Feeding Neocaridina Shrimp

[campingdude84]

I am adding some neocaridinia shrimp to my tank tomorrow.

What should I feed them?

is Baxter AE good?

any other products good? 

thank you.

[nabokovfan87]

 

On 10/25/2023 at 12:15 PM, campingdude84 said:

I am adding some neocaridinia shrimp to my tank tomorrow.

What should I feed them?

is Baxter AE good?

any other products good? 

Is this an existing fish community tank?

[campingdude84]

On 10/25/2023 at 5:21 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

 

Is this an existing fish community tank?

Yes. It is. Guppies, endlers, cory, Cardinal tetras, and rasboras.

[campingdude84]

On 10/25/2023 at 5:21 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

 

Is this an existing fish community tank?

Why did you ask if it was as an existing community tank? Is that bad or good?

[nabokovfan87]

On 10/25/2023 at 3:48 PM, campingdude84 said:

Yes. It is. Guppies, endlers, cory, Cardinal tetras, and rasboras.

That makes it a bit difficult. Shrimp can be more nocturnal in that scenario as the fish will be sleeping when they are out trying to find food. This means that trying to feed them once the lights go out might be critical long term.

Having the fish in there means that having a lot of hides for baby shrimp is going to be one of the only ways to ensure you have juvenile and adults that can avoid the fish.

Your other issue, for some lines, can be a sensitivity to nitrite. If you're feeding the fish and nitrites go up pretty quickly, that might lead to stress in the shrimp. I only mention it as a thing to keep an eye on.

I do have cull shrimp in my 75G and there's not a lot of fish. I have a few adults, but I also have tried to add ways for the shrimp to have intricate hides for the baby shrimp where there's no way the fish can get them. I haven't worked out feeding, I am yet to see a baby shrimp, but the adults are doing ok.

The one thing I can say is that as long as the tank is heavily planted the shrimp should be ok.  Water changes can be a weird thing for shrimp. Some people say that you should drop water in, while I've also seen others who treat it like a normal fish tank without issue.  Again, I just mention it as something to keep an eye on if you see something like molt issues.

On 10/25/2023 at 8:34 PM, campingdude84 said:

Why did you ask if it was as an existing community tank? Is that bad or good?

Method for feeding would be a little different that's all. You would essentially feed the corydoras and the shrimp would eat what's left. That's pretty much it. You might directly feed a complete food at night (mentioned above) 1-2x a week.

[JettsPapa]

On 10/25/2023 at 2:15 PM, campingdude84 said:

I am adding some neocaridinia shrimp to my tank tomorrow.

What should I feed them?

is Baxter AE good?

any other products good? 

thank you.

First, I wouldn't feed Bacter AE.  While I've seen some shrimp keepers say it works well for them, I've also seen an alarming of reports of it killing every shrimp in the tank.  I have never used it, and my shrimp grow and multiply just fine.  Even people who do use it say to feed much less than the directions recommend.

Since they're in a tank with fish you don't really need to target feed them, but of course you can if you want to.

Edited October 26, 2023 by JettsPapa

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 10/25/2023 at 3:15 PM, campingdude84 said:

is Baxter AE good?

Bacter AE is a very good product to feed shrimp. Although many have reported that the dosing instructions are WAAAAY off on the package instructions (!), and I agree.  You'll want to go with a very minute dose.  Ignore the spoon that comes with the product.  In a 10 gallon, use the tip of a toothpick to scoop out the product. Whatever little pile is on your toothpick is what you feed.  You can double this for a 20 gallon tank, etc... It is best to mix it with a bit of tank water in a container (my friend uses a water test kit vial and shakes it up; I use a condiment cup from a takeout meal) and then pour it in so it doesn't just sit on the top of the water.  I'd only do the bacter AE once a week.  It does create a film on surfaces for the shrimp to eat but also adds microorganisms to your tank, which are great for keeping your tank clean.  Overdose it though, and it could foul the water and/or result in detritus worms (not harmful, but unsightly in large numbers). Read some Amazon reviews to gain some insight on the product effects.  Bacter AE is great for shrimplets and increases their survival rate.

Other things I feed my shrimp are:

Soilent green Repashy powder (small pinch, dilute w/ tank water & pour in)

Prepared Repashy with calcium carbonate mixed in

Shrimp lollies (see Etsy) - these are really fun.

Shrimp Cuisine

Boiled vegetables. Spinach is their favorite. I also give mine green beans, zucchini, squash..  These are fun too because the shrimp frenzy on the vegetables.  I weigh the veggies down with a plant weight.

On 10/25/2023 at 11:34 PM, campingdude84 said:

Why did you ask if it was as an existing community tank? Is that bad or good?

If you are looking to have a large colony of shrimp, a community tank can hinder that because fish will eat shrimplets.

Edited October 26, 2023 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea