Blue Lobster/Crayfish Care Tips (Procambarus alleni)

Came across one of these blue beauties in Petco yesterday and now I just have to have him.

The aquatics lady said she hated him cos' he was stabbing and eating the koi he was kept with and had to isolate him all by himself in an empty tank. Which is a funny twist from the Petco I had just come from in Baton Rouge where, the bottom of the Koi tank was littered with little blue claws and no crawfish.. Guess he was bigger than the ones in B.R. Just a nice little anecdote about these creatures I thought I'd share, how it can be one way in one store, then the opposite in another.

They get vengeance when they get bigger!

Anyhow, she said He'd still be there when I come back cos' she was surprised that I wanted him. And yes, I have to have him!

Any tips on caring for them? Can they do in a coldwater tank? I read that American species do fine in coldwater.

Also, what's a nice food (preferably pellets) that's high in the necessary calcium/iodide they need do survive? I don't want to have to treat my water in any specific way.. All I have right now are HikarI (Bottom Feeder) Sinking Waffers with a nice little picture of him on the back ( I feed them to my Cories); But these are mainly more meat based compared to the alternative HikarI Algae wafers.

*Edit/Update* Also what kind of plants will they not snip with their little claws, Bamboo??

 

Crayfish are wonderful critters to keep. They do not require a heater and will eat anything. A high quality pellet is a good staple. Ghost shrimp are a good addition to their diet as it provides them with iodine, which is important. They don't need a steady supply, but should be added periodically. When they molt (shed their shell), its important to leave it in the tank. They will eat it to recycle nutrients. They will eat every little piece. They will stop eating a few days before the molt and hide, so once you see that it hasn't eaten, don't continue to feed them. The next time you should feed them is after the old shell has been consumed. In my experience, they are prone to escaping from small tanks. Once I started keeping them in tanks 20 gallons and larger, I no longer had that be an issue. They are fantastic escape artists, so it's important to have a good top. I've had great success keeping them with barbs and danios.

 

Thanks for the reply. I meant also to ask what plants are good for them?

I've read a lot that they LOVE to snip apart live plants. So I was wondering what plants might be impervious to their little claws? I'm thinking... Bamboo? Will that do?

Also, I'd be afraid to buy Ghost Shrimp as feed. Though it's a welcomed idea, the only place that keeps them well stocked around here is Walmart and their tank conditions are "Sub-par" to put it most..eloquently. I'd worry about introducing disease if purchasing from them.

Also, I intend to put him in a 10 gal. Mainly because I just purchased an excess one today. It'd be covered with one of those $20 LED lids from Walmart that, I believe, completely cover the tank and I don't to turn the lights on so I'm not too worried about how effective they are.

I also don't intend to punch out any of the cut-outs. I'm just going to use an "in-tank" filter. One of those "Small Worlds" by Pen plax w/ a stronger aftermarket pump I have to draw a strong current. I've found that they are very effective with a nice pump, more so than would be expected.

Of course there'll be cycled filter media as well, so at 1st it will be run with 2 small filters in the same location. An old one, currently sitting in the power filter box of my Gourami tank, and the fresh Pen Plax.

Also when you say supplement periodically with Ghost Shrimp, how often is periodically?

 

Thanks for the reply. I meant also to ask what plants are good for them?

I've read a lot that they LOVE to snip apart live plants. So I was wondering what plants might be impervious to their little claws? I'm thinking... Bamboo? Will that do?

Also, I'd be afraid to buy Ghost Shrimp as feed. Though it's a welcomed idea, the only place that keeps them well stocked around here is Walmart and their tank conditions are "Sub-par" to put it most..eloquently. I'd worry about introducing disease if purchasing from them.

Also, I intend to put him in a 10 gal. Mainly because I just purchased an excess one today. It'd be covered with one of those $20 LED lids from Walmart that, I believe, completely cover the tank and I don't to turn the lights on so I'm not too worried about how effective they are.

I also don't intend to punch out any of the cut-outs. I'm just going to use an "in-tank" filter. One of those "Small Worlds" by Pen plax w/ a stronger aftermarket pump I have to draw a strong current. I've found that they are very effective with a nice pump, more so than would be expected.

