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So I'm having a few issues with my shrimp and crayfish, I think due to lack of calcium. Not sure. My water may not be hard enough for them, it's 10-11 GH. My youngsters born to me all seem to do well, it's the older ones that start turning white, and do so until solid white(not cloudy, pure white) and then they die.
I currently feed them hikari or omega one algae wafers, emerald entree is put in for the snails and baby fish a couple times per week(it's frozen veggies, also has some proteins but I try to pick all those out and just let them have the mixed greens....but it does have spinach in it, so perhaps that's the issue?) tropical fish veggie flakes by aqueon, blanched cucumber and zucchini(zucchini more often), and mysis shrimp about once a week. They also likely get some of the hikari first bites I put in for fry. But they've been having some issues. The older ones turn white and eventually die. My snails have been doing that too.
I'm wondering if there is something else I'm doing wrong and not a calcium deficiency? They seem to molt ok, but they get whiter every time and do die off usually within a month of starting to turn white. Is it possible it's old age?
Anyways, just in case, I was looking for calcium supplements. I have cuttlebones in there, but they don't seem to help much. So I was wondering if I can put a little of Fluker's calcium with vitamin D3 in their food once or twice a week and would that be safe or help? I know it's for reptiles, but cuttlebones are for birds and they've helped my snails, but not my shrimp or crayfish! So is it safe and would it even help if that's the problem?
Just in case, my parameters with API master freshwater test kit(GH from water company) are: PH: 7.2 GH 10-11, Ammonia: 0, Nitrite: 0, Nitrate: 0. Unfortunately I don't have the test solution for KH, but tested several times with strips it was 120-180(the colors confuse, sorry so it's somewhere around there). Tank is ten and twenty gallons(two tanks they're in), both well planted, both have same stats. 1 two inch marbled self-clonign crayfish, 7 Endlers fry, 8 molly fry(mollies are temporary), and three ghost shrimp in the twenty gallon, 12 new guppy fry in the ten gal with maybe 6 adult ghost shrimp and unknown amount of babies(I found three around half and inch in the java moss).
I currently feed them hikari or omega one algae wafers, emerald entree is put in for the snails and baby fish a couple times per week(it's frozen veggies, also has some proteins but I try to pick all those out and just let them have the mixed greens....but it does have spinach in it, so perhaps that's the issue?) tropical fish veggie flakes by aqueon, blanched cucumber and zucchini(zucchini more often), and mysis shrimp about once a week. They also likely get some of the hikari first bites I put in for fry. But they've been having some issues. The older ones turn white and eventually die. My snails have been doing that too.
I'm wondering if there is something else I'm doing wrong and not a calcium deficiency? They seem to molt ok, but they get whiter every time and do die off usually within a month of starting to turn white. Is it possible it's old age?
Anyways, just in case, I was looking for calcium supplements. I have cuttlebones in there, but they don't seem to help much. So I was wondering if I can put a little of Fluker's calcium with vitamin D3 in their food once or twice a week and would that be safe or help? I know it's for reptiles, but cuttlebones are for birds and they've helped my snails, but not my shrimp or crayfish! So is it safe and would it even help if that's the problem?
Just in case, my parameters with API master freshwater test kit(GH from water company) are: PH: 7.2 GH 10-11, Ammonia: 0, Nitrite: 0, Nitrate: 0. Unfortunately I don't have the test solution for KH, but tested several times with strips it was 120-180(the colors confuse, sorry so it's somewhere around there). Tank is ten and twenty gallons(two tanks they're in), both well planted, both have same stats. 1 two inch marbled self-clonign crayfish, 7 Endlers fry, 8 molly fry(mollies are temporary), and three ghost shrimp in the twenty gallon, 12 new guppy fry in the ten gal with maybe 6 adult ghost shrimp and unknown amount of babies(I found three around half and inch in the java moss).
