Why do you even keep ordering shrimp when you don't even have your water parameters under control yet?
In an established tank one dead shrimp will not raise your ammonia in a way that your bacteria could not deal with it...in other words...a test kit would not even register it.
Also, if you keep ordering from that place in the "grand canyon state" then you will keep getting dead or half-dead shrimp, which will mostly be dead in a few days to a week or so...even if you give them the best conditions.
I suggest you perform a few searches in the forum before you continue...spend a few hours or days reading posts so you don't make the same old mistakes over and over again. After all, that's the purpose of this website.
Mustafa wrote:
I suggest you perform a few searches in the forum before you continue...spend a few hours or days reading posts so you don't make the same old mistakes over and over again. After all, that's the purpose of this website.
Great advise again Mustafa.
I know it takes time, but it will be well worth it in the end. I for one have not lost a single shrimp since doing so.
JK wrote:
Great advise again Mustafa.
I know it takes time, but it will be well worth it in the end. I for one have not lost a single shrimp since doing so.
Its so much more rewarding in the end.
It's always great to read/hear that forum members have benefited from the information presented on this website and forum. That's really the purpose of this whole website...to provide people with the right advice so they can keep their shrimp alive and eventually breed them.
This is the only way to grow the hobby...by turning everyone into *informed* shrimp keepers.
I'm sorry mustafa. I think I explained it....slightly off. these ghosts and others are not from....our friends in arizona. They have arrived in good conditions, excluding that ghost shrimp that came dead. And I accept that mostly as my fault because I got home late and they had sat there in a box for 5 hours in less than acceptable temperatures. I'm surprised that any of them survived considering how cold it was that day. The ammonia is .05 not .5 . typo. The shrimp are not acting excessively strange (no backflipping/swimming etc. like they are trying to escape (as I've heard on the forum). but they seem active enough so that I don't think they are dying.) I think I made it sound like I was doing large water changes also. I've done 3 small 1/4 gallon water changes over 3 days. I also admit that I have accidentally left a little too much food in there because i couldnt see 2 sinking food disks that fell behind a clump of najas and I didn't see them till they were almost totally dissolved a day later.
also I had a bunch of dead najas leaves that fell off and a ton of those little worm things stuck to the sponge over my power filter that I changed earlier today. There was tons of tiny corpses and dead leaves all over it. I didn't notice earlier because they were in the fringes of the sponge, but once I started rinsing it out it was disgusting how many there were. I just over reacted to the dead shrimp. also I've spent tons of time hovering around going articles reading. I am going to be home when My shrimp arrive tomorrow and I have no doubt my tank is adequately cycled. I could be wrong, But I watch the nitrites go up, then I watched them go away to be replaced by nitrates which are currently at .10 ppm no detectale nitrites. all I have is .05 ppm of ammonia.
And even if the place I got them from is horrible, where am I supposed to get my shrimp? you never seem to have any good stock, and my LFS is Disgusting. The only places left have horrible reputation.....and even if there are some I don't know about we can't talk about them. is there no where left to turn? is it now buy from you or don't buy at all? Mustafa's shrimp or no shrimp? you might say I could aquire them from a friend, or maybe a local fish auction. Shrimp keeping is a new hobby, and I'm up here in Maine. Most fish auctions around here are for dead fish. and the live ones (that I've never heard of) probably wouldn't have shrimp. We get things several years behind you guys down there. I think the place I got my shrimps from is good, but I might be wrong. I'm sorry for the rant, but it's how it is. I might not look at the forums enough. I might be a horrible shrimp owner. If I am and don't realize it I'm sorry for my shrimp. I'll try harder...and harder.
Hi Pea-brain,
I agree with Mustafa as well. Please spend more time researching on buying/keeping shrimps especially when it comes to ordering shrimps from the "grand canyon state". However, please also read the forum rules in regards to posting messages about asking to buy/sell shrimps as this is not allowed. Just a few pointers.
If you persist to have fish, otocinculus will be the best along with some small Cory species (still not recommended though). Or if you are willing to scarifice several shrimplets in the future here and there (after you have actually cycled your tank, bought live shrimps, and bred them) because of fish eating them, then I would recommend Boraras briggitae. They are very nice looking fish, small, and you can buy a small group of 10 or so in a 10 gallon tank. However, based on the picture of your tank, I believe there is barely any hiding space for shrimplets to hide in the future. Also, the fish you listed (ghost catfish and etc.) are basically going to feast on the shrimps even if you only have 1 fish. Just think for just a second: Have you seen people use night-crawlers, red wigglers, crickets, or shrimps (does not matter what size) for fishing? Well the answer is Yes. If an animal has a jaw, I am pretty sure it can stretch its jaw bone to swallow something bigger than their mouth. Just my thoughts. I wish you luck for your next time.
I wasn't asking for advise in particular. It was rhetorical. I was just trying to prove my point. again these shrimps are not from the state of arizona. I realize Mustafa is right. he's always right. he's like some kind of infallable god lol just kidding. I'm not planning to breed my shrimp right now, and If I was I would get a small tank, cycle it and move the female in there. I don't believe I will get a fish though, and if they breed I won't stop them.
Pea-brain wrote:I realize Mustafa is right. he's always right. he's like some kind of infallable god lol just kidding.
The happy face doesn't change much here. This is Mustafa's site and his advice is good. You have no clue at this point, so you really need to pay attention or you'll just keep flushing shrimp and your money down the drain.
You also might want to read rule #6 in DA RULES. Keep it up & I'll sure we'll be seeing your posts with the little BANNED tag under it.
I wasn't criticising. I'm sorry but it's hard to convey tone over the net. I was just pointing out that he does seem to know everything, and that I was wrong. seriously, I wasn't trying to offend.