Of course there'll be cycled filter media as well, so at 1st it will be run with 2 small filters in the same location. An old one, currently sitting in the power filter box of my Gourami tank, and the fresh Pen Plax.

Also when you say supplement periodically with Ghost Shrimp, how often is periodically?

Plants generally don't do well. Aside from the fact they will eat them, crayfish are aquatic bulldozers and will uproot anything you plant. They move the substrate around as they see fit. You could try java moss, but I don't know what else might make it.

Disease and inverts... That's a mystery to me. Maybe someone else knows about it, but in my experience its impossible to identify, much less treat. Crayfish are garbage disposals. They eat everything, so I would not be too worried about what the ghost shrimp might be carrying. Do a little research on invert diseases though - maybe there is something to be concerned about. I'm unaware of any.

I'm going to be honest, I think a 10 gallon is way too small for an adult crayfish. They really only use the surface area in the tank, which there isn't much of. A small one will do fine for a time, but they really are pretty active and like to explore their tank. A 20 long would be a nice specimen tank, allowing it room to walk around. You could probably still keep some zebra danios with it, but the lack of height just makes it a little riskier for the fish. It might catch one here an there, but danios are fast and they generally stay near the top, out of the Crays reach. It's just that, with a short tank, a much higher percentage of the tank is within their grasp. Pun intended

It's not going to chow down on all the shrimp at once. It will take time for them to hunt them. Once I noticed there were no more shrimp, I would put it on the list and get them next time I went to the store, so I threw some in every 2-3 months. They also LOVE snails - pond, rams horn, MTS, they hunt them down.

 

I kept some najas grass, floating, with mine, and that ended up a mess. so I gave up. fake plants looks very nice though, and are safe! and I agree with all the other stuff jaysee said. and make sure to have stuff for him to hide under.

 

Thanks guys!

What kind of substrate since they love to dig?

Also, since they love to escape tanks and are active using in surface area; If the tank is done similar to a turtle setup would they come up and out onto some driftwood or other docking area? That could potentially increase "frolicking" room.

 

Sand or gravel, doesn't matter.

They do not need to leave the water. If you are going to keep it in a 10, then see if you can build a second floor with a ramp. Egg crate would work.

 

I had a cray for 2 years. He was pretty docile. He would grab sick fish when he had the opportunity, but mostly ate pellets, algae wafers and veggies. He did cut down the amazon swords I had. I went with tall stalks of bamboo and he would climb them, but not eat them. He was a good guy for 2 years and then he died of old age.

I recently got a blue cray, and he is a VERY different personality. Ate most of the bamboo, dug his own little house in the sand substrate and keeps "trying" to move the heater, filter intake and fake plants. He has molted a few times in the month I have had him and already regrew the missing claw and 3 legs.

 

I had a cray for 2 years. He was pretty docile. He would grab sick fish when he had the opportunity, but mostly ate pellets, algae wafers and veggies. He did cut down the amazon swords I had. I went with tall stalks of bamboo and he would climb them, but not eat them. He was a good guy for 2 years and then he died of old age.

I recently got a blue cray, and he is a VERY different personality. Ate most of the bamboo, dug his own little house in the sand substrate and keeps "trying" to move the heater, filter intake and fake plants. He has molted a few times in the month I have had him and already regrew the missing claw and 3 legs.

Hmm, so everyone's different.

 

I have been eyeing one of these too. Do you think my neon tetras could safely escape him? I have a 30 gallon tank. Also did I understand correctly that they need to be able to get to the surface? Are they like frogs that need to breathe air?

 

I was looking at one of these too.... but my husband said I didn't want him cause he'd go after my fish....


I wouldn't want him to hurt my fish that's true..... But then I see you guys talking about keeping them with little fish..... but the koi massicar? Where they big koi?

 

Just a tip, crayfish love to dine on snails. I raise them in 5gal buckets with siphon water from my tanks. The shells provide calcium and the crayfish are forced to hunt them dow, well you get what I mean.

 

How much did they cost at petco? I've been looking at my local fish stores for them and so far haven't found any. I did get some powder blue baby ones but they seemed to have died off right away. They were so tiny, I'm guessing they got stressed out by the larger fish and weren't able to eat properly. I want to get a larger more robust one but haven't had any luck finding one.

