Hiya, New here! Help me save this shrimp!

[jenaroo]

Hi,

My name is Jen. I am cat sitting for a family member and I saw a little shrimp ball that looks terrible. I figured they were all dead but I jiggled it around a bit and there one in there. The water is half gone and it's all cloudy/murky filled with poop I guess. She has had it for years, though I had not seen it since she first got it. Googling how to clean it I found this amazing place and read the truth about these little glass balls.

I am looking to help this little guy. I read .5g or 1g tank is best, but this is just one little guy, what would you all suggest? Is 1g too large for one shrimp?
I would consider getting him some friends if that is what's best, and if I can get them locally.

The glass ball does have what looks like a plug of some sort in the bottom so I am hoping it will open up easily once I have his home all set up for the suggested time.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I am assuming this is the same "Super Shrimp" he is tiny and red.I tried to upload a photo but it was too large.

Thanks!

Jen, and her new shrimp. (cause he will be coming home with me!)

[jenaroo]

https://imgur.com/VMWN8sf

[Kval1015]

I have a small tank for my shrimp that sits on my office desk. It's a 1/2 gallon tank, I've attached a photo.
There are 16 shrimp in this tank and they seem to be doing fine with the space.

I will say, whatever size you do plan on getting, make sure that there is a full coverage lid. I had an aquarium that had a small hole on the top glass and I had a massive loss of shrimp when something got into the water.

Best thing would be to start cycling a tank, it usually takes about a month or so, and then you can get this guy rescued!
Tons of resources on here about how to cycle and materials for tank set-up.

Happy rescuing!

[Super Jess]

Welcome, Jen! I say get a 1-gal tank and free the shrimp \o/

The benefit of a larger tank is it's less reactive to small changes. A covered 1-gal tank can fit a good number of shrimp, so there will be plenty of room for new shrimp friends for your single adoptee

If you follow the step-by-step instructions on this site you can't go wrong. That is a lucky shrimp!

[jenaroo]

Hi Kval and Super Jess!

Thanks so much for the suggestions!

I went to petco the next town over but didn’t have any luck with supplies. They only had huge bags, so I’m going to have to go the online route. Possibly even order here

Petco has no idea what I was talking about, so I directed them here!

I picked up a basic half gallon jar with lid at Walmart and but then remembered there was a tjmaxx near by and found a super snazzy jar that my sister in law will love if she decides she wants to keep him over me when she comes back home. It looks about a half gallon which I hope should be fine with one little guy for now and maybe a few friends down the road. I don’t really have the space for something much larger. It does have a lid, thanks for that tip! It will keep all the pet hair and dander out.

Super snazzy shrimp home: https://imgur.com/gallery/BFPRkb1

I will be reading around a bunch more and finding my supplies asap.

[Super Jess]

That is the snazziest shrimp home I have seen. They are going to love it!

If you want to share what state/area you live in you might find a neighbor here who could help with small amounts of salt and stuff. I know what you mean about the giant bags at Petco Or a local fish shop near you might be willing to help. Always good to make friends to talk with about our shrimp habit.

I'm in SoCal if that helps?

[jenaroo]

I ended up buying a big bag of Aragonite, Carib Sea brand and sea salt by Instant Ocean.LOL I actually saw both products at Petco but wasn’t sure the sea salt was appropriate. I found a video by Aquarimax on YouTube later that night. It was super informative and he recommended this site

In his video he said Aragonite was great because you wouldn’t need to add aditional calcium. I also purchased the salt because it was the exact product he suggested. Just wondering your thoughts?

Still waiting for my faux plants to arrive!

I ordered online so I didn’t have to go back to Petco since it’s a bit of a drive. I didn’t see any local aquarium shops closer than Rochester which is about 40 minutes away. I’m in Western Ny. But thanks so much for the offer SuperJess! That’s so kind!
Any readers in Geneva, Ny, I’ll have extra supplies if anyone is in need

I’m thinking later down the road I might set up a one gallon as you suggested.

