Shrimp Death question.

Santaaa · Post by **Santaaa** » Sat Apr 08, 2006 4:50 pm

I got some ghost shrimp and they lasted 1 day. They were fine and they all just started dying and they all died. I had 4 in half gallon bowl as I was told on another site that it was fine for me to keep that many in a half gallon. I also have a water softener that the water goes through could that have killed my shrimp? I read that it is only 99.5% salt and .5% cleaning aditives for getting your clothes cleaner I think that is what got them so I am going to bypass the water softener and boil the water let it cool off and add shrimp. I was told people keep them with bettas just fine so I figured they did not need an air stone. Was I wrong? I am going to test the water for copper before I add them too. If there is copper I will use spring water. Is this fine? Should I use an air stone? Is there anything else I should know? Should 4 shrimp be kept together in a half gallon bowl? Please Let me know. I am going to get a copper test kit tomorrow.

fishgeek · Post by **fishgeek** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 12:43 am

http://www.petshrimp.com/articles/whyshrimpdead.html

try here for most of your questions
andrew

Santaaa · Post by **Santaaa** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 2:56 am

I already read that but it does not list stocking levels. I could have overfed them.

The water conditioner I used is supposed to be safe for inverts and remove heavy metals. I use Novaqua+. Will iron hurt shrimp? The only things I can think of that could have killed them would be overfeeding, the water softener could have gotten them. No one has answered my question anywhere do they or do they not need an air pump? If they do could they really run out of air in a day? I only kept them with out an air pump as they said you keep them in betta bowls on other pages with a betta. Can I really keep 4 ghost shrimp in a half gallon bowl or is that way to many of them? Is there anything else I should know?

fishgeek · Post by **fishgeek** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 5:29 am

you say they were in the water only 1 day
either the water was not ideal or the shrimp were already on there way out

andrew

BOD demand depends on many things, so the air pump in cool fresh water is probably not needed for 4 shrimp with a decent surface area to the water to allow gaseous exchange

then again put them in a spherical tank with a small opening and minimal air movement at the surface and they will use up the oxygen

most important info would be your ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels
was the tank cycled etc

Shrimp&Snails · Post by **Shrimp&Snails** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 6:41 am

I wouldn't even bother trying to keep a plant alive in a half gallon bowl let alone live animals.

Shrimp need a cycled planted tank with a filter and a heater (if it gets chilly where you are).

The smallest tank I personally would go for is a 10 UK gallon tank. I had a little 4 UK gallon years ago and won't keep a small tank again. Trying to keep the water stable in a small tank is harder than keeping water in a larger tank. You also end up wanting more critters but can't buy anymore or you'll be overcrowding the tank.

A larger tank also means more space for lush plants & mosses, rocks, wood and other decor.

Good luck

badflash · Post by **badflash** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 7:00 am

Welcome to the forum. It was probably the water that killed them. Make up water should be conditioned dechlorinated water. These shrimp do well in hard basic water. They also can't go into straight conditioned water, it must be cycled.

I agree that a 10 gallon tank is the best, but I have kept them for a very long time in a 5 gallon tank with good filtration and regular weekly 20% water changes. A 10 gallon tank is less expensive than a 5 gallon tank, so go for the 10 gallon. In a 10 gallon aquarium I've kept 30 ghost shrimp for months with no troubles. I had Endler's live brearers with them and the two got along pretty well. The ghost would get a fish every now and then, but these were probably sick already. If you keep these shrimp with fish you'll have no chance of babies as they hatchlings are perfect food for fish. I used a separate tank for the females with eggs.

You need to establish the tank for a couple of weeks with a bunch of snails and feed the snails to establish the bacterial needed. An inexpensive undergravel filter works well.

The fish bowl is fine if you are using them as feeders and will use them all in a few days, but forget it for pets. You could store them in that bowl for a day or two as long as properly aged aquarium water was used.

Santaaa · Post by **Santaaa** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 7:25 am

I guess alot of things could have gotten them. I had a bowl 1/2 gallon no air pump and no live plants. 4 shrimp with some gravel and a plastic plant and little tiki statue. I live in the USA so no idea how big a UK gallon is. I was told I could keep 4 of them in a bowl alive as long as I changed the water completely every 3-4 days. Guess that is not the case. I left some room at the top so there was some decent surface area. Maybe I will try a bigger tank and a sponge filter I have another tank 2 gallons that I am trying to do a fishless cycle for so I can get some Least killifish. They are 7th smallest fish in the world. Don't worry about the fish though I checked with lots of people online breeders and people who already keep them. I was going to keep a few shrimp with them I was using the bowl to quarantine them before my cycle finished so I could add them when the fish got there. Guess I probably should not keep them with the Least Killifish. I really liked them so I am going to try a larger tank. Maybe a critter keeper with a lid. So maybe this time they will do better. What size tank minimum should I get? US gallon please. Is it hard to cycle a tank with shrimp? Do you think a 5 gallon tank would be a good size for just a few shrimp? I am going to get ghost shrimp again but from a different store. I really liked them until they started to die and was a bit shocked. I am going to bypass the water softener then I am going to boil the water and let it cool off and add water conditioner before adding shrimp What about using biospira to start a tank? Alot of people swear by the stuff for cycling a fish tank. I have yet to hear anything bad about it. It is hard to get but I checked the manufacturer site and it said that my pet store has it. It is a bag of live bacteria so you do not have to grow it. If it is the same as cycling a fish tank? It is supposed to completely cycle within 24 hours. Is there anything I need to know to successfully keep them? What sort of substrate is best? Gravel? Sand? I heard some people use crushed up coral. Can I keep a few freshwater clams with them like 1 or 2? What plants do they like? What about Plant bulbs like you see at Wal-Mart that you throw in and they grow from a bulb like a tulip only underwater. I think I want to try a ghost shrimp only tank. The max I can get is 10 gallon as I am going to college soon and that is the largest tank allowed. How many can keep in a 5 gallon tank? I may get only a few shrimp like 1 or 2 and then add more later once it is cycled? Do you think this is a good idea? Let me know what I need as I was hoping to get some today if I can.