 

I've decided to set up a new tank, and in it I'd like to put a Blue Lobster after seeing one at the LFS. Being new to these kind of things, I'd like to know as much as I can before I actually buy one. I've done as much research as I can, but in the end it helps to get tips and advice from the 'professionals'.The tank I'll be using is a 14 gallon, with a Fluval U2 filter (not sure what temperature though, what's best?). I'd really appreciate it if any one could tell me things like the depth of the gravel/ sand I should use, and all the other useful important info I'd need to make its life as good as possible.
Not sure if all Blue Lobster are the same breed, but the one at the LFS had an adult size of about 6 inches (they had a fully grown female),

Many thanks

 

HI Tuna! Blue lobsters and other crayfish can be very fun to take care of. I would suggest only keeping one and don't really plan on fish in the tank. You could easily set the tank up for this lobster and enjoy watching her. They are omnivores meaning that they will eat almost anything that they can hold in their claws which is why you should not plan on other fish. I would suggest a cuttle bone, commonly available for birds to assist with making sure your crawfish has enough calcium available. She would love places to hide and feel secure, drift wood pieces to crawl on and maybe some live plants.

For the main part of the tank, cycle it as usual, and an average temp is good. 74-76 is comfortable.. but they can have warmer temperatures as I have seen blue crayfish wild in Texas.

Enjoy her! I'm sure you will be sharing some wonderful sights and can't wait to see pictures of your tank!

 

HI Tuna! Blue lobsters and other crayfish can be very fun to take care of. I would suggest only keeping one and don't really plan on fish in the tank. You could easily set the tank up for this lobster and enjoy watching her. They are omnivores meaning that they will eat almost anything that they can hold in their claws which is why you should not plan on other fish. I would suggest a cuttle bone, commonly available for birds to assist with making sure your crawfish has enough calcium available. She would love places to hide and feel secure, drift wood pieces to crawl on and maybe some live plants.

For the main part of the tank, cycle it as usual, and an average temp is good. 74-76 is comfortable.. but they can have warmer temperatures as I have seen blue crayfish wild in Texas.

Enjoy her! I'm sure you will be sharing some wonderful sights and can't wait to see pictures of your tank!

Thanks Shayla the ones available to buy at the fish shop are about 3 inches long. How long does it take them to get to their maximum size? And can I not keep any fish at all in the tank then, not even anything fast like Danios? With any look, I'll start the tank's cycle in the next couple of days, and hopefully within a month I can have my lobster in there!

 

You can try the danios.. but I'm afraid they could end up as dinner. You could probably keep a couple of the crayfish as long as they have places to get away from each other. How long it takes them to grow will depend on what you feed and how often. If you wish to have fish, I would suggest trying something like feeder guppies first to make sure your crayfish aren't aggressive to the fish. They often will go for the easiest food, so if you make sure they are well fed, they may leave other fish alone.

 

Thank you so much for your help Would it/ they (haven't decided how many) prefer deep sand/ gravel? I've read in places that they destroy live plants, what's your experience with this?

 

Crayfish+fish=fed crayfish. It may not happen immediately, but if you keep fish with a crayfish, eventually the cray will be there on its own.

Don't bother with plants, they will be dug up and eaten.

Plenty of soft sand for digging in and driftwood with hiding places is the go.
Temperature is dependant on species. There are plenty of temperate species as well as tropical. You should ask the LFS for the exact species so you can best meet its requirements.

Growth rate is dependant on diet and available calcium. So if you feed your crayfish well with plenty of calcium in it's diet, it will grow quickly.

 

Crayfish+fish=fed crayfish. It may not happen immediately, but if you keep fish with a crayfish, eventually the cray will be there on its own.

Don't bother with plants, they will be dug up and eaten.

Plenty of soft sand for digging in and driftwood with hiding places is the go.
Temperature is dependant on species. There are plenty of temperate species as well as tropical. You should ask the LFS for the exact species so you can best meet its requirements.

Growth rate is dependant on diet and available calcium. So if you feed your crayfish well with plenty of calcium in it's diet, it will grow quickly.