Pea-brain,
You know there is a option you can use in this forum called "PM". Use it to send private messages to others in regards to acquiring shrimps. If you are nice and friendly enough, I am pretty sure forum members here will be more than happy to help you in the private messages. I do not believe you needed to drag your tragic shrimp keeping experiences with Mustafa's shrimp availability here such as what you have stated:
And even if the place I got them from is horrible, where am I supposed to get my shrimp? you never seem to have any good stock, and my LFS is Disgusting. The only places left have horrible reputation.....and even if there are some I don't know about we can't talk about them. is there no where left to turn? is it now buy from you or don't buy at all? Mustafa's shrimp or no shrimp?
I have had some similar experiences in the past as you have (when I started shrimp keeping), but we all learn from our mistakes and cannot really succeed from 1st attempt, especially keeping super sensitive animals. God knows how much money and time I have wasted because of my prior inexperiences but I have learned a lot from members here who are kind enough to give their precious advices to me and that includes Mustafa himself (sorry to other forum members, I cannot list all of your names since the list is too long). If you are not willing to put some time into learning this shrimp hobby, then I believe it is not for you then (that goes for fish hobby as well).
In regards to your problems about your Najas leaves falling off, I believe it could be a super ammonia spike at 1 point during the day, a very sudden tremendous change in pH or temperature, or something you have introduced that you did not pay attention to. I have had Najas leaves dying very suddenly due to high temperature change along with a pH crash.
the leaves feel off during cycling and when I was rearranging them. they've been decaying on the spong eof the power filter for weeks now. i realize I was being overdramatic, but to avoid this happening to more and more beginners It might be a good idea to have an offsite directory with a list of breeders and peoples experience with said breeders/sellers. I really haven't been trying to annoy, insult, or otherwise peeve anyone off. really. I have just had a really bad day, and then this. I am sorry if the way I worded anything offended anyone, or was mistaken as offensive. I just took some things that were said and took them too far. I took offense to things that were ment to help me, and acted defensive in response when I shouldn't have. Mustafa, seriously I was probably wrong, and you know more about this than I do. I will not post again today for fear that i offend someone again. please forgive what was said (even though I didn't mean it in the way that you seem to think I did)
I think it would be a good idea to be able to understand how to keep your tank water cycled and of a high quality. Leaving decaying najas leaves in the tank for weeks isn't a good idea and you should remove them asap.
Allow your tank to cycle (zero ammonia, zero nitrIte with a small reading for nitrAte), read up on the species of shrimp you want and the water parameters they require and read up on how to keep your water healthy for shrimp.
Hi Pea-brain,
Mustafa have mentioned already in previous post then he might do that in the future after the shrimp hobby is totally established. Then he himself will make a directory for who he believes are reputable breeders/sellers.
But this shrimp hobby is still relatively new and there are still a lot need to be learned. In addition, many people want to try this shrimp keeping hobby but a lot of them do not have the experiences to do so. And that is why Mustafa created this site for this purposes only. In Asia such as Hong Kong, China, Singapore, and Japan, most of the shrimp hobbyists are more into 1 certain type of shrimp and that is Crystal Red/Black Bee shrimps. Those shrimp hobbyists over there just care about breeding different grades of the same shrimps (for display and reputation in my point of view - and correct me if I am wrong any forum members out here). So therefore most of them do not really care about other shrimp varieties right now. And then there are the exporters from other countries such as India, Sri Lanka, and China who doesn't know anything about shrimps, but just catch them to sell for a quick buck. Also, because of their ignorance and greed, the exporters along with others are basically destroying our natural habitats of the Earth. And that is also one of the reason why Mustafa created this shrimp hobby to hope others can breed all of the wonderful shrimps in the world in captivity and spread to others and saving our natural environment.
So I believe until we develop a large base of shrimp hobbyists, then I really believe Mustafa will do exactly what you have stated.
Something another forum I belong to does is list a registy of who is keeping what variety of Endler. This isn't a for sale section, but it does give people the ability to know who to PM about things that are not appropriate for the forum.
However, people willing to do a little data mining can easily see who is posting info about their favorite shrimp & ask politely via PM.
You can also post topics about your experience, good or bad with certain dealers without leaving a link to their website.
I'm sure Mustafa will have his cherries back to full force shortly, so just be patient.
Good news. As I was acclimating my new arrivals (I couldn't think of any other tank good enough at hand. the only other tank near is a cold water frog tank) I saw my little cherry sitting on my sponge filter. I was positive it was dead. I hadn't seen it in days and remember scooping out a little white thing about the size of my cherry a few days ago. it most definately wasn't alive, whatever it was. But it is sitting on my sponge filter, turning a nice red color. And I'm just about to put the new arrivals in. my ammonia is creeping down also. In light of this new revelation I seem to lose faith that it was my tank water that killed the previous 2 shrimp and clams, and maybe just the place I bought them from. All the new arrivals seem healthy and have been acclimating for a while. no DOA's or strange behavior. I'm sure my cherry will like having some company any comments or whatever? I'm pretty happy my little cherry is alive in any case. Maybe things will be all right......
I hadn't seen it in days and remember scooping out a little white thing about the size of my cherry a few days ago. it most definately wasn't alive, whatever it was.
This was most likely the molted shell of the shrimp . Best wishes on you new shrimp and remember to learn from the good and the bad
That's really the purpose of this whole website...to provide people with the right advice so they can keep their shrimp alive and eventually breed them. 
lol just kidding. I'm not planning to breed my shrimp right now, and If I was I would get a small tank, cycle it and move the female in there. I don't believe I will get a fish though, and if they breed I won't stop them.
. Best wishes on you new shrimp and remember to learn from the good and the bad 