# Largest "neat" fish you can keep with shrimp?



## jnboone (Aug 1, 2011)

I'm about 4 months in to my 125 gallon low tech planted tank, and I'm thinking about adding some shrimp. I've got a 6' discus that I know will have to go, but I'd like something bigger than my Congo's to look at. Any suggestions?


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## Zoidburg (Mar 8, 2016)

Your best bet is to stick with larger shrimp... such as amanos, vampire or bamboo. Other species are likely to get eaten much quicker. These species might reproduce but the offspring wont survive.


If you have a *heavily* planted tank and you start with shrimp and put in some *small* fish, then you might be able to keep a thriving population of small Neos and fish. Fish in a shrimp tank does mean lower breeding of shrimp.


Shrimp don't do well in a tank that has been treated for copper, although copper from ferts *might* be okay as long as you keep it on the low end. Also, it's good to know the GH, KH and TDS of the tank water so that you know that shrimp will survive in it.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

Royal Pleco or Bristlenose I keep do not bother shrimp.
Shrimp is natural food for most other species.


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## nel (Jan 23, 2016)

Actually even your congo's will eat shrimp, easily and happily... So happily...
Most fish won't mind shrimp snack.


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## GrampsGrunge (Jun 18, 2012)

There's no way young dwarf shrimp would make a go of it in a tank with 3" meat eating fish, their babies are even tinier, less than 3mm long when hatched and they don't tend to actively hide from the predators.


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## Yukiharu (May 3, 2014)

Unfortunately it's usually best to not add any fish with shrimp. The only mostly safe fish is the otocinclus, although zebra ottos are confirmed shrimp eaters iirc.
If you really want to you can try any fish that's ~1" long (rasboras are a good choice) but even then it's a risk. Danios are infamous shrimp-eaters and tetra will go after shrimp too if they get a taste for them. Best bet is a small, low-tech shrimp tank if you want a good colony.
I have cherry shrimp in my community tank and they're either very good at hiding or they're disappearing.


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## brook39 (Aug 12, 2016)

Absolutely no fish in shrimp tank except oto, i've tried many small nano species fish and all of them were hunting for baby shrimp


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## NickAu (Feb 24, 2017)

> i've tried many small nano species fish and all of them were hunting for baby shrimp


Unless the fish is strictly vegetarian baby shrimp are on the menu, Even Assassin snails will hunt and eat shrimp.


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## D3monic (Jan 29, 2012)

I keep a shrimp tank and put the culls in the community tanks. That way if they do breed the offspring get eaten but the adults usually thrive.. but my tanks are usually micro fish.


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## Nordic (Nov 11, 2003)

"Judge a person by their questions rather than their answers."

I think the most flashy thing you can keep with them is guppies... You do get nice guppies, try American livebearer Assoc.


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## roadmaster (Nov 5, 2009)

Threadfin Rainbow's have tiny mouth's and adult shrimp could be safe, but the tiny shrimplet's would be snack's.
A large school of Threadfin's males/females is something to see with their posturing and posing at breeding time.


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

I see a lot of suggestions for a shrimp only tank. Would I be ok with a tank of neons, corys and a pleco and cherries? My plants are growing in, and I have lots of driftwood.


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## Axelrodi202 (Jul 29, 2008)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I see a lot of suggestions for a shrimp only tank. Would I be ok with a tank of neons, corys and a pleco and cherries? My plants are growing in, and I have lots of driftwood.


No idea about the pleco (depends on the type) but the others will be fine if well-fed.


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## RobnSonji (Oct 6, 2013)

Ive been readin up on this too.

There are all kinds of mixed opinions on the internet....some say they have good luck with fish A or fish B and then the next person says Fish A n B ate every shrimp in their tank lol.

Frankly....I am surprised shrimp are as popular as they are being they almost demand a species only tank.

I ordered a dozen Orange(cherry shrimp) and theyve been living in a bucket for days because they are so small I am afraid the Rummies in my 125 will munch them and its not planted heavily enough yet for the shrimp to hide. I am going to set up a 40 breeder with the shrimp and my L183s. I think that will work and give me double duty out of that tank. I may also try guppies if/when the shrimp get established.


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## Zoidburg (Mar 8, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I see a lot of suggestions for a shrimp only tank. Would I be ok with a tank of neons, corys and a pleco and cherries? My plants are growing in, and I have lots of driftwood.


Some people will go with pygmy cories, since they are about the size (if not smaller) than an adult shrimp. Some others have tried larger cories though... and if a shrimp were to get beneath their mouth, there's a good chance the shrimp will get sucked up.

A lot of people have BN plecos with shrimp and most people I've seen/heard with BN plecos and shrimp haven't had any issues. Not to say that there aren't... but you never know.