Don't bother with plants including fake plants? I was going to get some rocks from the river near by (I know not to use calcium rocks, like chalk and limestone) and clean them with boiling water to make some caves, as well as adding drift wood. Would they like this?

 

I had kept some with gravel and they would move that around, build caves, etc.. I've never kept them with sand. I also had plants that the ones I kept left alone. Surprisingly, I ended up with male and female and had hundreds of babies in a 55 gallon tank.

 

Sounds great! I'd love to get a breeding pair, but I doubt the tank I have is large enough to breed them in

Also, how often should they be fed, and what with?

Info guys, I got loads so far, but you can never have too much!

 

I feed mine every other day with high calcium foods. Algae wafers from any LFS are good or you can make snail jello (which is just high calcium baby food with unflavored gelatin). You could also feed high calcium veggies like spinach.

I was going to get some rocks from the river near by (I know not to use calcium rocks, like chalk and limestone) and clean them with boiling water to make some caves, as well as adding drift wood. Would they like this?

Limestone would actually be GOOD to use. High calcium rocks would leech calcium into the water from which the crayfish could derive some calcium to further strengthen their exoskeleton. They would love for you to build caves and things. I have that in a few of my tanks!

 

I feed mine every other day with high calcium foods. Algae wafers from any LFS are good or you can make snail jello (which is just high calcium baby food with unflavored gelatin). You could also feed high calcium veggies like spinach.



Limestone would actually be GOOD to use. High calcium rocks would leech calcium into the water from which the crayfish could derive some calcium to further strengthen their exoskeleton. They would love for you to build caves and things. I have that in a few of my tanks!

Ooh that's brilliant thank you! I picked him up Saturday, he's about 4 inches from tip of tail to front of claws. In the tank is about an inch and a half of sand, with a big lump of bogwood in the middle, a large flat rock on the left and a rock cave I made on the right with a plant behind that. I'm happy with how it looks, but I intend to grow some moss on the wood.
I bought him some catfish sinkers because that's the same food that the LFS had been feeding him, as well as this, I gave him some cucumber to nibble on. I think I'll add a piece of veg every few days (and remove the morning after). He seems happy, though still rather timid! He's been named Theo. At what age do they start to turn their more vibrant blue colour?

 

:;scorpion

Pictures please!

 

They're generalist scavengers and occasionally predators. So they'll eat just about anything.

Vegies, pellets, and the occasional bloodworm or piece of shrimp will all be fine. You can buy pellets formulated specifically for crustaceans.

 

:;scorpion

Pictures please!

Still some more plants to add yet and the backdrop! Looks a little dull at the moment. I already have the backdrop, but I was letting Theo (finally, he's been named) settle in first. You can see the little rocks at the front that I've put in. They are there because the one that was in before to weigh down the cucumber he's moved into the entrance to his cave, so I thought I'd find him some more to play with

 

I don't see him

 

I don't see him

Noo sorry he's not in that picture. Here's one I took the day I got him...




How long until he goes a more vibrant blue colour?

 

Wow! Very nice! I love to watch them at my LFS tanks, very interesting creatures.

 

Wow! Very nice! I love to watch them at my LFS tanks, very interesting creatures.

Thank you! My LFS had a fully grown adult female, and it's just given birth to hundreds of tiny baby Crayfish. They had about 4 or 5 of the size mine is, and they reserved this one for me for 2 weeks very nice people

 

Just curious, how large do these get?

 

Just curious, how large do these get?

Typically I believe the females about 7 inches, and the males I think get to 8 inches they're obviously rough figures though. Usually they're no smaller than 6 inches

 

Very nice, might have to make some space for another tank, in my home and get two of these guys.

 

Very nice, might have to make some space for another tank, in my home and get two of these guys.

