A step-by-step guide to breeding freshwater shrimp for beginners

By properly organizing a private fish farm, you can achieve success and make a profit. The main advantages of breeding freshwater shrimp include the presence of an extensive market for products, the absence of difficulties in care, and financially available equipment. The direction is quite new in our country, so there is no need to be afraid of high competition. Before embarking on the implementation of the idea, it is important to familiarize yourself with the peculiarities of growing shrimp.

Description

Freshwater shrimps have a special constitution, which is expressed in many legs. Thanks to their small legs, individuals can not only move around, but also perform various actions (for example, assisting in breathing). The body of freshwater shrimp is divided into the cephalothorax and abdominal region. In the area of ​​the cephalothorax, the main part of the paws of the crayfish is concentrated and the eyes and antennae are located.

In the area of ​​the peritoneum, the individuals have additional legs, which facilitate movement in the water surface and the bearing of offspring. The anterior part of the segments of the chest fuses with the head. If shrimp move with their hind legs, then with their front legs they carry food to the oral cavity. The presence of the carapace allows you to protect the chest and head.

Powerful jaws are capable of chopping and crushing feed. Thanks to the blade located in the jaw area, water circulates in the gills. Females can hold their eggs with the help of the legs on the abdominal cavity. The stalked eyes allow the crustaceans to turn.

Breeding features

Before starting to grow freshwater shrimp, it is important to study the information about the peculiarities of breeding, feeding and care. In addition, you should choose a place where cancer-like ones will be kept. If you wish, you can agree to rent a local pond or equip a reservoir on your own site. The depth of a self-made pond should be in the range of 1.45-1.55 m. The bottom surface of a home-made pool should be equipped with shelters for a comfortable habitation of shrimps. For these purposes, you can use:

• parts of slate;
• driftwood;
• roof tiles;
• pipe sections.

Water for filling the reservoir must be alive, green, with the presence of organic fertilizers. By following these recommendations, you can contribute to the natural creation of a food base for crustaceans.

Important! When breeding shrimp, the pH level in the water should be systematically monitored and the aquatic inhabitants should be well lit.

In order for the maximum percentage of shrimp offspring to survive, it is important to strictly observe the temperature regime. It is recommended to keep the water temperature at 23-27C. Considering that keeping of a warm water temperature is required for shrimp breeding, we can talk about the seasonal nature of such a business. To extend the season, you should take care of the artificial heating of the pond in advance. However, it should be borne in mind that the cost of the equipment will be high.

Shrimp should be fed with natural food, both animal and plant origin.

What is needed for breeding

To grow crustaceans, it is important to first think over the issue of their habitat. Shrimp can be bred in the following conditions:

• aquarium;
• open pond;
• artificial reservoir.

Important! It should be borne in mind that for the successful breeding of shrimp in an open reservoir, you will need to live in the southern region, where the water maintains the recommended temperature for a long time.

Aquarium equipment

To grow different types of freshwater shrimp, you need to buy different containers. This will avoid conflicts between individuals and prevent interspecies crossing. In order to start a business, you will need containers, the volume of which is 80-100 liters with the presence of:

• filter;
• lighting;
• aerator.

Growing in ponds

For residents of the southern regions, the idea of ​​growing shrimp in a pond is perfect. By using reservoir heating during the cold season, a continuous process can be achieved. The owner of a shrimp farm must systematically add fry to the pond, the mass of which has barely reached 2-3 g, and catch the adults.

If you want to open a business in colder regions, you can transfer aquatic life to aquariums that are located indoors for the winter. The process of growing wards occurs in stages:

1. Finding crustaceans in indoor aquariums until early May.
2. Relocation of individuals to an open reservoir in early May.
3. Reaching market size at the end of September.

To breed shrimp, you should select a reservoir, the depth of which will reach 100-115 cm. The presence of moss, algae, brine shrimp, rotifers and tardigrades in the water is also important. Shrimp can be kept in water, the temperature of which is in the range of 20-35C. If the temperature indicator drops a couple of degrees below the minimum limit, then the individuals stop feeding. In cold water (12-14 C), crustaceans die.

