HCA: Hermit Crab Association

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
Not enough. Maybe about 2 inches of fake sand. If he pulls through we're going to redo his whole tank correctly (since we've discovered this forum and know better!)

2. Do you have gauges in the tank to measure temperature and humidity? If so, where are they located and what temperature and humidity do they usually read?
We have one for the temperature of the heated side of the tank but no humidity gauge that I'm aware of.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
Heater on one side of the tank (underneath)

4. What types of water are available (fresh or salt) and how is the water treated (what brands of dechlorinator or salt mix and what ratio is used to mix it)?
Fresh in two locations, we usually fill with a fresh water bottle

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
Fresh fruits and veggies, coconut, and some hermie food from the pet store that looks like little shrimps and pellets. We replace food often.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
He's a little guy, bought him at the mall so we're not sure what he is. Or if he is a he.

7. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
10 gallon tank with a screen lid on the top.

8. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
Just 1. He is alone because he had multiple shell fights with other crabs that ended fatally. He's about the size of a dollar coin and about 12 years old.

9. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
6 or 7

10. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
No

11. How often do you clean the tank and how?
Not super often, mostly just his food dishes and things inside the tank that can be removed if they start looking like they need it.

12. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
Yes, cleaned with bottled water

13. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
No

14. Is there any other information you would like to share that might be helpful (anything that is regularly part of your crab care, playtime, bathing, etc.)?
Honestly we don't really bother him unless we need to. He doesn't care for being handled or picked up and we try to respect that. We don't know much about crabs and I understand if anyone thinks we're not taking good enough care of him but I can promise it's only out of ignorance. We're very worried about him and we've grown more attached than we ever thought we would.

15. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
Alright so we've had this crab for about 12 years and haven't had any other crabs since we got him. We really don't take much part in his life other than providing food and water and a clean, warm home. We also don't know very much about crabs and may have been a little misguided by the employees who sold him to us, so please try not to be too hard on us for our mistakes. We've improved a lot and I think he has lived a pretty happy and long life so far.

Anyway, he has been inactive and dug himself (not fully buried) into the front corner of his tank to molt which was strange because he has two shelters with sand piled a little higher than the other areas of his tank. I had been keeping an eye on him until yesterday when I saw he had fully molted and his exoskeleton was lying in front of him. I haven't ever seen such a full skeleton before- his eyes and antennae came out with it! So at first I assumed he was dead but when I looked closer I could see it was just the skeleton. And even closer I could see him up inside the shell as it was propped up on the skeleton at an angle that let me see. I didn't touch or move him at that point and I shut the lights off in the room and left so I wouldn't disturb him further.

I got home from work and entered the room to discover he had been moved by my mom, who assumed he was dead. She had never seen such a full molt before either and thought he was out of his shell and dead. I called her over and asked her what happened and she said she saw him detached from his skeleton, looking whole and dead, picked the shell up and his skeleton remained on the sand. That's when I noticed two of his actual legs had come out- including the big claw. I pointed them out and she was horrified that she had disturbed him during a molt. She had honestly not even considered it because he was so far back in his shell that you cant see him. I can't blame her for assuming he was dead and I know she wouldn't have touched him if she realized he was molting. He was just in a weird spot above the sand and the skeleton looked whole so the situation was just confusing.

She was in tears today and told me she felt overwhelmed with guilt because she may or may not have caused him enough stress to drop his legs and we're not sure if he's going to make it. We care about this little guy and we've had him for so long, I'll just be sad to see him go and sad that my mother feels responsible. Is there anything we can do? And do you guys think he's going to pull through?

Poor little guy. It does sound like he dropped limbs from being interrupted mid-molt. For now, I would dig him a little shallow pit in the sand, place him and his exo in it, then cover him with something (like a towel or shell or something similar) to keep him in the dark. Hopefully he'll start eating his exo and bounce back. I would assume he'll want to re-molt fairly quickly to regrow the lost limbs.

Assuming he finishes his exo, start offering some yummy high-protein/energy foods - all natural peanut butter, honey, a calcium source, etc. Try to disturb him as little as possible to keep his stress levels down.

It's good you're going to make changes! I assume you've seen our care sheets, but here is the link just in case: http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... 51&t=92457

Don't worry, you won't get attacked by anyone here. We've all had to start somewhere, and the important thing is you found the site and are going to improve things!

Feel free to ask any questions

Hello,
1. 6 inches of play sand is recommended
2. Be sure to have a humidity gauge as well
3. Don't put the heater under the tank. It is a hazard. I recommend a heater on the side(s) of the tank
4. Make sure you offer salt water. Instant ocean is a good brand
5. Food is good except the commercial food, it is most likely unsafe
7. Be sure to cover lid to keep in humidity
8. Hermit crabs are social and don't like to be alone. I think you should get him a hermie friend
9. good
12. You can throw out the sponges, you don't really need them. They are more work than they are worth
14. good
15. Wow! 12 years?? That's great!
I really hope he pulls through!
Bonnie

I saw megmaholm's post and shortened mine

You beat me!

Thank you for the responses, I'll make a note of the changes we should make to his tank. I forgot to mention that we immediately put him back under his hermie hut for darkness and placed him very close to his skeleton. We haven't disturbed him since, but my mother was so upset with herself and I know she's going to feel awful if he doesn't make it. We'll just have to wait and see as long as there isn't much else we can do for him currently.

It's funny, we never named this fella because we were afraid he might die and we didn't want to get attached, but now here we are 12 years later and attached regardless! By the way, he is a purple pincher crab. Thanks for that link!

After 12 years you should go ahead and name him! Haha. That's an impressive length of time to have him! I know a lot of the info on setting up the proper tank can seem a little overwhelming, so just take it a step at a time.

Try not to beat yourself up too much, and tell your mom the same thing. Accidents happen. Keep us updated on him!