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Coral Vue Hydros

cleaner shrimp bite or pinch?


anndi

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My cleaner shrimp always wants to hop on my hand or arm when I am doing stuff in the tank, it scares me...can they hurt you? Or are they harmless?

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They will try and pinch you, but their claws are so tiny that it doesn't hurt. Mine jumps on my hand every time I stick it in the tank. He'll jump on anything, in fact. He spent half an hour trying to clean a brand new powerhead. If you have any scabs it will try to pick at them, though. Mine also sometimes pulls on my arm hairs.

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Helfrichs Chick

Yep mine is always hand fed. Climbs all over my hand when its in the tank. Hey ARKLIER is that a pic of "your" Azures??? I breed dendros too, leucs tincs and azures. Where you located? She is pretty. Looks like a female anyways.

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I live near Seattle, and that is my female azureus. I've one of her offspring for sale too. Maybe I should put up a classifed post. :x)

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my cleaner jumped on my hand checked all over, found a rather gnarly cut on my finger (i know, i probably shouldn't have any open wounds in my tank, but this was mostly scab), and picked at it. the next day it looked a lot healthier, i swear. kind of gross, but true. and endearing :)

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my cleaner jumped on my hand checked all over, found a rather gnarly cut on my finger (i know, i probably shouldn't have any open wounds in my tank, but this was mostly scab), and picked at it. the next day it looked a lot healthier, i swear. kind of gross, but true. and endearing :)

 

Are you sure it wasn't the saltwater bath that helped it out?

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^^^^^ Yeah, I'm thinking it was the SW. I've worked in my tank and cuts seem to heal faster after being in it for a while. Even when not touched by cleaners.

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ReefApprentice

My fireshrimp always tries to jump on my hand when I am in their. He ain't much of a cleaner so I think he just hates me.

Alex :lol:

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Mine pinches every so often. Usually he tickles me while I'm working, but every so often I get a sharp pinch. It's disconcerting that something that small can exert that much pressure.

 

...or I just have soft skin.

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A salt bath for wounds can be good, it shure probally disinfects the existing bacteria there, but watch out for microbes, parasites, spores, toxins and other things in the water and lurking in the LR :P

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As my skunk shrimp has gotten bigger (claws getting bigger), his cleaning has gotten a little pinchy at times. When he was smaller, I never felt a thing.

 

Fire shrimp doesn't hurt at all and he's the same size.

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  • 9 years later...

Not sure if it's a one off but my skunk cleaner shrimp has got a taste for my hand, it used to be harmless but then once has ripped a bit of flesh off and looked like it enjoyed it... It felt like an itch then realized I was bleeding, not a massive problem but thought I'd share the experience

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ClownGobyDood

haha my camel shrimp "investigates" my fingers when i clean or something but he's extremely shy so i have to be really still but the minute i move a centimeter BAM back to his hide place haha shrimp are weird

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  • 4 weeks later...
reefernanoman

Harmless! Before mine died of old age( they only live like 1 year right?), he would always get on my hand and would start tickling me while he was looking for food or something. They don't hurt you at all, and are one of the most fun and outgoing shrimp out there!


Some people can actually get pinched hard that it hurts with such a small shrimp like a cleaner shrimp? Mine would only feel like a tickle and he was full grown already.

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HarryPotter

Not sure if it's a one off but my skunk cleaner shrimp has got a taste for my hand, it used to be harmless but then once has ripped a bit of flesh off and looked like it enjoyed it... It felt like an itch then realized I was bleeding, not a massive problem but thought I'd share the experience

 

 

haha my camel shrimp "investigates" my fingers when i clean or something but he's extremely shy so i have to be really still but the minute i move a centimeter BAM back to his hide place haha shrimp are weird

 

 

Harmless! Before mine died of old age( they only live like 1 year right?), he would always get on my hand and would start tickling me while he was looking for food or something. They don't hurt you at all, and are one of the most fun and outgoing shrimp out there!

Some people can actually get pinched hard that it hurts with such a small shrimp like a cleaner shrimp? Mine would only feel like a tickle and he was full grown already.

 

LOL this thread is 9 years old!

 

But yeah my cleaner just goes on my hand and nibbles- tickles!

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reefernanoman

LOL this thread is 9 years old!

 

But yeah my cleaner just goes on my hand and nibbles- tickles!

I didn't even notice that! Well someone revived it. Haha.
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They can be a PITA. I had skunk cleaners that would not leave my hands alone. I would even flick them away with my finger and they would zoom right back onto my hand. I had to be careful to have very clean hands particularly under my fingernails. I generally do (dirty fingernails are gross) but I still had to make sure. They would indeed pull off hangnails too. That was before we all turned sissy and didn't wear gloves.

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Before mine died of old age( they only live like 1 year right?)

 

No, they should live longer than one year. Had my skunks for almost 5 years before an extended power outage took them. They were big and healthy at the time.

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reefernanoman

No, they should live longer than one year. Had my skunks for almost 5 years before an extended power outage took them. They were big and healthy at the time.

 

Then my stupid bw clownfish must have killed him then because he was always biting and harassing him.
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ClownGobyDood

I got a new pistol and my camel gets a little close but the pistol is so small and chill I don't think the watchman knows he's there :D

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