Keeping leeches

[Mattitude]

Anyone have any tips for keeping leeches from dying. Bought some the other day and haven't had a chance to use them yet. I remember last year having some in the fridge and they died after not using them for a bit. Thanks.

[rbaquial]

Leeches are pretty hardy creatures and will survive quite a while if kept in cool, fairly clean water. In a covered container kept in a refrigerator they will live for weeks or months if you change the water once a week or so. Keep the container covered or they may crawl out of the container and die without being in water.

 

SOURCE: http://www.sportscomet.com/Fishing/187113.htm

[rbaquial]

Found another good website...

 

http://www.lindylittlejoe.com/fishing_tips..._Care_101.shtml

 

Just search online - There are tonnes of info to read regarding Leeches...

[Mattitude]

Thats great! Thanks for the help guys!

[Randy]

I suggest you use un-chlorinated water to keep your leeches in, ie aged tap water. Take tap water and let it sit for a few days in an open container to let the chlorine volatilize. Then use this aged tap water to keep your leeches in and change the water regularly. I use the same method to age tap water for my tropical fish aquarium.

[blaque]

As said, they are pretty tough to kill if kept in clean water and kept cold

 

However, this begs the question.......what do these things live off of then.........if they are stuck in a styro container in a fridge, with only themselves in this container..........for months at a time. What supports this thing. Do they just ingest their own slime lol, are they self supporting creatures. Weird if you ask me

[Randy]

I've only had to keep them for a couple of weeks at a time and by that time, its time to buy more. So I've never fed them. However having said that, I noticed that at the bait store they seem to throw in a couple of dead minnows in the tank with the leeches.

[gogu392]

You can feed them with dead minow, sneels but the leeches will lay eggs and die.

Ribon leeches (best for fishing) eat decayed met, sneels, small crustaceus.

If you feed them you have to clean the water more often.

It is not recomended to feed them. They get into hibernation mode (like winter time). Jut replace the water with un-clorinated one. Do not replace the cool water with warm sudenly. Keep un-clorinated reserve water in fridge also.

Leeches can die easly when changing the water if the new temperature diference is biger than 10 degrees.

I hope this help.

[wallyboss]

I've forgotten 2 dozen of leeeches in my fridge downstairs for a whole summer never ged the water or anything, If it's cold enough they just go dormant. I bought some openeing weekend for walleyes and I ahd a couple of dozens left and I found them in my fridge middle of Sept. I took them outside and rinsed out the container and found only 3 dead ones the other ones came back to life and healthy within 5 minutes of the water warming up. i threw them back in the fridge and used them the next weekend and they were all still in good shape.