HELP! anyone need some help here

hwynboy · #1 09/08/2003, 10:11 PM

My cleaner shrimp is acting very wierd....He did not come running when I went to feed him. I took a closer look at him since he is on the DSB and not on a rock like normal....his legs are kinda broken I think. They are not really operable. I have no idea what happened but he is laboring with his fins under his tail to compensate staying upright. Anyone with ANY ideaas on a cleaner shrimp with broken legs? should I remove him? I really dont want to as I think this will add more stres to him but I feel so helpless I dont know what to do>?!?@!@

the only inhabitants are a fighting conch real small, nassarius snails, turbos, astreas, LMB 2 pepp shrimp and a Jawfish.....=\

naesco · #2 09/08/2003, 10:13 PM

Could he be molting?

REEForm: Never buy a fish from the Philippines or Indonesia where the use of cyanide is rampant.

hwynboy · #3 09/08/2003, 10:14 PM

I sure hope so Im so worried Im going to lose him....It doesnt look like it and he has molted 2 times in 2 weeks now.... OMG I never thought I'd feel like this losing a shrimp YIKES!

appellativo · #4 09/08/2003, 10:17 PM

awww, im sowwee. I know it feels really helpless when your critters are suffering and you dont know what to do. I have/had (I havent seen him in about a month, but he could still be in there)a sally lightfoot crab that lost most of its legs in a molt, but he eventually grew them back. I would say just monitor your shrimp, he may bounce back. good luck.

hwynboy · #5 09/08/2003, 10:19 PM

Naesco you always have good information is this what they do when they molt? he was laying on his side and upside down a bit on the sand too....I have never SEEN them molt just the after effects.

His legs look tangled? should I try and untangle them?

hwynboy · #6 09/08/2003, 10:40 PM

anyone else with some insight?

lllosingit · #7 09/08/2003, 10:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by hwynboy

His legs look tangled? should I try and untangle them?

Don't try to help him you'll do more harm than good, when they molt the new exoskeleton will be soft for a few day's
If you try to help you will most likely tear off legs or pincers or worse.

hwynboy · #8 09/08/2003, 11:02 PM

OMG now my pepp is doing the same thing...upside down almost lifeless on the DSB and not in or on the rock? are they both dying? *sigh*

gobygoby · #9 09/08/2003, 11:05 PM

first things first. test your water quality, salinity and temperature!!

goby

hwynboy · #10 09/08/2003, 11:09 PM

done done and done all params are good.....I am very worried... I have never seen them molt I hope this is what they are doing.

gobygoby · #11 09/08/2003, 11:14 PM

well................cant say I have ever witnessed a molting because they usually do it at night and when I wake up they exo-skeleton is floating around. , you atleast have one good thing on your side, your tank is testing out ok.! just going to throw it out but probably not the key....maybe stray voltage from a piece of equipment semi-paralyzing the animals. just a thought. or possibly some other chemical in the tank. did you dose your tank with anything in the last day or two? calcium, kalk, iodine, stronium........etc.

just trying to help
goby

gobygoby · #12 09/08/2003, 11:15 PM

also, have you done a water change as well in past couple of days, that could cause them to molt.

goby

hwynboy · #13 09/08/2003, 11:17 PM

nope cant say that I have....I did dose calcium 2 nights ago but I have done it many times in the past. cal was 410 last night. I am totally baffled because I thought the molt at night also. Shold I grab em up and QT them? Or will that stress them more? It's so wierd that the cleaner and the pepp is doing this. Their back legs on their tails are moving rapidly...

gobygoby · #14 09/08/2003, 11:20 PM

yes this is also very strange. the only thing I can think of is the dose of calcium may have affected them but if it was 2 days ago probably not. I would not move to a QT tank, that would stress them out more. try praying, that might help. I am all out of ideas. good luck

Goby

hwynboy · #15 09/09/2003, 02:14 PM

Just a follow up to the thread...my cleaner shrimp had died overnight in the main tank...NAssarius snails covered him this morning and my jawfish was not happy about it since the cleaner died right in fron of his den so snails were everywhere. He keeps throwing them out. What is sad is that I have no idea what went wrong I cant figure it.... oh well...such is life I guess.

Wilafur · #16 09/09/2003, 02:18 PM

are you dosing iodine? it is an irrintant and will cause shrimps to molt.

Shoestring Reefer · #17 09/27/2003, 01:20 PM

This thread points out that jawfish may attack ornamental shrimp.

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...awfish+cleaner

Maby that's why you found one dead right in front of the burrow?

geonator · #18 09/27/2003, 01:25 PM

sorry about your loss

appellativo · #19 09/28/2003, 03:06 AM

emporator, i have a cleaner shrimp and i dose with lugols (iodine). I havent noticed any problems yet, but i thought that using iodine was good for crabs and shrimps and other stuff that molts!? anybody got any info on this?

maroun.c · #20 09/28/2003, 05:56 AM

Happened to one of my cleaner shrimps once unfortunately it died. i was told that it was an incomplete molt or may be the shrimp was startled by a predator or by entering the room and hitting on the lights. ususally if you can target feed them and protect them from atacts by isolating them they could recover most probably at the time of the next molt. now it the two are doing the same i believe you have some contaminant in ur water that's forcing the shrimps into premature molts that end up incomplete.