HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So I have had 2 PP hermits, and 2 med Strawberry hermits now for the last 8 months or so, all are doing well and have at least molted once, one has twice.

Unfortunately, last week, I thought one of my strawberry hermits was in the moss pit molting, as the other one did.
I was in the process of cleaning out the water dishes/tubs, and sanitizing/baking the substrate and accidentally unearthed him.

He must have molted a day or two prior but his exo was still not completely hardened.
I gently picked him and his molted exo up and moved him to the moss pit and sprayed him with some saltwater gently just in case he had any "fresh molt" smell as to not attract any other crabs.

After I cleaned I took a soda bottle top and cut in half, created a deep hole and smoothed out the bottom, with some moss and gently placed him down in it and covered the outside of the bottle with soil to make it dark.
I drilled three holes in the cap so he has some air exchange.

I have left him be, and checked on him yesterday. He seems fine and is eating his exo.

I however noticed that one of his first leg segments is curved to the left and has hardened this way. Not the full leg, just the first segment with the black "nail" tip on it.
This must have been a result of being disturbed.

Is this bad? Can I do anything for him?
His exo is very bright/deep red and he seems to be reactive but I am leaving him alone in his cave/barrier until he starts being more active.

Any advise is appreciated.

Take the cap off of the bottle. For more air exchange. He/she will be fine with the bent leg. It should fix the next molt.


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Also, it is not necessary to sanitize and bake the substrate unless you have a major insect infestation like ants, or another legit reason.


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Thanks!

I was baking it mainly because it has been about 8 months and the bottom of the substrate had gone stagnant.
I didn't want to chance any bacterial issues, and I added to much water to begin with so I thought baking/sanitizing it and drying it out to start over was the best option.

Gotcha! When I mixed my sub I used marine salt water. I've never had issues with bacterial blooms, etc.


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I have since read where that is common.
Initially when I set up the crabitat I just used RODI water to hydrate the coconut fiber with.

I mixed it half and half with aragonite sand as well.

Dartolution wrote:I have since read where that is common.
Initially when I set up the crabitat I just used RODI water to hydrate the coconut fiber with.

I mixed it half and half with aragonite sand as well.

I'm a little confused as to what RODI is. Hmmm....the crushed coral is a great calcium supplement. Never heard of it mixed with sand before.
Edit - just looked up RODI on the internet. Reverse Osmosis.

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Haha, Sorry, I have owned a reef tank for the last 10 years. RODI is a common term used on those forums.

RODI is Reverse Osmosis Deionization. It differs from RO water due to the DI component. Essentially, the RODI unit makes lab-grade water.
Water that is purer than rain water with little to no total dissolved solids (TDS).

I didn't mix aragonite with sand (play sand), I used it instead of.
Its a fine grade crushed coral pretty much.
I haven't had any issues with it thus far. I use it in half of the crabitat where the saltwater pool is, and use a little in the bottom of the dish, along with a few small pieces of liverock/coral rock to aide with entry/exit.

Im curious about research thats been done on strawberries regarding carbonates and bicarbonates?
Because these guys live in coastal/coral island environment and we know they rely more on the ocean than other species, I'm curious if their longevity in captivity is due to the presents or lack of carbonates and bicarbonates maybe?

just a thought.

I also use Seachems Reef Crystals for their saltwater because I use it for the reef tank as well.

Nice. I'm sure that probably works great then. I had a salt water tank 20 years ago. It was my pride and joy. Had it for 2 years. Put a lot of money into it. My husband had the carpets cleaned while I was away, and my tank got chemical burn. I was devastated. I saved the fish I could, donated them to the pet store and tore the tank down. I was done with it. It hurt too much.

You could be right about the Strawberries. It is sad that they don't live long in captivity.

Well, the logic kind of comes from Flamingos...
They inhabit salty brine pools and feed off fauna there.
Those alkali lakes are very laden with carbonates and bicarbonates...

That combined with their diet... and so the logic follows.

Maybe I should try to rear straws then - my water is so hard it's impossible to keep calcium scale under control. The rim of my fish tank is covered in razor nicks from my trying to repeatedly scrape the encrusted crud off. Vinegar doesn't even touch it. And it just keeps comming back.

LadyJinglyJones wrote:Maybe I should try to rear straws then - my water is so hard it's impossible to keep calcium scale under control. The rim of my fish tank is covered in razor nicks from my trying to repeatedly scrape the encrusted crud off. Vinegar doesn't even touch it. And it just keeps comming back.

Fresh lemon is AMAZING at cleaning hard water deposits off. Just this past weekend there was a free tank on the side of the road. It was covered in hard water deposits. I picked up lemons at our farmers market that day. I took one, squeezed it several times before I used it, cut off the top, and used it to clean the tank. It looked brand new! My husband and I were shocked! Owe that tip to @JJAussieDude! lol - I had been using vinegar all of this time.

Straws are the most delicate of the hermits. They rely heavily on saltwater. Make sure you have a large cage and please remember that hermits are taken out of the wild when you buy. Try to adopt. They don't live long in captivity and are really for very experienced crabbers. (By no means am I saying you are not, I'm just throwing that out there-)

Thanks for the tip!!! I'm excited to try it.

And I wouldn't really want straws... they sound really challenging. I might end up with one if someone were getting rid of it... but they're so delicate that I can't see them surviving if not in the care of a pretty dedicated crabber: the kind of person least likely to want to rehome such a demanding pet.

Edit - and I'm not experienced!
I've only been at this since August!