Optimal performance for the growth and normal development of shrimp

Oxygen content	Nitrite indicator	Nitrate level
5 mg / l	0.26-0.35 mg / l	1.5-3 mg / l

Exceeding the indicators leads to the extinction of the population.

RAS device

In order to create comfortable conditions for the wards, experts recommend installing a closed water supply device (RAS), which should be located in a room with heating and good lighting. RAS will be based on:

1. A pair of pools with a capacity of 1.5-2 tons of water.
2. Pumps that are capable of circulating water.
3. Storage tanks.
4. Filtration blocks.
5. Aerators to help oxygenate the water.
6. UV disinfection system.

Equipment

For growing in an aquarium, the entrepreneur must take care of the installation in advance:

• heating system;
• aeration systems;
• filters.

It is important to leave aeration on around the clock, as crustaceans are highly sensitive to the level of oxygen in the water. The heating and lighting function should be set depending on the needs of the inhabitants of the reservoir. When installing the filtration system, it is important to keep the internal flow to a minimum. Each of the holes that are on the filter must be covered with a sponge so that crustaceans do not fall into them.

Ensuring conditions of detention

When breeding crustaceans, it is important to adhere to the basic recommendations shared by experienced shrimp growers:

1. There should be no wild species in a freshwater shrimp tank.
2. It is unacceptable to contain shrimp with large fish.
3. It is important to control the acidity of the water and systematically carry out measures to cleanse the reservoir.
4. Monitor the level of nitrites and nitrates in the reservoir.
5. Provide a rocky bottom surface.
6. Maintain the water temperature in the range of 25-29 C.
7. Place enough phytoplankton in the reservoir.
8. Equip a pair of aquariums that function as an incubator for keeping females with eggs.

Where to get fry

Having decided the issue with the reservoir, you should think about where you can buy fry.You should buy small shrimps in a special farm, the organizers of which are engaged in crustacean breeding. If there is an opportunity, it is better to purchase adult females with caviar, but such an offer is difficult to meet. Therefore, the best option would be to buy crustacean fry, whose age has reached 12-15 days. It is important to feed the postlarvae the first weeks intensively so that they reach a mass of 0.25-0.35 g.

Shrimp breeding instruction

Below is an instruction that describes the principle of shrimp breeding. Adhering to the recommendations of the instructions, you can grow large individuals of aquatic inhabitants and sell them profitably.

Settling fry

After the purchase, we fill the bag with fry with aquatic plants so that the shrimps can catch on to them. If the purchase is made on a hot day, you should arrange for the delivery of the goods to your home. This will avoid overheating.

For a while, we place packages with postlarvae in the water and wait for the moment when the temperature in the package and in the reservoir becomes the same. In the case when in addition to shrimp fish inhabits the reservoir, it is important to turn off the lighting during the fry colonization in order to prevent the new inhabitants from "pecking".

Feeding

One of the main advantages of shrimp is their omnivorous nature. She chooses to feed:

• moss;
• foliage;
• seaweed;
• fish.

In case of severe hunger, freshwater shrimp can eat congeners. To avoid cannibalism, it is important to equip the surface of the bottom of the reservoir with shelters, the role of which can be played by:

• fragments of bricks;
• logs;
• a bunch of threads and green fishing line.

It is important that the diet of crustaceans contains a sufficient number of brine shrimp larvae and specialized granulated feed mixture. Mixed feeding reduces costs. The daily diet of freshwater shrimp should be based on:

• algae;
• mixtures of milk powder and egg powder;
• flour;
• plankton;
• vitamin complex;
• minerals and fish oil.

The listed components are combined and ground. The paste is dried and cut into granules. The finished feed mixture contains more than 30% protein. Such a diet will be an excellent alternative to natural foods.

Care

Freshwater shrimp can live not only in a large reservoir, but also in a small aquarium. However, when populating fry, it is worth remembering that the number of shrimps to be kept in the reservoir is based on the calculation of 1 shrimp for every liter of water. For large breeds of crustaceans, the calculation formula changes - each individual needs 3-4 liters of water.