[Dch48]

Okay, the correct amount of Instant Ocean salt is 4 level tablespoons per gallon. That makes half strength seawater which is what you want. It's what I use . I bought a 10 gallon size box on Amazon.

[jenaroo]

Thanks Dch48

I also bought the 10 gallon box of salt.

I can't wait to get i all set up

[Super Jess]

I’m in Western Ny. Any readers in Geneva, Ny, I’ll have extra supplies if anyone is in need

You're on your way! I used to live in Oneonta, but never made it over as far as Geneva. It looks like there might be an interesting salt water aquarium shop in Canandaigua called The Salty Dog. Could be handy if they're any good.

Post a pic with your fancy tank when you're set up!

[jenaroo]

SuperJess, you ARE super!

LOL I am notoriously terrible at google searches but i'm not sure how I missed that! I might stop in tomorrow, I should be out that way. I'd like to get some kind of rock or hidey-hole for the little guy. I'll post a pic once I've added that, right now it's just the substrate and a plastic plant. (which barely fit!)

I set it up yesterday, it was initially cloudy but seems to have settled now. Is that normal? Or did I not rinse the Aragonite well enough? Should I start over?
I rinsed the sand the added it and the plant to the tank. I mixed the water and salt in a bowl, stirred for a bit then added it to the tank. The tank was still cloudy when I went to bed but looks good now.

I haven't been out near Oneonta either. I moved here from Eastern Canada 9 years ago, no 10! Wow, time flies! I'm still discovering the area as much as my hermit ways allows, which is very slowly haha!

Just looking for a cool plant for this size tank was a challenge, I saw so many cool bonsai ones I wanted but were too big and ended up with just a dollar store looking one I'd really like to do something larger eventually and get that purple bonsai!

One more question, my desk is a bit wobbly, it's vintage and I love, love, love it.... would a little jiggle from (aggressively and poorly) playing games or cats jumping up bother shrimp? It's placed there now under my desk lamp for cycling but I could find a more stable spot.

Thanks so much everyone for all your guidance! <3

[Super Jess]

Cloudy is normal and should resolve itself completely in a few days. Regarding jiggles and vibrations , the shrimp like things pretty still and may find it stressful. I'd try to minimize tank movement as much as possible.

Feel enormously free to cut bits off your plastic aquarium plant and arrange them to fit however you like! If it's made for aquarium use it shouldn't cause any trouble. Super glue and Gorilla Glue are safe to use, and you can get creative with rocks formations, too, and customize everything for your space.

Curious about the fish shop. How salty was that dog? I have a local shop nearby where the staff are surly but the stuff is really nice, so kind of worth a visit if you're not looking to make friends

[jenaroo]

Heya!

ooooo! I didn't think of modifying decorations! That's a great idea!

I'll def move the tank to a calmer place before putting Bubba Gump in so he's not startled by all the wiggles and jiggles I'm still not sure if he'll be living with me or my sister inlaw but I'll make sure to pass on info and this site if she wants to keep him.

So! I went to The Salty Dog! On first glace it's not a super polished shop but it is a great place! I spoke with Kyle and he was so friendly and helpful, he really knows his stuff! He found me a man made stone with all kind of little nooks and crannies for Bubba to crawl around in
My husband and I spent close to an hour in there talking and looking around. We have been thinking about starting a saltwater tank for corals and fish and he gave us so much information. He even looked up Super Shrimp before suggesting any rocks and asked all about what type of substrate and salts I was using to make sure I had the right stuff. I'm def looking forward to going back there!

I'll post the link to a photo of the tank. I'd like to look for some other type of plant now that you have inspired me. The rock looks massive but there's still about a half in to an inch all around it for foraging. Let me know what you think.

https://imgur.com/a/gElfxv5

[Super Jess]

That rock looks great! The shrimp will love all those nooks and crannies, and they'll provide additional surface area for algae and biofilm. Cool to hear about that LFS (local fish shop), too. Sounds like the Kyle guy could be a good resource.

I vote you should get to keep Bubba after putting in so much good effort to improve his/her shrimpy life

[jenaroo]

Thanks! I'll find out in a couple of weeks. I decided to bring him up with the tank is ready