Saddled or not?

[peterm242]

I'm
Having issues knowing whether or not this shrimp is saddled. I am pretty sure I see the saddle, but it really doesn't look female. Here's a photo.

[Mustafa]

Yes, you have a female with eggs in her ovaries ("saddle").

[peterm242]

Yes, you have a female with eggs in her ovaries ("saddle").

Now i have like 6 of them. This one has been saddled for 2 weeks and there are still no eggs under any of their tails, but they still have saddles. I have 20 shrimp. Is it possible i have no males?

[Mustafa]

Is it possible i have no males?

If you got these shrimp from a local store or from an online seller that imports these shrimp (instead of breeding them), then it's not only likely that you have no males, but highly probable. Most dwarf shrimp imported and sold in stores are females. Finding a male is like winning the lottery.

[peterm242]

How would

Is it possible i have no males?

If you got these shrimp from a local store or from an online seller that imports these shrimp (instead of breeding them), then it's not only likely that you have no males, but highly probable. Most dwarf shrimp imported and sold in stores are females. Finding a male is like winning the lottery.

.

How would you recommend I buy a male? I bought from a guy on eBay who sold me 15. I guess they are all females as its been like 3 weeks now that they are saddled.

[Mustafa]

There are only two options. You can either order again from a reputable breeder and hope that you actually get males in a batch of shrimp, or try to convince a breeder to sell you males only, which will probably be more expensive since the males have to to specifically recognized and caught and will be full adults. You're not going to get someone to send you only one male, though. It's just not going to be worth the effort for that person, and probably not worth the shipping costs for you. Even if it's one shrimp it still needs to be sent in an insulated shipping container, possibly with a heat pack. You'd have to pay full price shipping.