Could He Just Be Shedding?

[stanleo]

I have a cherry shrimp alive on his back. He has seemed lethargic since I noticed him about 2 hours ago. He has that split between his abdomen and thorax like they get when they are about to shed. I have never actually seen one shed so I don't know what they behave like before this happens. But I think he is dying, a couple of others have come up to him picking at him. I did find a dead berried female this morning, the other 3 berried females are fine. Water tested fine pH is 6.4. Haven't noticed any other shrimp acting weird and they are going nuts over an algae wafer. Is he dying or could he just be shedding?
 

 

[stanleo]

Nevermind, I'm calling it. time of death, 1935 hrs. A baby assassin snail is now feasting.
 
Do you think there is an issue I am not finding? The pH is 6.4, could that be it? Should it be higher?
 
Just worries that I have had 2 shrimp die the same day.

 

[DreamertK]

Sometimes they just cant get out of their shell so they struggle and pass away. Not very clear if too high a hardness level is to blame.

 

[Essjay]

I have been having problems with cherry shrimp dying like this with a white crack across the back. Googling found that it was a failed moult. One site suggested a lack of calcium in the diet and recommended feeding kale to the shrimps. Another said that it's due to a bacterial infection and recommended Seachem Paraguard (though Seachem say in their FAQs that it might not be shrimp safe), or the milder preventative Beta G. I have bought some Beta G to try, but it has not yet arrived.
In my case, it's not because my water is too hard as that's only 7 german degrees.

 

[DreamertK]

German degrees?
 
Shrimps only live two years or so, it might just have been old age as well.

 

[Essjay]

German degrees?

 
The unit that the API GH tester uses. 7 German degrees converts to 125ppm.
 
In my case it's not age. I only bought them recently. I got the last batch 3 weeks ago and it included juveniles, which have also been dying.
 
 
Incidentally, amano shrimp can live longer than 2 years. I got mine on 6 Feb 2009 (yes, I do keep a record of everything I buy  

) Of the 5 I bought, one died within a few days, a female died last year and the remaining three (1f 2m) are still alive. They have no problems moulting. The amanos and cherries are in different tanks and they are different species, so presumably whatever it is only affects cherries.

 

[DreamertK]

Not too sure what to say. Have you used that particular tank as a hospital tank with copper meds at all or something leaching into the water?

 

[Essjay]

The tank has never had any medication in it. I bought it about a year ago to replace a tank that sprung a leak and transfered everything over. I did treat the old tank over the years (it was 16 years old when it started leaking, my first tank) though after a year anything in the filter etc should have gone.
 
I have been advised elsewhere that it sounds like a shrimp-specific bacterial infection. The first batch all died within a month; the second batch, which overlapped with the first, have also now all died. The third batch overlapped with the second, but since all the second batch died I have found some shed skins. The three batches were from three different shops. I do wonder if the first batch were infected and have passed it on to the newer shrimps.

 

[DreamertK]

Well geeze. You could try emptying the tank (but keeping the filter running), pour boiling water on all the decorations and substrate or otherwise safely cleaning them, then putting everything back and cycling again. That would kill any lingering bacterias.