Brine Shrimp

[Prizm]

Can I keep a jar of them live on my desk, next to my betta's tank as food?

 

[OrkyBetta]

I don't see why you can't. Neat idea. Only problem I can see is if they are sick or their water is contaminated. A lot of frozen or dried foods have been detoxifyed and purifyed in a lengthy process to remove any junk they might carry.

 

[Dorkhedeos]

i dont see whats wrong with that. thats what sea monkey kits are

 

[Prizm]

Good point! Maybe if I kept them for a week first before feeding them to the fish? (Would this be a good way to know if they are infected with any harmful bacteria?)

 

[Kiarra]

I know the facts on this one.

They need quite a bit of aeration, and they have to be fed, or they'll die in a short period of time. You can feed them baker's yeast or something else I seem to have forgotten.

Other than that...yeah, you can keep them in a jar on your desk.

 

[Prizm]

Oo--How often do they need to eat? & Can they grow too big for the betta to eat? Thanks!

 

[Kiarra]

I don't know how often they need to eat. Might want to google it and see what you can find. That'll also tell you what else it is that they can eat. There were two food items that were told to me, and I just don't remember the other one. Styx would know, but I don't.

And I really don't think they CAN grow bigger than a Betta can eat. Besides, they tear easily. My fry enjoy ripping them to bite-size pieces.

Edit: Forgot to mention. They also SMELL. I can scarcely stand the frozen ones, they smell so bad. But I'm admittedly hypersensitive to it...I live next to a great big salt lake (the Great Salt Lake itself), and every time we get wind from the right direction...YUCK. Horrid smell of brine shrimp.

 

[Prizm]

Eew, I didn't know they had an odor! I'm having a bit of trouble finding info on how to keep small quantities of brine shrimp. I remember "sea monkeys" being simple creatures to keep..they just floated about in their little world with a bit of food given every so often. The info I'm finding about how to care for these shrimp involve aquariums and special airation systems. It sounds more involved than the styrophome cup I had in mind.

 

[Kiarra]

Try buying some from a local pet store. Just a small quantity at first. See if you can keep them alive, and if you can stand the smell. It doesn't seem to bother other people quite as much as it bothers me, but I think they smell just nasty. Like the lake stink that pollutes my air every so often...a mixture of salt and dead things.

 

[Crab Paste]

It's fairly difficult to grow Brine Shrimp on from BBS. It's really easy to hatch them but keeping them alive isn't as easy. I feed mine on Spirulina. Ovefeeding is really easy and it should only be added upto a point when the water becomes slightly cloudy. Twice a day should be sufficient. They do have an odour the older the water is.

Buying adult Brine Shrimp and keeping them alive is very easy. Keeping them in the fridge slows down their metabolism and they live for around a week, maybe more but by then I've fed them to the fish. You shouldn't need to feed them to achieve this but they're not very nutritious. Feeding them before feeding them to you fish may be better.

 

[SarahBravo]

I know baby brine shrimp (BBS) are very nutritious, but as they grow they lose their nutritional value very quickly. Frozen brine shrimp are usually fed nutrients and vitamins to pass on otherwise they're not really worth eating. So you'd need to feed them high value food, heat them and aerate them..... might as well go for frozen and get another betta!!!!!

 

[Prizm]

Not that I don't care about his nutrition, but my reason for feeding live shrimp is because I just want to watch him chase something For nutrition nad tasty treat, I drop in some frozen brine--He ripps it apart like a shark!