Neons might or might not leave the adults alone. Have heard that neon tetras will gang up on an adult shrimp, so again, your taking your chances.


Just get a good, healthy shrimp population going (start with at least 10-20) and in 6 months or so down the road (once the shrimp have had time to acclimate, breed and reproduce), start introducing fish slowly. This is the best route to go if you want to try a community tank with shrimp.


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

Zoidburg said:


> Some people will go with pygmy cories, since they are about the size (if not smaller) than an adult shrimp. Some others have tried larger cories though... and if a shrimp were to get beneath their mouth, there's a good chance the shrimp will get sucked up.
> 
> A lot of people have BN plecos with shrimp and most people I've seen/heard with BN plecos and shrimp haven't had any issues. Not to say that there aren't... but you never know.
> 
> ...


That's probably the right way to do it, but I have small kids that want fish now, so it will probably be the other way around.


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I have small kids that want fish now.


 Tell them to wait?


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## Zoidburg (Mar 8, 2016)

Or just set up a separate tank for shrimp only. No worries!


And if you want shrimp in your community tank, then use the shrimp tank as your breeding and nursery tank and once the juvies get old and large enough, you can try moving them over to the community tank. That way, you can still have happy shrimp, and potentially even happier fish!


Or, as I first mentioned, stick with larger shrimp species that are less likely to get eaten by fish.


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

BettaBettas said:


> Tell them to wait?


Lol, now why didn't I think of that?


BettaBettas said:


> Tell them to wait?



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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> Lol, now why didn't I think of that?
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk


 I honestly don't know


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

BettaBettas said:


> I honestly don't know


I am starting to think that one of us is having problems with their sarcasm detector. Assuming that you are being serious, there are many reasons why I would not "just tell them to wait". The first being that they have already been waiting through a fishless cycle which is just about complete, and have been reasonably patient, especially for 3 and 5 year olds. Given this, I have told them that we are getting close to getting fish, and would not like to change that now. Another reason is that the wife and I are looking forward to stocking the tank soon as well, since it has been about a decade since we have had a stocked tank. I know that shrimp do better with consistent water, and that with a relatively low bioload for shrimp, I can keep things more consistent adding fish now as the plants grow out, then adding shrimp later. I may have oversimplified my earlier response, but the decision was made more holistically. Besides, keeping the family happy and involved in the hobby will keep me back in the hobby.


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## sdwindansea (Oct 28, 2016)

I have a feeling you are going to hear many different pieces of advice and experiences. Some people are going to have a betta or a guppy that has never bothered their shrimp while others may have the same fish and had them wipe out their shrimp populations. Any fish that is not an herbivore has the potential to be a problem. Every tank setup is also different (size, plant types, amount of plants, moss, hiding spots, currents, etc.).

I really wanted shrimp and I had a lot going against me. I've never kept shrimp before, my tap water is very hard, I do a 50% weekly water change, I have a guppy, 6 sterbai corys and 9 harlequin rasboras. I decided to give it a shot any way and bought about 30 red cherry shrimp from a local hobbyist via craigslist. Never expected them to do well but they are thriving and multiplying. I see new baby shrimp weekly and my fish do not seem to be bothering them. I'm sure they pick off the fry at times but enough also appear to be surviving.

Now that this is going so well we are very hesitant to add some of the fish we originally planned on (e.g. german blue ram). If you have a lot of plants and hiding spaces you could definitely try some inexpensive shrimp to see how it goes. If they disappear you can justify it as an expensive treat for your fish.


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I am starting to think that one of us is having problems with their sarcasm detector. Assuming that you are being serious, there are many reasons why I would not "just tell them to wait". The first being that they have already been waiting through a fishless cycle which is just about complete, and have been reasonably patient, especially for 3 and 5 year olds. Given this, I have told them that we are getting close to getting fish, and would not like to change that now. Another reason is that the wife and I are looking forward to stocking the tank soon as well, since it has been about a decade since we have had a stocked tank. I know that shrimp do better with consistent water, and that with a relatively low bioload for shrimp, I can keep things more consistent adding fish now as the plants grow out, then adding shrimp later. I may have oversimplified my earlier response, but the decision was made more holistically. Besides, keeping the family happy and involved in the hobby will keep me back in the hobby.


 I have my CS with a gourami, he doesn't bother them. I was basically in a nut shell saying just take it slow, which I presume now that you have been. I thought you where being sarcastic, I still don't know if you where. Hard to tell when your reading. Shrimp before the fish btw, or else the fish will eat the shrimp (depending if its a carnivore, omnivore) what large fish are you leaning towards currently?


