HCA: Hermit Crab Association

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? Play sand with co fiber 5:1, 7" deep

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? Side of tank, 75/75 about- in yellow

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? Fluker's UTHs

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)? Salt from bottle & fresh

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced? Powder, eggshell,veggies/fruit every couple days

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known? Since Sept 2015, PP

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen? Crab went down 3 wks ago. We're a bit unsure which is down as they change shells and are same size. One was down 2 + months, Husband thinks he didn't finish because his color didn't change so he went down again almost immediately (maybe a few days to a week later). If it was the other one, Hermie then he molted pretty quickly around October 2015.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing? 20 gal, glass lid

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they? 3 total. 1 is in ISO molting, 2 small share big tank, the one I'm writing about is 1 of the 2 in the big tank

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any? Maybe 7

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

12. How often do you clean the tank and how? Spot clean every other week. Bowls etc more often. Just put new sand etc in 3 wks ago when they were moved to 20gal from a 10gal (that I thought was a 15gal)

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned? 2. Every couple months or so.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently? Yes. Fake plants, play sand/coco fiber, plain untreated wood shelf.

15. 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.)? No

Situation:
Ok I have smelled dead things before so just wanted to check in on my tank's fishy smell. It's not a gross dead smell, just fishy. I have a healthy little crabbie up and about but the other little went down a few weeks ago. Not long in molting terms. But the tank and things in it all have a fishy smell that's not more than a day or two old. It's strong enough to make my hand smell just from handling a shell. I also keep the moss on a medium size plastic lid and other hermie pushed the lid on top of the area of our molter. So I wonder if the lid atop of that spot for maybe a day or two could've suffacated little Hermie down there (though it's a 20 gal tank). Could the fishy smell be from a molter who has died beneath the sand? Where else could the fishy smell be coming from?
I have another medium size molter in another tank Who's been down since Dec. We're waiting for him to resurface also - though no smell in there.
Despite all the challenges with heat & humidity & A panic over Tiny molting for an extended period, we've managed to keep these little guys alive and well since Sept. I'd be heartbroken to lose Hermie now now that we finally got all the conditions and a larger tank humming along (thanks to advice from this site and Fluker's heating pads).
Thanks guys!

Could be a dead crab, they have a fishy smell. Could be spoiled food. Have they had any fishy food that they could have drug off and hid? I'm sad to say it very well could be a dead crab. I'm sure someone else will chime in so I'd wait a bit more before taking action.


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They will also probably want you to fill out the emergency form. I can't link it because I don't know how from my phone so hopefully someone else can direct you.


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Oh man. Thanks for replying. I'd like to hear one more on this before I dig him up. Ugh. I wonder if the smell bothers the other Hermie. Ugh. I'm so sad.

Dead crabs can smell like rotten fish. A faint slight fishy odor probably isn't one. Maybe food or possibly a molting smell - though that's usually described as chemical-like, a few crabbers have described it as fishy. I would carefully check the surface for hidden food but otherwise wait it out.

Off topic: Many crabbers don't recommend sponges, as they really don't serve any purpose in the water bowls. If you are going to keep sponges, I would clean them at least every other day, as they are great breeding grounds for bad bacteria. You can however, put a dry one in a little dish to let them nibble on.

Ah, yes. With more detail it doesn't sound so much like a dead crab. Good luck! Oh, and sponges can harbor bacteria, like AutumnHermie said. They can get pretty nasty. Let us know how it turns out!


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Thanks everyone. We'll monitor the situation, hope for the best, clean the sponges and let you know how it goes.

We took your advice and didn't go digging. Thought for sure he'd had a cave in. Then we started wondering if maybe it was chemical-fishy smell. Either way good news, Hermie came back up today!
Thanks for the advice, I was sure he was gone and had the shovel ready till I got the message to just wait it out. Such a common solution - just wait. Amazing. Can't tell you how grateful I am to this cite!

I'm so happy! that's great news! Did you figure out the mystery smell? Eh, who cares about that though! Your crabby is okay!


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Awesome! It's so easy to worry about these guys but most posts I see about bad/strange smells usually just end up being stashed food or a crabber with a sensitive nose with molters. So glad that seems to be the case this time too.

CallaLily wrote:Dead crabs can smell like rotten fish. A faint slight fishy odor probably isn't one. Maybe food or possibly a molting smell - though that's usually described as chemical-like, a few crabbers have described it as fishy. I would carefully check the surface for hidden food but otherwise wait it out.

CallaLily and others, can cooked but not dried chicken put in as food end up smelling like fish? I just did this for the first time within the last week, and now I have a fishy smell in my tank for the first time ever. The 3 chicken pieces were gone from the food dish, so I had assumed they were enjoyed and devoured, but now I am worried because I didn't look for any remaining chicken.

I need to check the crabitat for its residents and some chicken .... The smell is still mild to moderate, but certainly unique to me.

Last night, I wrote, "The smell is still mild to moderate, but certainly unique to me." I am sorry to say that be of our hermies has died. I found him under one of the water bowls. His greatest companion was chirping and talking more this week than I've ever heard him do. RIP, dear friend.

Nutcracker wrote:Last night, I wrote, "The smell is still mild to moderate, but certainly unique to me." I am sorry to say that be of our hermies has died. I found him under one of the water bowls. His greatest companion was chirping and talking more this week than I've ever heard him do. RIP, dear friend.

Oh no! So sorry for your loss.

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So sorry for your loss!!