Crayfish escaped

[Butternutsquash666]

Hey guys, I’m new here but need some advice. I’ve had my blue lobster (crayfish) for a few months now. It’s molted once without any issues and it looked like it was going to start molting again but then it escaped its tank and my roommate found it on the floor the next morning. It was still moving a little and when we put it back in the tank it floated for a while then sank. It’s tail is curled and it is completely non-responsive. I’m not sure if it’s in shock and is just re-hydrating or if it’s not gonna make it. Before he escaped he was wall surfing constantly which made me think he was unhappy, however all of the water parameters are fine. I’m hoping someone can help! I’m just worried about my little buddy!!

 

[deeda]

Sorry he escaped the tank! Do you have a lid on the aquarium?

Can you post the test results for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH?

How often do you do water changes and how much water do you change when you do?

What are you feeding your crayfish?

 

[twentyleagues]

What do you mean by fine? Your fine and fine for the animals could be much much different.
Seems a weird "stance" to be in if not aware. What do you mean by unresponsive? Did you drop it in and it landed like that?
Tail curl can be alot of things with crayfish, defensive posture ready to flee, could be carrying eggs (doesn't look like it) could be dying tails tend to curl up when they die.
Back to the fine water parameters, nitrate is a issue for inverts of course so are nitrites an ammonia, ph greater than neutral is preferred, kh and gh also need to be on the scale somewhere preferably above 4-5dkh.
I breed crayfish and have bred them for about 3 years now. Increased nitrates say above 20ppm really starts messing with them

 

[Butternutsquash666]

Sorry he escaped the tank! Do you have a lid on the aquarium?

Can you post the test results for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH?

How often do you do water changes and how much water do you change when you do?

What are you feeding your crayfish?

Thank you for responding! I don’t have a lid currently (it broke unfortunately), but am working on a replacement. I do water changes about every 2 weeks- although I was doing them weekly the first month I had him (I don’t actually know the gender- I’m new to crayfish). When I do the water changes they are about 25%. I feed him shrimp cuisine and algae wafers- every once in a while I give him a mealworm which I read was ok. Here are the results from the water tests. The nitrate levels are a little high I believe but I’m not fully sure how to lower them. The temperature stays at about 78° F.

 

[Butternutsquash666]

What do you mean by fine? Your fine and fine for the animals could be much much different.
Seems a weird "stance" to be in if not aware. What do you mean by unresponsive? Did you drop it in and it landed like that?
Tail curl can be alot of things with crayfish, defensive posture ready to flee, could be carrying eggs (doesn't look like it) could be dying tails tend to curl up when they die.
Back to the fine water parameters, nitrate is a issue for inverts of course so are nitrites an ammonia, ph greater than neutral is preferred, kh and gh also need to be on the scale somewhere preferably above 4-5dkh.
I breed crayfish and have bred them for about 3 years now. Increased nitrates say above 20ppm really starts messing with them

I posted the water parameters in a reply. When we put him back in he tried to swim down but couldn’t and just kept floating, he was swimming along the surface for a little. His legs were moving and he was responsive (would avoid my hands or the killifish I have in the tank with him). We had to leave and when we came back he had sank to the bottom in that position (body floating with claws on ground) but when I put tongs in the tank or tried to pick him up he didn’t move at all and didn’t care, which is unusual for him. He hasn’t moved in a few hours from what I can tell. His tail has been more curled for the past week and a half or so, and I didn’t know if that was something I should worry about. I have an extra tank that I can put either him or the killifish in if the stress is too much, but they have lived together for about a month now without any issue. He has also began to turn a more pinky color opposed to his regular blue color- I don’t know if he’s just been sick the past few weeks and the trauma of escaping was too much and he died, or if he’s fine but just in shock from the experience. Thank you for your help!!

 

[Deadeye]

Is anything moving? Mouth parts, gills, antennae?

 

[Butternutsquash666]

Is anything moving? Mouth parts, gills, antennae?

Nothing seems to be moving, every once in a while it looks like his antennae move but it could just be the water moving. I can’t tell if his gills are moving or not, but his fans and mouth area and legs/claws aren’t moving at all. I’m thinking he’s probably gone sadly.

 

[tlindsey]

Hey guys, I’m new here but need some advice. I’ve had my blue lobster (crayfish) for a few months now. It’s molted once without any issues and it looked like it was going to start molting again but then it escaped its tank and my roommate found it on the floor the next morning. It was still moving a little and when we put it back in the tank it floated for a while then sank. It’s tail is curled and it is completely non-responsive. I’m not sure if it’s in shock and is just re-hydrating or if it’s not gonna make it. Before he escaped he was wall surfing constantly which made me think he was unhappy, however all of the water parameters are fine. I’m hoping someone can help! I’m just worried about my little buddy!!

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Welcome aboard

 

[Deadeye]

Nothing seems to be moving, every once in a while it looks like his antennae move but it could just be the water moving. I can’t tell if his gills are moving or not, but his fans and mouth area and legs/claws aren’t moving at all. I’m thinking he’s probably gone sadly.

Sadly yes, I do believe it’s dead. When one of mine died it was the same way.

 

[twentyleagues]

Sadly yes, I do believe it’s dead. When one of mine died it was the same way.

I believe this also.
Sorry, I was thinking it was gone by it's position in the water standing but not really.
It could have been many things but most likely it was injured during the escape. Its possible stress factors had it weakened. I've had them go on walk about before. They're pretty tough usually as long as they don't dry out they are usually fine. I learned the hard way with them also, need a top.

It's hard for me to tell your water parameters but they look alright. Looks like the water is pretty hard which should be good. Nitrate is a little high. Water changes is how you fix that. I've let my nirates get above 80ppm with my colony and they were quite unhappy not dead or close to death but not happy. Took quit a while to get them healthy again and breeding.


I forgot to add temp is a bit high. Crayfish are a temperate animal. 78 would be on the absolute highest side and probably stressful for longer periods. May have been reason for the pink coloration. The are best kept at 68 to 73f.