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

BettaBettas said:


> I have my CS with a gourami, he doesn't bother them. I was basically in a nut shell saying just take it slow, which I presume now that you have been. I thought you where being sarcastic, I still don't know if you where. Hard to tell when your reading. Shrimp before the fish btw, or else the fish will eat the shrimp (depending if its a carnivore, omnivore)


It has been obnoxiously slow for a guy that has been out of the hobby for about a year. Probably not looking to slow it down more.


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> It has been obnoxiously slow for a guy that has been out of the hobby for about a year. Probably not looking to slow it down more.


 keep it as slow as it has to be. 
Guessing everything else I said went over your head then if you only paid attention to one word or two.


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

BettaBettas said:


> keep it as slow as it has to be.
> Guessing everything else I said went over your head then if you only paid attention to one word or two.


No, I got it. Why so condescending?


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> No, I got it. Why so condescending?


 then why are you trying to argue, I'd rather not lol, Why so discourteous?


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## Bunsen Honeydew (Feb 21, 2017)

BettaBettas said:


> then why are you trying to argue, I'd rather not lol, Why so discourteous?


I didn't know I was arguing, I was explaining my choices. Was I discourteous? (especially considering your assumption that everything you said went over my head) I was simply looking for thoughts on tankmates for shrimp.


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I didn't know I was arguing, I was explaining my choices. Was I discourteous? (especially considering your assumption that everything you said went over my head) I was simply looking for thoughts on tankmates for shrimp.


 Dude alright im not going to argue like I said, well anymore that is on this thread. I gave u my suggestion, a gourami, also stated to have shrimp in there before you add the fish. :| idk where you got so sassy from, calm down. I said discourteous since you replied with a rude statement. if you have anymore problems shoot me a pm this thread is a fish suggestion
Good day
Nate


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## Zoidburg (Mar 8, 2016)

I think we should leave it at "Best of Luck", and if/when shrimp are added, hopefully they'll survive the tank. If not, it'll be a learning experience.


I've never been a fan of keeping fish at all, but I've heard several times now that keeping shrimp is a completely different experience to keeping fish and it's a learning curve, too... doesn't matter how many years that person has been keeping fish for! Shrimp are just different.


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## BettaBettas (Aug 21, 2016)

Zoidburg said:


> I think we should leave it at "Best of Luck", and if/when shrimp are added, hopefully they'll survive the tank. If not, it'll be a learning experience.
> 
> 
> I've never been a fan of keeping fish at all, but I've heard several times now that keeping shrimp is a completely different experience to keeping fish and it's a learning curve, too... doesn't matter how many years that person has been keeping fish for! Shrimp are just different.


 Some circumstances ill have to agree, some shrimp are just different yes that's true haha, Shrimp IMO I'd say are harder to keep than fish. Again depends what kinds, there are many kind of fish and shrimp obviously. Cichlids, neo's, a variety.
Here is a link for shrimp: Shrimp Species List .:. Freshwater Aquarium Shrimp Species Information Pages
And a link for fish: Freshwater Fish: Freshwater Tropical Fish Species for Tropical Fish Tanks (recommend to not buy here btw, just has a variety of fish with the details of them.)


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## D3monic (Jan 29, 2012)

Adult shrimp should do fine with small fish. Don't expect them to reproduce though. I've never seen a baby shrimp in one my fish tanks. 










This one was berried... never seen an offspring. Free food


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## anh2.0 (Jun 26, 2016)

Your best first that's bigger than an inch are thread fins rainbows. Not only are their mouth small, but they don't activly hunt for shrimp let and usually stay school in mid or upprange of the water colum


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## Veritas (Aug 9, 2013)

ok. Having had shrimp with fish for around 5 years now - I'll say this.

If you have lots of cover / places for them to hide - Red Cherry Shrimp will still populate the tank. However - I would not put expensive shrimp in the tank that you would be upset with them becoming snacks. I have countless numbers of RCS in my 120g - but I have seen many fall prey to the various fish I have. I look at it as population control personally - since RCS breed so fast.

Best of luck. Make sure and have plenty of hiding spots and you should be fine.


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## FewestKitten896 (Dec 13, 2013)

I keep cherry shrimp in a tank with 12 green neon tetras, 3 cpds, 3 or 4 embers but it is heavily planted. The only fish i see actively hunting are the cpds but i feed quite a bit daily so i assume the fish are not as hungry.

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## Christophe (Oct 23, 2013)

I keep about 60 cherry shrimp with 48 green neons, 15 rummy nose, and a bristlenose pleco. There are a lot of places to hide. The rummies occasionally will kill an adult shrimp, and I'm sure both types of tetras pick off quite a few baby shrimp, though I still do see them. My shrimp population is at the very least stable over 2 years. I had 6 amano shrimp in with them too, but found that my large 3 year old amanos were my biggest predatory problem -- cherries couldn't hide from them anywhere.


