Blue Lobster

[plymsha]

Hi,
To anyone considering buying a blue lobster/crayfish and adding it to a community tank please DON'T. I'm having a break from cleaning out old tank to rehouse Mr. Pinchy.
He's quick , he's amusing he's been here a week to the day. The fish shop said he'll be fine with the loach and cory's when we asked. BUT they lied!
We are missing a clown loach, 3 yo-yo loach and 2 cory dory and poss another loach. He has been well fed but that hasn't stopped him ( mussels, veg, fruit, crustacean pellets and of course the fish. its a 4 ft tank so he's not crowded.

Anything i mean anything that goes near him he nips at, we have 2 big 9, 10 inch cats and he has a go. So even if you have big fish you risk them getting infections in wounds.

He has stressed the tank beyond belief, most of the losses happened yesterday and overnight . I'm cleaning and refilling and off to get a new air pump and hes moving hopefully later tonight.

We don't usually buy until looking possible additions up online if we had we wouldn't have bought it as i have found numerous warnings on other sites.

THEY WILL EAT OR MAIM YOUR SMALL FISH! AND DAMAGE YOUR BIGGER.

Right , ive rested my bad back off to fill the 3ft tank up it was either that or return to shop. They are amusing but not for community tanks.

Hope anyone considering buying reads this.

Sharon

 

[millie1]

i had a mr pinchy

they are evil!!!!

got rid of mine to an 8 foot tank lol

 

[heartworm]

I think mine must be more timid than most, he's not causing any trouble, only thing he causes problems with is that my girlfriend is terrified of him. They are so fast though.

 

[kevinthecow]

I think mine must be more timid than most, he's not causing any trouble, only thing he causes problems with is that my girlfriend is terrified of him. They are so fast though.

Size tank, tankmates, and size cray?
Just wondering, lucky that you got a timid one. I think mine was all calm for about six months. Then it attacked a female swordtail that was being quarantined. (He never attacked others.)

It was fine though, a little trim off the fin. Still could swim, but it healed really fast.

 

[heartworm]

I think mine must be more timid than most, he's not causing any trouble, only thing he causes problems with is that my girlfriend is terrified of him. They are so fast though.

Size tank, tankmates, and size cray?
Just wondering, lucky that you got a timid one. I think mine was all calm for about six months. Then it attacked a female swordtail that was being quarantined. (He never attacked others.)

It was fine though, a little trim off the fin. Still could swim, but it healed really fast.

Tanks a little over 300l, contains a red tailed shark, 4 tiger barbs, a plec and the cray is around 5", maybe slightly bigger. here he is:

The red tailed shark often sits next to the cray and they don't have any problems.

 

[Spishkey]

i have 4 timid crays living with 2 oscars and four catfish. never had a problem with them!

 

[3ndl3r]

I've said it a million times. Crays don't belong with fish!

 

[raptorrex]

I've said it a million times. Crays don't belong with fish!

funny that, they live together in the wild. indeed they are often bred using "polyculture", meaning that many different aquatic critters are held and live together. as Cray are not hunters, not even carnivores. the dietary requirements of a Cray are, very, similar to that of a common plec (25-30% protein- 60% veg matter and vits + 5-7 fiber). and with, so, many Cray being kept, successfully, in community tanks. the argument is holding less and less water. as a personal opinion, fine. but as a statement of fact, it just does not hold up.

having said the above... keeping Cray and fish together is, far, from as simple as just putting them in together. and it does involve an element of risk. the more you prepare, the better the chances are.
IMO, the most important prep, is to know what type of critter a Cray is. looking past its hard shell and claws, reveals a peaceable, and fascinating creature, often happy to live with the most delicate of fish. and well able to defend itself against, some, of the more aggressive ones.

 

[bagu]

i know this sounds awful

but my friend lost ALOT of money becuase his LFS made the same mistake.

he took the blue lobster and smashed it to death outside

 

[raptorrex]

i know this sounds awful

but my friend lost ALOT of money becuase his LFS made the same mistake.

he took the blue lobster and smashed it to death outside

what was the mistake?

 

[bagu]

im just generally saying

But i think that was wrong, i would have bagged it up and left it with the LFS

 

[raptorrex]

im just generally saying

But i think that was wrong, i would have bagged it up and left it with the LFS

sorry no offence!

my point was, the mistake was not that of the LFS, rather that of the OP. if they had bothered to look into Cray, even a bit, it would not have happened. even some RTBS have been known to kill fish. but not all do, why should the same not be true of a Crayfish? the mere fact, some posting here have had success and others not. points to the fact that it all depends, even crayfish have a personality.
one thing can be said. the comment "they will kill your fish", is untrue. or nobody would ever have been successful. and at least two posting here, find they have no problems. so "they MAY kill your fish" is OK if you add " if you don't research what you are doing".
if you are going to try, know what you are doing. be prepared for it to fail (there are never any guarantees). and have a 20g (minimum)tank standing by, just in case.
if all this is too much, don't bother.

sorry for the rant, its just, these guys get a bad press. true there can be problems keeping them with fish. if that worries you (see large font above). but don't brand them as wanton killers, especially when many of the problems can be avoided, if you know a little about them before you buy. look passed the shell and claws (a fact of their biology, not the evolved tools of a killer) and you will see a fascinating, acrobatic and industrious creature, that eats rotting/degraded veg matter (though they are partial to fresh earth worms) that spends much time, excavating the substrate. as such, keeping it clean.