With a decrease in the temperature regime of the water, it should be borne in mind that the mobility of the inhabitants of the aquatic environment is significantly reduced. Too low temperature can lead to the death of the charges.

It is important to organize water changes every 7-10 days. Compliance with this condition contributes to ensuring the normal life of the inhabitants of the aquatic environment. To replace the water, a settled liquid, heated to the required temperature, should be used.

It is important to keep the water chemistry under control. The presence of copper in the composition is unacceptable.

Before settling in an aquarium or reservoir, it is important to take care of planting:

•  
• javanese moss;
• hornwort;
• pistia;
• cladaphors.

Timely feeding of wards, a systematic change of water and ensuring normal temperature are the main conditions that are important to observe when caring for crustaceans.

Diseases

Shrimp are susceptible to disease. Most often, individuals suffer from parasites, which are concentrated in the area of ​​\ u200b \ u200bthe shell. Gradually, the parasites begin to penetrate the muscle tissue and gills, infect the nervous system and heart muscle. It is impossible to cure crustaceans from this disease. Individuals die quickly.

Observing cleanliness in the reservoir, the possibility of fungus is not excluded. Fungal infection, hitting shrimp, sucks nutrients out of them, poisoning the body of crustaceans with toxins.Shrimp also suffer from viral diseases, which are extremely difficult to cure.

It is very important to isolate it as soon as possible when a disease is detected in an individual. In this case, the water from the reservoir should be drained and filled with clean water. After that, it is necessary to consult with a veterinary specialist who will help to establish the diagnosis with accuracy and help prescribe the appropriate treatment.

Possible difficulties

Shrimps breed between molts. The female is capable of carrying up to 18-20 eggs at a time. Small freshwater crustaceans live 12-16 months. This period is quite enough to overpopulate ponds with intensive reproduction. However, lack of proper care shortens the lifespan of individuals. Shrimps die en masse without reaching marketable weight. In this case, fry constantly have to be bought in other people's farms. In this case, the financial costs increase, and the profit covers the maintenance costs.

Breeding features

To profit from crustacean farming, it is necessary to organize the proper conditions for the full growth of shrimp. Before purchasing expensive equipment, you should talk to entrepreneurs who are engaged in shrimp farming and study the nuances of the business. It is important to provide the wards with proper conditions, namely:

1. Comfortable water temperature, which allows the fry to quickly gain weight and develop normally.
2. Limit the number of individuals in the reservoir. In an overcrowded pond, shrimp are prone to cannibalism.
3. High quality feed mixture. Fry that is between 10 and 15 days old should be fed frequently. During this period, the postlarvae are gaining mass intensively, so it is impractical to save on food. The food can be purchased from a supplier or prepared by hand.

Shrimp farming business

Success in a difficult business can only be achieved by considering in detail both the main and additional nuances of the case. The main advantage of the farm will be an extensive sales market, the absence of difficulties in caring for individuals. Having approached the issue correctly and providing the shrimps with good breeding conditions, you can count on high profits.

Profit and profitability

When producing 7-9 tons of crustaceans each year, you can get income in the range of 2-3 million rubles. In this case, the cost of a kilogram of products should be 320-380 rubles. A business can pay off in 1-2 years. To determine the profitability of a shrimp farm, it is important to determine the cost per kilowatt of energy that the owner of the farm uses to heat water during the cold season.

If heating elements are used, then the financial costs of paying utility bills increase greatly. It is better to study in advance the issue of the possibility of using gas. The existence of a hot water discharge channel of a thermal power plant near the pond makes life easier for an entrepreneur. This advantage makes it possible to grow crustaceans even in the cold season.

Sales market

Sales organization is an important part of a business. Growing crustaceans for sale, you can cooperate with:

• •  
• restaurants and sushi bars;
• beer bars;
• retail grocery stores;
• supermarkets;
• fish shops;
• pet stores.

A shrimp farm is an unusual business for our climate. However, using the knowledge and experience of foreign entrepreneurs, you can create a highly profitable business that will bring high profits.

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