're dry.  I store the powder in a small container.  It goes a long way.

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 11/16/2022 at 11:29 AM, The Arthritic Aquarist said:

@Chick-In-Of-TheSea I've been using the egg shell approach for some time.  Seems to work.  Started doing this for my snails and, more recently the shrimp. I boil the egg shells for a few minutes, then cool them down with cold water and remove the membrane.  I then crush them into a fine powder with a rolling pin and cutting board once they're dry.  I store the powder in a small container.  It goes a long way.

 

I made a food with the powdered eggshells. It contained vegetables (put in blender) and some brine shrimp and fish food and Knox gelatin (unflavored). It is called Snello. They love it!  There are many Snello recipes on YouTube. It can be cut into cubes like Repashy and stored in the freezer.