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To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 8:58 am
by RiNiKy506
My smallest crab, Crabina, is still down in my small tank. I had my fiancé pick the tank up; I saw her under and she’s not molting. I don’t think she has come up, she’s definitely not eating, and she’s been alone now for 5 days. I’m so worried about her, maybe she stopped eating because she realized she’s alone? Maybe she got stuck under? I know we’re not supposed to dig them up but I’m going crazy. I feel better she’s alive, as of 3 days ago, anyway. If she’s depressed maybe she will feel better in the new tank and eat again? I got her at a pet store from horrible conditions, so I really didn’t know what to expect with her. She seemed so much better when brought her home and put her in with my others. My others are out and active, often, I knew when this time came I would have a hard time with it. If she is dying, I don’t want her to die alone, all sad and depressed. Should I leave her and let her do her thing? Since I know she’s not molting would it be ok to dig her up? If it would be ok to dig her up, I would check again to make sure she isn’t molting. Thank you all in advance.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
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Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 9:01 am
by aussieJJDude
I would just leave her be. However, if for whatever reason that you cant keep two tanks running - like tight funds on the electricity bill - then i wouldn't advise no to transfer her over.
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Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:10 am
by curlysister
Don't dig.
Is she in a separate tank from the other crabs?
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 11:53 am
by RiNiKy506
aussieJJDude wrote:I would just leave her be. However, if for whatever reason that you cant keep two tanks running - like tight funds on the electricity bill - then i wouldn't advise no to transfer her over.
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I was worried about that too. How much electricity could the two small heaters really use? We do like to conserve electricity wherever we can but I am more concerned for her life. The big tank holds heat better, I’m at a struggle to keep the small one at 73/75.
curlysister wrote:Don't dig.
Is she in a separate tank from the other crabs?
Yes, she was down when I moved all the others to my 29gal. When we lifted the tank up I can see her very clearly, she is all the way at the bottom. I really want to get her switched over, I know I’m not supposed to dig, but I feel like if I don’t do something she will die all alone.
Is that where she is already headed? Did she go down to just die? I feel so terrible.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 3:25 pm
by Hermiesguardian
Why would she die? PPS? It's really best you leave her. Digging her up, even if she's not molting will just stress her out. That's the problem when upgrading tanks. There's always someone buried and you just have to wait till they come up.
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 5:27 pm
by wodesorel
The molting process can take months. Most of that is spent preparing before and recuperating after. They will look normal, but are in a weakened state and cannot be around other crabs safely. That is why they sit safely underground until they are ready to come back up, rushing it can either kill them by putting them into shock so they can't shed, or leave them at the mercy of other crabs who will eat them. The actual shedding takes a few days, the rest of the time they just sit there looking like they always do.
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2018 7:11 pm
by RiNiKy506
I knew I was going to go crazy when one of mine went down, I’m terrified of PPS. I won’t dig her up, I needed to hear from more people not to do it. I know it’s not right to dig them up but her not eating has me so worried. I hope she’ll come up soon and I’ll have been worried for no reason.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Wed Oct 17, 2018 7:58 pm
by curlysister
When they molt, they don't eat anything except their exo for the whole time they are under - Sonny just came up after more than three months!
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 12:05 pm
by Motörcrab
Your tank temperature is between 73/75. According to the care guide for purples ideal temperatures should be between 75/85 degrees.
http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 51&t=92452
Temperatures between 70/75 make them a bit sluggish and can affect their molting. Is there any way you can try and get the temperature up to the mid to upper 70's?
Possibly she is down trying to keep warm. Also if see is cold it can slow down her molting process too.
Perhaps try adding a blanket or other an additional heater to see if that will help. My guys are pretty active most of the time and my tanks temperature averages between 83/86.
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Thu Oct 18, 2018 7:42 pm
by RiNiKy506
I have a small ZooMed mat and a generic brand mat on the tank now but they don’t put off enough heat. The small ZooMed heats better than the generic one and it’s half the size. I covered her tank with a blanket to get the temp up until I order another ultratherm. I will probably need another ultratherm for the side of my 29 when it freezes outside, so I will use it on her tank until she comes up and then put it on the bigger tank when I need it. Thank you for that info, I think you are right, she may be too cold. I’ve always thought 78 was a good temp, I will try to get it to 80, I didn’t realize they liked it up to 85.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:30 am
by hprmom
Sending peaceful thoughts for you! When we switched tanks Digger would not come up. That’s why he got his name, he lived underground and only came up at like 3AM to eat! We watched for signs every day, I think it was a week or so. When we saw a big exit hole we knew he’d been up, so we felt safe digging at that point. He was just under the surface napping, my husband had him out and halfway to the new tank when he woke up fighting mad!
Good thing my husband wore gloves! (Now we know to put them in a small container and carry that if we need to move them, lol. ) Hang I’m there!
