HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Alright so about a month ago my area got hit with a really bad snow storm and our power went out for about a week. I had multiple blankets on our tank but it was very cold. I kept the humidity up but we were trapped so I had nothing at my disposal that could help make them warmer. We knew they were barried so we just hoped they would be okay. 2 weeks ago we started to hear digging and then a week ago one came up and then the other. The first to come up was Sabastian, he ate a lot of food and egg shells. His skin looks a little dry and flaky but he's been pretty active. I haven't seen Ariel eat since she's come up but she could have and me just not seen it. She was being active and climbing around not just 2 days ago and now she's being pretty lethargic and looks very ashy. She's kind of sitting on he side and not moving much which is very abnormal. Her skin looks very dry and flaky as well. Is this her molting or could she be dying too. I'm very concerned and I was very hopeful when they came up and were very active but she has me worried. How badly can a power outage screw up a molt?

The ashy appearance you're describing sounds as neither has molted. How cold did the tank get? I'm wondering if they got so cold they ended up in a sort of hibernation, which threw them off from molting properly. That he is eating is great and he'll need to get his reserves back. Just keep trying to get her interested in something, and make sure humidity and temps are ideal now. They do tend to linger for weeks after fatal cold damage, sadly. I've always thought it was a major cause of PPS in the colder months since it happens more.

This may, unfortunately, be a matter of wait and see, as Wode said. Are your temps and humidity ideal now?

My temp stays at 80 and the humidity is around 65-70 relative humidity. She was walking around a tiny bit yesterday and I got her to eat some egg shells and saw her drinking some water. Last night she crawled into a hut and is just hanging out of her shell about half way. She was so active a few days ago, so if the power outage effected her wouldn't it been right away. Also it was pretty cold. We could all see our breaths I'm not sure about exact temps.

Also, I was wrong I got a better look at Sabastian today and he looks so good. He's bright colored and I found a piece of his exoskeleton. He's eating and drinking a lot of climbing and exploring like he always has. Ariel is half his size and shes a PP. Sabastian is an Ecuadorian.

Unfortunately no, it doesn't always hit them hard right away. Sometimes it can cause just enough damage and take away just enough energy to where they are unable to molt and finish healing the next time they are supposed to. That can take weeks to months.

As Wode said, the cold could affect them a while after, not necessarily right away. Can you get your humidity up a bit more, like over 75%?

Their humidity is at 70% and I struggle to get it above that which is why I'm gonna use coco earth and waiting for a mister in the mail. We mist throughout the day and have moss and coconut huts in there so I always thought it was okay for the time being while I work on improvements. It used to stay higher than this but since I redid their tank and didn't use coco earth mixure like before it doesn't. I'm pretty sure shes passing on, because she is super limp and hanging out of her shell.

What do you have for a lid on your tank?

did it shed yet?

So unfortunately Ariel passed away Sebastian keeps sitting in the hut she passed in. I'm so sad

I'm so sorry for your loss.

same. my little guy past the same way...

I’m sorry that happened

I am sorry. Accidents happen, and this one was out of your control!