HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Help! I’m so upset. I was changing the water dishes in Cora’s tank. She has a ton of the same type of white shell in her tank cuz I didn’t know what size would suit her and obv. she needs a few to choose from.

What happened is almost too awful to describe...and I am embarrassed to admit that it happened. But... She likes to stuff dirt into the shells she doesn’t use. I was almost certain that she was burrowed under the log hide where all of the dirt is piled up.

I was moving very fast, rushing to get through with the task. It all happened so fast...but I didn’t expect her to be in the shell that she was in! I think I accidentally put the (very small) water dish on top her leg **Edit: or on her** (not knowing that she was in that shell)...then I picked up the shell to give it a good shake (to get the dirt out)...absent minded (I have no idea why I did it)...when, to my horror, I realized she was in that shell!!!

I gently picked her up again to see about her then put her down.

The whole thing is totally inexcusable I know.

She seems totally on the defense now. I shook her really hard...in a sideways type of motion.

I’m *so* upset. I love her and she’s special. Will she be okay? Will she start not wanting to be handled?**Edit**I know you are not supposed to handle them, but what I meant is will she now be skittish?

Calm down, all crabbers make mistakes and as long as we take care of them its ok. Keep an eye out to see it she comes out of her shell and see how she looks. If she looks fine she should be fine after a couple days. Most of us don’t handle our crabs and it may be very nerve racking for her now but you can try. Keep us updated ( I am not an expert and I don’t know if there is anything to do so until someone else jumps in I would recommend not touching her ).


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Hermielover121 wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 07, 2020 9:27 pm

Calm down, all crabbers make mistakes and as long as we take care of them its ok. Keep an eye out to see it she comes out of her shell and see how she looks. If she looks fine she should be fine after a couple days. Most of us don’t handle our crabs and it may be very nerve racking for her now but you can try. Keep us updated ( I am not an expert and I don’t know if there is anything to do so until someone else jumps in I would recommend not touching her ).


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I know. It's just kind of hard not to be upset at the thought of deliberately hurting a living thing that you care for and are responsible for. She seems like she's acting okay. One of her legs looked weird but it could just be my imagination. She fell crawling on a fake rock that is in the tank and seemed to get stuck for a while in between the rock and the log hide. Not sure if this is normal behavior for them to fall and or get stuck places?

Doesn't sound that unusual an occurrence, really. Aorse has happened, you didn't accidentally rinse her in hot water, or toss her in a boiling pot of water trying to clean the shell. She might be a little shaken up, but these guys can fall out of trees in the wild and be okay. I wouldn't worry.

wodesorel wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 07, 2020 9:57 pm

Doesn't sound that unusual an occurrence, really. Aorse has happened, you didn't accidentally rinse her in hot water, or toss her in a boiling pot of water trying to clean the shell. She might be a little shaken up, but these guys can fall out of trees in the wild and be okay. I wouldn't worry.

Yayy!! I am relieved.

****Update: After all that happened, she went right under the hide log but stayed all “puffed up” on the defense, sticking out of her shell. I have lifted up the log to check on her a couple of times (not the greatest thing to do I know). Now she has completely burrowed herself under the substrate...my guess is she wants to feel safe. Hopefully this is not a behavior to be worried about?

I'm sure she is fine! We have all made mistakes. It comes with the territory!

GotButterflies wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 09, 2020 1:20 pm

I'm sure she is fine! We have all made mistakes. It comes with the territory!

Good to know

Hermielover121 wrote:Calm down, all crabbers make mistakes and as long as we take care of them its ok. Keep an eye out to see it she comes out of her shell and see how she looks. If she looks fine she should be fine after a couple days. Most of us don’t handle our crabs and it may be very nerve racking for her now but you can try. Keep us updated ( I am not an expert and I don’t know if there is anything to do so until someone else jumps in I would recommend not touching her ).