Shrimp&Snails · Post by **Shrimp&Snails** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 7:38 am

10 gallon [UK] = 12.009 499 204 gallon [US, liquid]

I would do a fishless cycle....adding a couple of fish flakes for the good bio bugs to feed on and monitor the water. After a couple of weeks you'll notice you'll have zero ammonia, zero nitrItes and a reading for nitrAtes.

Shrimp won't survive the cycling process.....they are too sensitive.

Santaaa · Post by **Santaaa** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 7:50 am

I started a fishless cycle awhile ago for my 2 gallon and it has been a month since then about it has only a small reading of nitrite. It is supposed to spike Nitrite then drop ammonia to zero then the Nitrite is supposed to go to zero and the Nitrate is supposed to spike. I am using pure ammonia to do that cycle. Do you think trying the biospira. Which is live bacteria would work alright in a 10 US gallon? They are out of ghost shrimp at the store. Will snails make it through the cycle? How many should I get? Will they leave my shrimp alone when I get them? Also will the shrimp leave my snail alone when I get the shrimp? Do you think clams would be alright. I want to get 1 or 2 eventually.

Shrimp&Snails · Post by **Shrimp&Snails** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 8:07 am

I wouldn't use snails to cycle a tank because they are just as sensitive as shrimp regarding nitrite and ammonia. Snail's bodies swell and they become lethargic....unable to close up due to the swelling and will eventually die if not removed in time and dead snail messes up water params.

Smaller tanks are harder to cycle so that could explain the nitrite present in your 2g tank.

I haven't used bio spira but I have heard people say it worked for them.

My snails (apple snails - Pomacea bridgesii, nerites, mts and baby ramshorms) all get along fine with my shrimp. The only problem occurs if you are keeping soft water shrimp....the snail's shells turn white and erode over time in soft water.

Clams will bury in your substrate and need to be fed spirulina powder from a pipette....I looked into keeping them but changed my mind.

fishgeek · Post by **fishgeek** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 8:28 am

unless biospira has an expiry date on and is used well before this and in a darkend tank
then personally i dont think it will work

denitryfing bacteria can not live in a sealed container with no food and no oxygen for an indefinite period

if they are dead sporulated bacteria then they will not cycle the tank in the time suggested

denitryfing bacteria are susceptible to degradation by uv light and will be knocked around by even sunlight and to a lesser degree tank lights until they can establish a colony on a surface

recent advances in understanding and naming the bacteria involved only serve to further point out our lack of understanding, most bacteria that were suggested 10 years ag have been superceded, i am sure that the one's currently in fashion are not the whole answer

the only way to tell is by measuring your water
the best route to quick cycling is seeding from an established tanks filter

andrew

badflash · Post by **badflash** » Sun Apr 09, 2006 4:36 pm

I wouldn't use snails to cycle a tank because they are just as sensitive as shrimp regarding nitrite and ammonia.

That may be true of apple snails, but not good old pond snails. I've started up many tanks with pond snails and have never had a problem.

BTW Santaaa- I am from the US and 10 gallons is 10 gallons.

Get your water right and the shrimp will do fine. Most pets stores have no clue about the animals they sell. They don't have them long enough to care, and at least half of what they get die in the store.

Santaaa · Post by **Santaaa** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 2:38 am

I wish I had seen this site before I got my first shrimp. I feel bad for them. People on petfish.net had told me that I could keep them just fine in a small container. I don't think I will go back to that site. I am going to try and get my Mom to buy one of my gift certificates to the book store since I never go there. Then over Easter vacation I am going to drive into Wal-Mart and pick up a tank kit. Also I will just buy 10 gallons of spring water since it is going to be a cycled tank. I want to have an almost completly freshwater invert tank. I would do a complete invert tank but I want to get some Least Killifish. They are supposed to have too small of mouths to eat Shrimp. 10 gallons is the largest I can get that I can still take to college with me. I will try a fishless cycle on a new 10 gallon. So even adding only 1 or 2 shrimp would not work? Slowly adding more of them. Instead of the fishless cycle.

shrimpbaby · Post by **shrimpbaby** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 5:36 am

If you're already planning a fishless cycle on another tank then I would go ahead and do a fishless cycle on your 10g tank. My understanding is that after fishless cycling you are supposed to be able to add your full stocking amount immediately. I know some people that have used biospira successfully but it seems kind of hit or miss to me. I've never used it myself.

Shrimp&Snails · Post by **Shrimp&Snails** » Mon Apr 10, 2006 5:57 am

shrimpbaby wrote:My understanding is that after fishless cycling you are supposed to be able to add your full stocking amount immediately.

Always add fish or snails gradually to a tank......the tank won't be able to handle full stocking in one go and your tank will start to show nitrIte, go into a mini cycle and make the tank occupants ill, stressed and they could die.