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Dying or Molting hermit

Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2024 11:11 am
by Macimarie667
My hermit had buried himself but it was very shallow, he hadn’t moved in a while. I carefully picked him just to see if he were still alive. He moved and I carefully placed him back in the tank. (Not in the hole). Since yesterday he has had no movement at all, I carefully picked him up and he almost fell out of his shell. I knew he was dead, but before accepting that I’ve been googling and researching and I’m still unsure. I swear I seen some twitching of one leg atleast twice yesterday. Today I didn’t want to bother him but I did want to smell to see if he had a smell. I can’t really tell if he has a smell, so I’m taking that as a good thing. His body is no longer falling out of his shell and is more “stiff”. His eyes are yellow/clear hollow like. I haven’t noticed any twitching this morning. Please tell me if he’s dead or molting. We’ve had him for 2 1/2 months. He always came out to play at night and started warming up to come out during the day. He loved soaking and drinking his water and salt water water. I’m so worried. My kids are devastated. His name was/is “Spider”.

Re: Dying or Molting hermit

Posted: Tue Jan 09, 2024 11:54 pm
by curlysister
Sometimes it takes a bit, to know if they are dead or molting. If you have other crabs, be sure that he is isolated so the others can't get to him if he is weak. Keep him in good heat/ humidity and wait to see if he moves or starts to smell.
Has he molted yet with you? What are your temp and humidity readings? What do you feed your crab(s)?