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Is that true that most crab owners don’t handle their crabs because I’ve been feeling bad because I havnt held mine yet? I was just curious if that’s something I should or shouldn’t be doing? I guess I’m afraid of scaring them or dropping them idk lol I want to hold them but they seem happy without that lol just wondering...


KimberlyS
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Handling or not handling crabs is debated among owners. I would say that most of us on HCA don't handle them much.

Oh yes- we have all done things like this and gone OMG!!! I have had a crab punch me in a tender spot between my fingers while I was not looking at her, and my auto reaction was to kinda jump and shake- she came off, thankfully the carpeted floor was only like a foot down - maybe. That was a year ago, and she’s doing fine. Best advice is just to leave her be for a few days to a week and maybe try again if you see her. For now just respect the boundaries she’s giving, and later you can slowly work w her if you choose.
I do handle some of my crabs some of the time, but anymore I mostly leave them be. I have a few that are friendly and so curious they enjoy a visit, and others who run like the sand is on fire if I come in the room for seemingly no reason. I’m sure they have their own reasons lol. I can’t guarantee she will be totally fine of course, will see after molt, but if she wants privacy I’d give it to her. If it’s an injured leg, they know what to do with that too. Don’t worry too much!




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Kimberly wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 10, 2020 9:42 am

Is that true that most crab owners don’t handle their crabs because I’ve been feeling bad because I havnt held mine yet? I was just curious if that’s something I should or shouldn’t be doing? I guess I’m afraid of scaring them or dropping them idk lol I want to hold them but they seem happy without that lol just wondering...


KimberlyS
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I wonder the same thing. I don’t handle mine much...but I’m not one of those people that doesn’t handle her at *all*. I have read, however, that they can learn the sound of their owners voice and come out of their shell when they hear it...and also eat a treat from your hand. I saw this info a couple of places, one being in the book “Hermit Crabs For Dummies”.

Overmountain1 wrote: ↑

Wed Jun 10, 2020 10:12 am

Oh yes- we have all done things like this and gone OMG!!! I have had a crab punch me in a tender spot between my fingers while I was not looking at her, and my auto reaction was to kinda jump and shake- she came off, thankfully the carpeted floor was only like a foot down - maybe. That was a year ago, and she’s doing fine. Best advice is just to leave her be for a few days to a week and maybe try again if you see her. For now just respect the boundaries she’s giving, and later you can slowly work w her if you choose.
I do handle some of my crabs some of the time, but anymore I mostly leave them be. I have a few that are friendly and so curious they enjoy a visit, and others who run like the sand is on fire if I come in the room for seemingly no reason. I’m sure they have their own reasons lol. I can’t guarantee she will be totally fine of course, will see after molt, but if she wants privacy I’d give it to her. If it’s an injured leg, they know what to do with that too. Don’t worry too much!




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I’m trying to just give her her space and have a little faith that she will “get over” the incident (which must’ve been terrifying for her!). And that’s so cute that you have a couple of curious hermit crabs...Aw

Y’all, I’ll be honest, and I know all of us has done this, too. You walk up to the tank, and either just that does it, or you reach for something to clean or move and someone inevitably pulls in too fast, forgetting to hold on, and goes rolling backwards off a log, a shelf, another crab, you know- all of the above. And you can’t help but laugh when they pop back out and give you that look like HOW DARE YOU! Lol!!! One of my fave things- their clumsiness!! Hahahaha has to add that too.


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Overmountain1 wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 14, 2020 2:37 am

Y’all, I’ll be honest, and I know all of us has done this, too. You walk up to the tank, and either just that does it, or you reach for something to clean or move and someone inevitably pulls in too fast, forgetting to hold on, and goes rolling backwards off a log, a shelf, another crab, you know- all of the above. And you can’t help but laugh when they pop back out and give you that look like HOW DARE YOU! Lol!!! One of my fave things- their clumsiness!! Hahahaha has to add that too.


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Lol