Cherry shrimp

[Tdemler68]

Just ordered a batch of cherry shrimp. I know little to nothing about breeding them but I do have a couple ghost shrimp in another tank! I have a 10 gallon set up for them and would like everyone's input on how to raise and take care of them from experience not just general information. Thank you in advance!

 

[Fresh2o]

Really not much different than keeping tropical fish. Good/consistent housekeeping is required. I perform 30-40% weekly water changes.
Perform a drip acclimation when they arrive. Using airline tubing and a valve or clamp, allow the tank water to slowly drip into the bag/container of shrimp. I usually let it drip over an hour.
You might want to invest in a GH/KH test kit just so you know what these values are. Too low or too high can lead to deaths during and after molting. I add cuttlebone to the tank to increase the calcium content.
Avoid copper for any invertebrates.
Live plants such as moss allow the shrimp something to graze upon.
Place a fine sponge filter over the filter intake.
I keep my RCS at 77-78 F though they are fine at lower temps (low 70s).

 

[Tdemler68]

How hard are they to breed? Is it constantly and overwhelming or manageable? Me and my brother want to start raising them and possibly selling them

 

[Floop123]

Make sure to get a sponge filter so the babies don't get sucked up. Just put a bunch in there and poof! Babies!

 

[missa]

How hard are they to breed? Is it constantly and overwhelming or manageable? Me and my brother want to start raising them and possibly selling them

Breading red cherry shrimp is very easy. They pretty much do all the work on their own. Keeping a clean tank is necessary just like any other fish. All the parameters are the same like any other fish. I always used to use a 10 gallon tank with an air set up for Filtration it's like a tiny little box that has filter floss in it. The air runs through the box pulling the water through and it filters it. I used activated charcoal at the bottom. Very simple and very easy to maintain. I did a 30 percent water change every week to every other week. Every 6 weeks I did a 50% water change. Feed them algae pellets and meaty pellets like shrimp pellets or earthworm pellets. Just a few does the trick. Always feed in the same place so you can siphon just that spot more often to clean out the gravel. When I did a major siphoning like every 6 to 8 weeks or so I would catch the water in a 5 gallon bucket and pick out the shrimplets from the bucket and put them back. I would put out the water into a fine mesh net then I would use a shallow bowl with a light over it and ad clean tap water to about an inch and then use a spoon or a gentle dropper to suck up the babies. Yeah kind of time consuming but it's worth it if you plan to sell them down the road.
Now once you establish a good colony you will want to start another tank and pick the most colorful females and the most vibrant males and move them to the new tank. The idea is to keep good genes / colors going. I had at least two tanks going for each shrimp types/species I had. There was A grade and then B grade. In some cases I had 3 tanks going and yep you guessed it , a higher grade. Some cherries will have brilliant red shells and good size. Some will be almost brown, some will have a somewhat smoky red looking shells. Ofcourse you want to keep improving the ones who look perfect and now enters the 3rd tank. I use to take my lowest grade / or culled shrimps out to my water garden. My koi and gold fish loved to eat them too. Sometimes I would even put them in the freezer and then after 24 hours, take them out to the fish. Even tadpoles munch on them. But often times you could sell your culled ones for $1.00 each or I would pair them off for $1.50 to just get rid of them.
It's a lot of fun raising them and it can be rewarding. I used to sell a lot of them on a popular auction site. Just remember that honesty is #1. Sell them as top grade or low grade or first cull or second cull. Often times many sellers are not honest and sell theirs as the best and they truly are not. Know where yours came from. Try buying from someone that at least made an attempt to improve their lines. Just like fish breeding, knowing where they came from and and how they were raised matters. Always make sure you keep records too! Good luck and have fun raising your cherries! RCS are very easy to care for.