Sounds like a great plan to me

 

On all the websites I've been on I was told 20G long is the minimum size you can keep them in, but I kept mine in a 15 for a while before I upgraded. The man in the pet shop said you can keep them in smaller tanks as long as you give them room to walk.
Mine does not touch my plants, she sometimes up roots them when they are in her way, but she's never eaten any, she been in there with the plants since july when I got her last year, but every one is different! Mines love bacon, carrots, the dark green bits off broccolI but not the stem, she eats pest snail babies but not the adults (hopefully when she grows she will think different), and crustacean pellets.
I have read you don't need a heater, but having one won't be a bad thing since they come from Australia, my house is warm anyway. She is always lively.
I think if you have good lighting yours will get bluer, I don't have any lighting and she's pretty dark, she gets more brown after a molt. They say food can influence the colouring of your crayfish too. Yours is the same species as mine by the looks of it, a cherax quad, they can get up to 8 inches long I think yours is male if you are still unsure, males have the red markings on the claws.

 

On all the websites I've been on I was told 20G long is the minimum size you can keep them in, but I kept mine in a 15 for a while before I upgraded. The man in the pet shop said you can keep them in smaller tanks as long as you give them room to walk.
Mine does not touch my plants, she sometimes up roots them when they are in her way, but she's never eaten any, she been in there with the plants since july when I got her last year, but every one is different! Mines love bacon, carrots, the dark green bits off broccolI but not the stem, she eats pest snail babies but not the adults (hopefully when she grows she will think different), and crustacean pellets.
I have read you don't need a heater, but having one won't be a bad thing since they come from Australia, my house is warm anyway. She is always lively.
I think if you have good lighting yours will get bluer, I don't have any lighting and she's pretty dark, she gets more brown after a molt. They say food can influence the colouring of your crayfish too. Yours is the same species as mine by the looks of it, a cherax quad, they can get up to 8 inches long I think yours is male if you are still unsure, males have the red markings on the claws.

Thanks for all the info I was told at the LFS that he was male, so I'm glad they got that bit right! I haven't fed mine any meat yet, just been giving it cucumber (which within 10 minutes of being in there he picked the whole piece up and took it back to his cave) and some little catfish pellets which it seems to waffle down I'm very happy to say that he looks pretty comfortable in his new home. When he gets bigger I'll get a larger tank, but for now I hope he'll be ok in that one

 

Thanks for all the info I was told at the LFS that he was male, so I'm glad they got that bit right! I haven't fed mine any meat yet, just been giving it cucumber (which within 10 minutes of being in there he picked the whole piece up and took it back to his cave) and some little catfish pellets which it seems to waffle down I'm very happy to say that he looks pretty comfortable in his new home. When he gets bigger I'll get a larger tank, but for now I hope he'll be ok in that one

He'll be absolutely fine in there for a while I should think, my Helena has been in like four different tanks slowly making her way up the right size haha, even with all the room she has all she ever wants to do is try to get out. That's all I can think you need to know really, other then once every few months he will molt and hide for days until his shell is hard, if you're anything like me you get paranoid that something is wrong which it never is. Have fun looking after your handsome little guy

 

He'll be absolutely fine in there for a while I should think, my Helena has been in like four different tanks slowly making her way up the right size haha, even with all the room she has all she ever wants to do is try to get out. That's all I can think you need to know really, other then once every few months he will molt and hide for days until his shell is hard, if you're anything like me you get paranoid that something is wrong which it never is. Have fun looking after your handsome little guy

Haha I have no doubt that I'll get paranoid when he goes away to hide! I had to get the cucumber back out again, which unfortunately involved removing the roof of his cave. Poor guy, he was very scared. I attached some moss to the bogwood so I'm hoping that it will grow on to it In a few weeks I think he will have fully settled in to his home, and hopefully be more confident and come out more often. Thanks for all of your help Sayba

 

I have 2 of these amazing creatures in a 35 gallon tank. Both came together YOUNG but are very territorial. I have a sand base with pieces of drift wood. I enjoy watching them dig the sand from under the drift wood using their large claws to create a cave. They are attracted to glow fish..... A side from that, tiger bars & similar are too fast for them to catch. These blue lobsters are rather ummm.... dumb in my opinion & extremely slow when their claws get to big. I feed mine sinking pellets. A side form that, these guys give me no problems & everyone wants to know how/why you have blue "lobsters". =)

I would be more than happy to trade pictures & advise with you. Mine have been with me for 2 years & have moved homes (I actually moved) 3 times. These guys were my gateway drug into what is now my aquarium store that I call a home.....

Here are my 2 guys as well as my attention junky of a toad fish =P