Really hope I am posting this in the right place since she isn't exactly a fish.
My crayfish is close to a year old. I have had her from about a week old and now she is close to 4 inches without the major claws she lost after getting startled during her last shed.
A few days ago she started her first molt in months and was having such trouble that I had to help her remove some parts of the shed already detached from her body after over a day of trouble. This is now day 4. she has only a couple of pieces left on her, but I am afraid that the legs on her left side hardened in twisted and warped positions. She can get up sometimes, but has trouble moving or staying upright since her legs are responding in unnatural ways. She seems to be hungry and her mouth parts appear to have come out intact, but she cannot manage with this leg issue.
Tried to get the best picture I could of her. You can see the legs on the bottom are turned strange ways, and one still has a piece of molt I doubt she can get off herself.
I know there is nothing I can do to fix her legs or anything. I know that the legs could grow back (providing she makes it to and through her next molt). I would hate to do it, but might it make things easier and improve her quality of life if the worse of the legs were removed or is she at the point where she is beyond help and her suffering should be ended. It is breaking my heart to see her like this and I want to do right by her.
She is my first cray ever, but I have had cared for fresh and salt tanks for years and did my research when I adopted her. She is currently in a 10 gallon (had a 20L in the works), water parameters are pretty stable and tank is kept pretty clean. Nitrates might be creeping up slightly now since I had to hold off my routine water change due to this nightmare molt. She is given a varied diet and her only tank mates are a couple of smallish ghost shrimp that were too fast for her to catch. Did supplement with iodine every once in a while. Not that altering or adding anything would fix her leg problem now.
TL;DR: My crayfish's legs hardened the wrong ways. Would removing a couple legs maybe help or should I euthanize her?
My crayfish is close to a year old. I have had her from about a week old and now she is close to 4 inches without the major claws she lost after getting startled during her last shed.
A few days ago she started her first molt in months and was having such trouble that I had to help her remove some parts of the shed already detached from her body after over a day of trouble. This is now day 4. she has only a couple of pieces left on her, but I am afraid that the legs on her left side hardened in twisted and warped positions. She can get up sometimes, but has trouble moving or staying upright since her legs are responding in unnatural ways. She seems to be hungry and her mouth parts appear to have come out intact, but she cannot manage with this leg issue.
Tried to get the best picture I could of her. You can see the legs on the bottom are turned strange ways, and one still has a piece of molt I doubt she can get off herself.
I know there is nothing I can do to fix her legs or anything. I know that the legs could grow back (providing she makes it to and through her next molt). I would hate to do it, but might it make things easier and improve her quality of life if the worse of the legs were removed or is she at the point where she is beyond help and her suffering should be ended. It is breaking my heart to see her like this and I want to do right by her.
She is my first cray ever, but I have had cared for fresh and salt tanks for years and did my research when I adopted her. She is currently in a 10 gallon (had a 20L in the works), water parameters are pretty stable and tank is kept pretty clean. Nitrates might be creeping up slightly now since I had to hold off my routine water change due to this nightmare molt. She is given a varied diet and her only tank mates are a couple of smallish ghost shrimp that were too fast for her to catch. Did supplement with iodine every once in a while. Not that altering or adding anything would fix her leg problem now.
TL;DR: My crayfish's legs hardened the wrong ways. Would removing a couple legs maybe help or should I euthanize her?