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## MChambers (May 26, 2009)

*I think this would work*



Bunsen Honeydew said:


> I see a lot of suggestions for a shrimp only tank. Would I be ok with a tank of neons, corys and a pleco and cherries? My plants are growing in, and I have lots of driftwood.


I've kept red cherry shrimp with neons and corydoras, and the shrimp did well. The neon might pick off a shrimplet or two, but they won't keep the shrimp from multiplying, based on my experience. I have several tanks that have just corydoras and shrimp, and the shrimp do quiet well.


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## NickAu (Feb 24, 2017)

Slightly off topic.

Heres one of my Bettas sharing a tank with shrimp and Kuhli Loaches. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ2Mmz0ka2A

Oh yes Kuhli Loaches do hunt baby shrimp


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## Neonfish (Jan 27, 2017)

African butterfly fish a good choice. They do not eat anything below the surface. And shrimps are bottom feeder

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## nel (Jan 23, 2016)

Neonfish said:


> African butterfly fish a good choice. They do not eat anything below the surface. And shrimps are bottom feeder
> 
> Sent from my LG-H650 using Tapatalk


That's an interesting idea! Maybe concentrating on surface feeders is a good idea. I'm not sure about killifish though. My blue gularis takes food from the ground by rotating his body and quickly grabbing food/fry. Fish shaped like butterfly fish probably can't even try that :-D


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## briandmiles (Feb 23, 2005)

sdwindansea said:


> I have a feeling you are going to hear many different pieces of advice and experiences. Some people are going to have a betta or a guppy that has never bothered their shrimp while others may have the same fish and had them wipe out their shrimp populations. Any fish that is not an herbivore has the potential to be a problem. Every tank setup is also different (size, plant types, amount of plants, moss, hiding spots, currents, etc.).
> 
> I really wanted shrimp and I had a lot going against me. I've never kept shrimp before, my tap water is very hard, I do a 50% weekly water change, I have a guppy, 6 sterbai corys and 9 harlequin rasboras. I decided to give it a shot any way and bought about 30 red cherry shrimp from a local hobbyist via craigslist. Never expected them to do well but they are thriving and multiplying. I see new baby shrimp weekly and my fish do not seem to be bothering them. I'm sure they pick off the fry at times but enough also appear to be surviving.
> 
> Now that this is going so well we are very hesitant to add some of the fish we originally planned on (e.g. german blue ram). If you have a lot of plants and hiding spaces you could definitely try some inexpensive shrimp to see how it goes. If they disappear you can justify it as an expensive treat for your fish.


I've done this in the past with a breeding pair of GBR's. My cherries still berried and bred but the overall population growth slowed down, it did not stop.


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## sfshrimp (May 24, 2016)

*My experience*

I have a 12g long with shrimp and fish. I have embers, lamplight, rummy and neons and four guppies, and shrimp are breeding. I have a lot of christmas moss and the tank is heavy on plants and hiding spots. It's probably slowed down the breeding, but I am consistently seeing shrimp I didn't buy.


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## p2002 (Nov 25, 2015)

You may get some answers here about some small fish that would work (like threadfin rainbows or green tetras), but at the end of the day you have a 125 gallon tank -- which means eventually you will want to add bigger fish. And when that day happens, you will lose your shrimp. Also, if your tank ever needs medication, you will lose your shrimp.

Another thing to consider is that even if your shrimp can survive, they will definitely hide a lot. I had some RCS in a tank with neon tetras. The neons didn't actively hunt the cherries, but the cherries still hid a lot. They were so well hidden that I thought they all died. So while your shrimp may survive, they will be so well hidden as to defeat the purpose of keeping them.

Also, even though threadfins and green tetras won't eat adult shrimp, they will eat the babies happily. So you will not get RCS to propagate properly (which is a big part of the fun of keeping them).

I suggest that you simply buy a small 2-5 gallon tank and create a shrimp only tank for your kids. It will be fun and almost zero work. Shrimps are super easy to keep. Just put in a sponge filter and some java moss (and a heater if you live in cold climates) and throw in some fish food once in a while and they'll be thrilled. And once your shrimp population explode, you can then add in some into your tank. This way if you lose them you wont' be throwing money away.


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## DeftAnesthetik (Oct 4, 2009)

I have previously kept shrimp with Dragon Fish (Violet Goby) without issue. They look mean with teeth and big mouths but are mostly just filter feeders. I had one that was close to 40cm long. Never actually witnessed it eating a shrimp. 

That being said, if you have shrimp of value the only fish that I know of 100% won't eat them is the Oto, as others have already stated.


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## ambe (Feb 16, 2017)

This is pretty good:
FISH TO PUT IN SHRIMP TANKS


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