lyndatu

Hello, there

I just bought my first two Red Cherry Shrimps from the LFS. They're a joy to watch, and I want them to have a healthy life, mainly because they're very rare and expensive in our area. I read that they need calcium supplement to grow back shells after moulting and that they get some calcium by eating their old shells, but they might need additional supplement. I can't seem to find any calcium chemicals in the local pet shops, but I thought that there might be another cheaper and more available way to give them calcium. I was thinking egg shells, cuttlefish bone or some type of calcium-rich limestone. Will they work for the shrimp? Is there another way to give them calcium? Oh, and I have a hard time finding calcium supplements and am afraid of their price - where can I get some? And where can I find calcium-rich lime stone? Sorry for all the questions!

Edited to Add: And if egg shells or other calcium source does work, how do I give them to the shrimp? Should I put solid chunks of calcium into the tank, or crush it into powder and dissolve it in the aquarium water?

Thanks in advance!

lyndatu

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Lucy

Hi lyndatu
Sometimes you have to be patient and wait for the right person to sign in who can answer your question.
Remember, not everyone is on everyday.

namehater

i have read of people using cuttlebones in their water, but ive never done so personally so i cant vouch for the use.

MissyLady

I have shrimp and snail (6 to eight different kinds of each) tanks in addition to my fish aquariums.
I use a cuttlebone weighted down, soft side up for a calcium carbonate supplement.

I have found that the cuttlebone dissolves slowly and doesn't make a measurable difference in the pH levels. It works left whole, breaking it into several pieces or scraping it into a powder (I use no more than 10% of the powder in ratio to the total amount of food I'm feeding them per day.

Another form I have found useful is a small piece of the soft corn tortilla flat shells. They are loaded with lime/Calcium carbonate in a pure form for digesting. My shrimp love a piece. Using a quarter of a normal size flat-soft-shell will feed about 50-70 of my shrimp in the evening.

Other forms of Calcium that are safe for shrimp and snails include, baby cereal with calcium, algae-biofilm (naturally has calcium), powdered milk (again no more than 10% of total daily feeding, finely crushed oyster shell, crushed/powdered eggshell and clean seaweed (health food stores).

Try experimenting with a few of these, but don't over-feed. Shrimp will feed on their shed shell for calcium, but a supplement may be helpful.

Good luck and enjoy them. They are so interesting to watch.

coffeebean

i put cuttlefish bone in my tanks for snails and shrimp.