[duster]

1) I've read about giving incoming fish a brief, medicated freshwater dip, but what about cleaner inverts (snails, crab, shrimp)? I know that they aren't susceptible to the same diseases as fish, but are they susceptible to other diseases that can be helped with an unmedicated freshwater dip? Can they briefly tolerate freshwater? If anyone would recommend this, how long should the dip be?

2) As a newbie who has never handled inverts, I'm wondering about transferring them, especially shrimp with all their delicate-looking appendages. Can they be netted? If not, would they allow you to pick them up directly by their shell/carapace?

[Penguin]

It wouldn't be a good idea to give your snails, crabs, and shrimp a freshwater dip. These animals are more sensitive than fish to rapid changes in salinity. Most fish can handle a brief freshwater dip without a problem but I expect that shrimp and snails especially would almost certainly die.

If you are worried about new inverts bringing diseases into your system, you can quarantine them, just as you would a fish, for 2-4 weeks. Some authors recommend a quarantine period for everything, corals, other inverts, LR, etc. Personally, I just quarantine fish though.

Transferring shrimp, I carefully net them out of the shipping bag and then release them into the aquarium. Snails and crabs I usually pick up and place individually on rocks in the aquarium. HTH

[Ninong]

Originally Posted by duster

Can they briefly tolerate freshwater?

No.

Invertebrates should never be dipped in freshwater.

[duster]

Thank You. That answers my questions.