Also, check pinned posts at the front page of the forum re: your temps. I can’t see it on my phone, but I’m pretty sure a mod posted about temps being okay in your range. I would think if that’s the temperature she’s been used to for a while she’d be okay, though you can try to warm it up in the meantime. Just don’t want you to stress unnecessarily.
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Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 10:47 am
by Hermiesguardian
hprmom wrote:Sending peaceful thoughts for you! When we switched tanks Digger would not come up. That’s why he got his name, he lived underground and only came up at like 3AM to eat! We watched for signs every day, I think it was a week or so. When we saw a big exit hole we knew he’d been up, so we felt safe digging at that point. He was just under the surface napping, my husband had him out and halfway to the new tank when he woke up fighting mad!
Good thing my husband wore gloves! (Now we know to put them in a small container and carry that if we need to move them, lol. ) Hang I’m there!
Also, check pinned posts at the front page of the forum re: your temps. I can’t see it on my phone, but I’m pretty sure a mod posted about temps being okay in your range. I would think if that’s the temperature she’s been used to for a while she’d be okay, though you can try to warm it up in the meantime. Just don’t want you to stress unnecessarily.
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I'm glad they shouldn't be handled because I wouldn't pick them up anyway. When I do have to transfer them, not often, I always put them in a container. Even if they're tucked in. Just in case they decide to stretch out. And it's only across the room. Lol. I find the bigger they are the feistier they are. Although one I adopted was smallish and he was fighting mad when I transfered him into the tank. I named him Rocky.
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 4:34 pm
by RiNiKy506
hprmom wrote:Sending peaceful thoughts for you! When we switched tanks Digger would not come up. That’s why he got his name, he lived underground and only came up at like 3AM to eat! We watched for signs every day, I think it was a week or so. When we saw a big exit hole we knew he’d been up, so we felt safe digging at that point. He was just under the surface napping, my husband had him out and halfway to the new tank when he woke up fighting mad!
Good thing my husband wore gloves! (Now we know to put them in a small container and carry that if we need to move them, lol. ) Hang I’m there!
Also, check pinned posts at the front page of the forum re: your temps. I can’t see it on my phone, but I’m pretty sure a mod posted about temps being okay in your range. I would think if that’s the temperature she’s been used to for a while she’d be okay, though you can try to warm it up in the meantime. Just don’t want you to stress unnecessarily.
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Thank you so much for peaceful thoughts. I lined up her shells, smoothed out the sand around her food dish, and tried to arrange the food so I could tell if she has eaten. I haven’t seen any sign of her, I just keep telling myself she knows what she’s doing. If it wasn’t for this forum and everyone telling me it’s ok, I don’t know what I would do. I knew I was going to go crazy when one went under.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 4:53 pm
by fandt94
RiNiKy506 wrote:hprmom wrote:Sending peaceful thoughts for you! When we switched tanks Digger would not come up. That’s why he got his name, he lived underground and only came up at like 3AM to eat! We watched for signs every day, I think it was a week or so. When we saw a big exit hole we knew he’d been up, so we felt safe digging at that point. He was just under the surface napping, my husband had him out and halfway to the new tank when he woke up fighting mad!
Good thing my husband wore gloves! (Now we know to put them in a small container and carry that if we need to move them, lol. ) Hang I’m there!
Also, check pinned posts at the front page of the forum re: your temps. I can’t see it on my phone, but I’m pretty sure a mod posted about temps being okay in your range. I would think if that’s the temperature she’s been used to for a while she’d be okay, though you can try to warm it up in the meantime. Just don’t want you to stress unnecessarily.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Hang in there! I’m right there with you...3 out of 4 of mine are down :roll:
Thank you so much for peaceful thoughts. I lined up her shells, smoothed out the sand around her food dish, and tried to arrange the food so I could tell if she has eaten. I haven’t seen any sign of her, I just keep telling myself she knows what she’s doing. If it wasn’t for this forum and everyone telling me it’s ok, I don’t know what I would do. I knew I was going to go crazy when one went under.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->
Re: To dig, or not to dig
Posted: Fri Oct 19, 2018 8:06 pm
by RiNiKy506
Ok, now I feel terrible!!! I went in to change her food and it felt very hot, so I decided to try my accurite from my 29gal. I put it in there and walked away for a bit, cleaning her food bowl and changing her food. I came back the temp was 82, and that was only after 5(maybe10) minutes, it could have been hotter. I was using an analog thermometer/hygrometer that seems to mainly read 73/75, a couple of the colder nights it went down to 70, that’s why I kept covering her tank with blankets thinking it was too cold. Is this too hot? Has she been trying to get away from the heat? I unplugged one of my heat mats and took off one of the blankets, I left the smaller one draped over the top. It did fall into the sand from all of the condensation, so I wonder if that made it not be able to go past 75. I hope she’s ok, I feel so bad.
♡ Rod ♡ Salty ♡ Bob ♡ Squirt ♡ Crabina ♡
»-♡-> Our Purple Pinchers »-♡->