cleaner shrimp

[hermit crab]

when my tank is ready for fish i would like to add a cleaner shrimp.

what kind of food should i feed it,how much and how often?

thanks for any replies.

 

[quarryshark]

The cleaner will get plenty from being a scavanger. They will eat any food the fish leave behind.
That being said, I target feed mine a sinking pellet once a week. They have a blast picking at it.
But really, no need to target feed them.

 

[hermit crab]

thank you very much

 

[crage34]

i hand feed a piece of formula one flake food about every couple of days and he eats all the left overs he can get like said before...once u start hand feeding them they will jump on your hand every time u stick it in the tank....i think they have great personalities i love mine

 

[fishman]

Mine are spoiled. I have 2 cleaners and a CBS. I feed them every other day a small peice of krill from my hand. As soon as my hand goes in the tank, they all come running!! And they are great to have for sure. It will take a bit for them to get accustomed to the hand going in the tank, but once they figure out they are going to get fed, its all over!!

 

[hermit crab]

thanks you guys are great.

 

[Foible]

My cleaner shrimp are both "pregnant" and the eggs have started to get shiny. Does that mean they'll hatch soon? Has anyone had any luck keeping the babies alive? Should I put my shrimp into the refugium?

 

[saberry]

Snails and shrimp are hardier than most fish. You would be alright adding some once you have begun cycling. If you are adding lr, you may want to start with some peppermint shrimp to eliminate any aiptasia that may be present on the rock.

 

[BlueDolphin]

Inverts are very sensitive to changes in the water chemistry. I wouldn't add any creatures to the tank before the cycle. That being said, I have two cleaner shrimp and two peppermint shrimp. They scavenge the rocks and eat the fish food my tang misses. They also seem to like seaweed.

 

[saberry]

Inverts are very sensitive to changes in the water chemistry. I wouldn't add any creatures to the tank before the cycle.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that point. How do you feel about cycling with lr? I ask because it's not all that uncommon to find hitchhiking inverts.

 

[BlueDolphin]

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that point. How do you feel about cycling with lr? I ask because it's not all that uncommon to find hitchhiking inverts.

Well, I have never cycled with uncured liverock.... but, couldn't you always dip the rock in freshwater before you cycle to get some of the creatures out? I guess my point is that we should do our very best to ensure the members of our tanks are happy and healthy.

 

[saberry]

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on that point. How do you feel about cycling with lr? I ask because it's not all that uncommon to find hitchhiking inverts.

Well, I have never cycled with uncured liverock.... but, couldn't you always dip the rock in freshwater before you cycle to get some of the creatures out? I guess my point is that we should do our very best to ensure the members of our tanks are happy and healthy.

Yes we should and I never doubted that that was exactly your intention. It has just been my experience that some inverts are much hardier than fish. Look at it this way, when lr is shipped, it is taken out of the sw, wrapped in newspaper, boxed and shipped, then reintroduced to new sw. And after all that, what is is we find attached?...inverts. Now I'm not saying that you should load your tank up with them, but I don't think adding a few peppermint shimp is going to hurt them or the tank.

 

[BlueDolphin]

It's true - some of those little invertebrate hitchhikers do withstand the tank cycle. I would just hate to put them through that if it wasn't necessary. Actually, I had my own experience with a small hermit crab. I ordered some empty shells for the crabs, but one ended up not being empty. This brave little hermit was not acclimated to my tank because I just thought he was a shell... despite this uneasy transition, my little hermit is doing great!

I think we've gotten off the topic a little. Oops.