cycling question

[pat]

ok im now 8 days into cycling......ammonia is at 2.0 nitrites are .25 nitrates are 10.....cycling with one huge raw shrimp.....my question is how high should i let the ammonia go before i remove the shrimp......since this will be aggressive, will having a higher ammonia spike be a good thing, making more natural bacteria for the messy eaters? it is a 125 and i only plan on having like 2 big fish eventually. if i get them small will the bacteria levels just adjust or will i have an abundance of them, making the water qualities better? main question is how high should i let the ammonia ger before i remove the shrimp?

 

[henry]

I recently cycled my tank with the shrimp method. What surprized me was that although the shrimp looked like it was still intact, it deflated like an overcooked turkey when I touched it. Those bacteria made short work of it. You might find this to be the case also.
Either way I think the general consensus is to leave the shrimp in since it'll be gone before you know it.