Should hermit crabs and snails be quarantined?

npeters1989 · 12/14/2010, 05:20 PM

Just wanted to make sure about this before I end up screwing up my whole tank...

Sk8r · 12/14/2010, 05:55 PM

Some do, but they don't get ich. Get a bucket of waste water, make sure the salinity matches their water within .001, and wave them around in the bucket for a few minutes, or hold them under poured water to get the fish store water washed off, and then just put them into the qt tank with any fish you happen to have, or if you have no one in qt, put them on into the display. There's no test that will show whether an ich trophont hitched in via a water droplet, but there's nothing that's going to clean them off much more efficiently, either.

Jstdv8 · 12/14/2010, 06:06 PM

The tomont is the one that concerns me when it comes to QT, it could be attached to the shell of an invert, LR, coral skeleton ect.
I'm not sure if a wash off would take these encysted ich.

The trophont is a non-factor when it comes to Qting inverts since that is the stage inwhich it is actually attached adn living off of the fish. It's called a protomont once it leaves the fish, these little guys would likley be able to be washed off, but within a day of being released from the fish they encyst and attach to something hard at which point they become a tomont. Tomonts are the devils IMO

Cj923 · 12/14/2010, 09:21 PM

I never Qt snail or crabs??? Thats just me though

89Foxbody · 12/14/2010, 10:10 PM

If your fish are healthy, I don't think it's something to worry about.

SushiGirl · 12/14/2010, 10:54 PM

Depends on what you're quarantining for. When I bought my cerith snails a few weeks ago, a very small pyramellid or rissoid snail hitched in on one of them (I saw it crawl off the snail, onto my glass, and away) and a white/clear flatworm appeared in my refugium the next day (and was promptly photographed & flushed LOL). I tried to check before taking each out of the bag, but that's not the easiest thing to do with snails! I haven't seen anymore of either yet, but those are the only things that have been added to the tank (ever). I'm guessing a good rinsing/shower like Sk8r mentioned would have helped in my case.

12/14/2010, 05:20 PM	#1
npeters1989 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Cleveland, TN/ Clemson, SC Posts: 103	Should hermit crabs and snails be quarantined? Just wanted to make sure about this before I end up screwing up my whole tank...

12/14/2010, 05:55 PM	#2
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	Some do, but they don't get ich. Get a bucket of waste water, make sure the salinity matches their water within .001, and wave them around in the bucket for a few minutes, or hold them under poured water to get the fish store water washed off, and then just put them into the qt tank with any fish you happen to have, or if you have no one in qt, put them on into the display. There's no test that will show whether an ich trophont hitched in via a water droplet, but there's nothing that's going to clean them off much more efficiently, either. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

12/14/2010, 10:10 PM	#5
89Foxbody Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Norwich, CT Posts: 1,532	If your fish are healthy, I don't think it's something to worry about. __________________ Red Sea Max 130D Mixed Reef: ReefKeeper2, Rapid-LED retrofit, MiniMaxx Reactor, Tunze 9001 Skimmer, 2x Jebao RW-4, 2x Maxi-Jet 600 returns, 2x Koralia Nano 425

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
new hermit crabs not moving (normal or something bad)	hessfish	Other Invertebrates	6	11/07/2010 11:06 PM
VIDEO: Huge Saltwater Hermit Crab Swtiches Shells	seanothon	Other Invertebrates	5	05/15/2010 07:21 PM
Hermit Crabs from beach	Jpino004	Reef Discussion	7	03/30/2010 07:36 PM
Two questions: blue eyed hermit, crab claws	twiggyb	Reef Discussion	2	12/17/2009 09:53 AM
free rogue blue hermit crab	unboundmind	Arizona-Sierra Vista/Tucson Reef Keepers	4	12/05/2009 11:29 PM

12/14/2010, 06:06 PM	#3
Jstdv8 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Wasilla, Alaska Posts: 1,420	The tomont is the one that concerns me when it comes to QT, it could be attached to the shell of an invert, LR, coral skeleton ect. I'm not sure if a wash off would take these encysted ich. The trophont is a non-factor when it comes to Qting inverts since that is the stage inwhich it is actually attached adn living off of the fish. It's called a protomont once it leaves the fish, these little guys would likley be able to be washed off, but within a day of being released from the fish they encyst and attach to something hard at which point they become a tomont. Tomonts are the devils IMO

12/14/2010, 09:21 PM	#4
Cj923 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 57	I never Qt snail or crabs??? Thats just me though

12/14/2010, 10:54 PM	#6
SushiGirl Premium Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Fort Worth, TX USA Posts: 8,267	Depends on what you're quarantining for. When I bought my cerith snails a few weeks ago, a very small pyramellid or rissoid snail hitched in on one of them (I saw it crawl off the snail, onto my glass, and away) and a white/clear flatworm appeared in my refugium the next day (and was promptly photographed & flushed LOL). I tried to check before taking each out of the bag, but that's not the easiest thing to do with snails! I haven't seen anymore of either yet, but those are the only things that have been added to the tank (ever). I'm guessing a good rinsing/shower like Sk8r mentioned would have helped in my case.