my largest crab is slow?

[averyanne]

Hi everyone!

My big crab is Big Guy. about four months ago I got 5 hermies from petsmart. sadly only one made it this far. i try my best to not disturb and learned my lesson with my first molting under the water bowl and coming up early after being disturbed. She dropped all of her limbs and passed four days later.

Now that I’m traumatized, my oldest is now super slow. i had a lot of mold growing and it seemed to be bothering him no matter how much i tried to get it to go away. I got new sand and ecoearth and made the tank much better during this clean. i introduced my newest two crabs which are in great condition. sadly i looked in tonight hours later and Big Guy was on his back after not moving at all for the whole day after being placed in the new set up. i dug him a hole and placed him in it gently hoping to help him find some comfort as he looked pitiful and lifeless on his back.

he is usually all over the place climbing on everything so it made me sad to see him so slow. seeing him on his back sprawled out of his shell made my heart break.

he was super slow and sluggish before changing all of the sub and water and doing a deep clean as my crabs kept dropping like flies!! any tips??? i feel so sad for my little friends.

[Jlmills525]

It might be best to post this in the Emergency forum and answer the form questions there. From your signature it seems like your setup is good.. what is in the "organic diet"? Are they getting protein and calcium daily? What do you use to condition your water?

[averyanne]

It might be best to post this in the Emergency forum and answer the form questions there. From your signature it seems like your setup is good.. what is in the "organic diet"? Are they getting protein and calcium daily? What do you use to condition your water?

They get organic fruits and veggies from my farmers market. They also have natural hermit food with meal worms and tiny shrimp. How do I better give protein and calcium? Also, I use AquaSafe plus water conditioner/dechlorinator. for my salt water i use that and add marine salt.

And yes I will post in the emergency forum. He has undug himself from the hole and is now sitting comfy in it and not in his shell. i can see where he got out of it so I am assuming he just needs to rest and reaclimate.

[myllkti]

not in his shell. i can see where he got out of it so I am assuming he just needs to rest and reaclimate.

Hi! Being naked is actually an emergency, so there’s probably more to it than just relaxing. Check out this topic for some first steps for streaking!: https://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB ... 7&t=122302

[averyanne]

Hi! Being naked is actually an emergency, so there’s probably more to it than just relaxing. Check out this topic for some first steps for streaking!: https://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB ... 7&t=122302

Ah! sorry i didnt word it right! hes not hiding in his shell. usually hes tucked in there but he still has his shell on!! hes just hanging out but not tucked in his shell. he looks a lot better today but still not moving.

[averyanne]

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
i use play sand and ecoearth about 1:3 and it is about 4-5 inches 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?
i do have gauges. it is in the middle of the tank. it usually reads 80° and 85-95% humidity.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
i have heating pads covering the back wall of the tank.

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)?
i have both types of water available. i use aquasafe plus dechlorinator and marine salt for the saltwater. i use 1c water to 1.5 tsp salt

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
i feed hermit crab pellets with meal worms and small shrimp. i also put organic fruits, veggies, honey, oats, etc. it gets replaced every other day, except the pellets. i leave those for over a week when the mealworms and shrimp are gone since they are dried.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
i have had Big Guy for about four months. hes very purple and red but im not sure of the species. hes large, about the size of a golf ball.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
he has not molted since i have had him.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
they are kept in a terrarium. it is a 45 gallon tank and the lid is a mesh lid but i wrapped it in saran wrap to keep the humidity higher. i also have a towel on top for added warmth and darkness.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
i have 3 crabs. i got the newest two this week as i started with 5 and big guy was the only one who made it from the first five. they were from petsmart and just couldnt snap back after two months in my tank. big guy is the size of a golf ball and the newer two are the size of a quarter.

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
there are about two shells per size of the crabs i have. the smaller ones have four shells slightly larger than their current. big guy has three shells larger than him but vary in size to give him options.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
not that i know of

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
i cleaned the tank this week as i wanted to make sure everything was clean since a few crabs had passed in the tank. i replaced the substrate and boiled all of the decor and bowls in the tank. i also wiped the glass down with white vinegar and rinsed with water on a cloth.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
sponges are not used in the water dish. i use sphagnum moss around the tank instead as they like to munch on it and it keeps the humidity high.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
yes i replaced the water dishes and the tank is moved around but he was sluggish before which led me to changing and cleaning the tank completely as i did not want him to pass as the others did.

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.)?
i do not usually touch my crabs unless in the tank to let them run on my hands. i do not bathe them as i dont want to mess with their shell water or stress them unnecessarily. i have mentioned most of what goes on.

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

this is the post i added in molting before being advised to take it here.

My big crab is Big Guy. about four months ago I got 5 hermies from petsmart. sadly only one made it this far. i try my best to not disturb and learned my lesson with my first molting under the water bowl and coming up early after being disturbed. She dropped all of her limbs and passed four days later.

Now that I’m traumatized, my oldest is now super slow. i had a lot of mold growing and it seemed to be bothering him no matter how much i tried to get it to go away. I got new sand and ecoearth and made the tank much better during this clean. i introduced my newest two crabs which are in great condition. sadly i looked in tonight hours later and Big Guy was on his back after not moving at all for the whole day after being placed in the new set up. i dug him a hole and placed him in it gently hoping to help him find some comfort as he looked pitiful and lifeless on his back.

he is usually all over the place climbing on everything so it made me sad to see him so slow. seeing him on his back sprawled out of his shell made my heart break.

also, he has not dropped or left his shell he is simply not tucked in it. hes out of his shell but still wearing it just chillin and looking at everything.

he was super slow and sluggish before changing all of the sub and water and doing a deep clean as my crabs kept dropping like flies!! any tips??? i feel so sad for my little friends.

[averyanne]

also sorry for the hard read i was confused on how to post my reply so i copy pasted it. i will do better next time if there is one

[curlysister]

also sorry for the hard read i was confused on how to post my reply so i copy pasted it. i will do better next time if there is one

I moved it and merged your emergency template reply, with your original post!

[averyanne]

I moved it and merged your emergency template reply, with your original post!

thank you! should i have made this an emergency post? i’m not sure what to do he’s still in the same positions.

[myllkti]

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
i use play sand and ecoearth about 1:3 and it is about 4-5 inches deep

Myllk - hi! Generally, you should keep the minimum at 6 in or 3x size of your largest crab’s shell

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?
i do have gauges. it is in the middle of the tank. it usually reads 80° and 85-95% humidity.

Myllk - yay!

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
i have heating pads covering the back wall of the tank.

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)?
i have both types of water available. i use aquasafe plus dechlorinator and marine salt for the saltwater. i use 1c water to 1.5 tsp salt

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
i feed hermit crab pellets with meal worms and small shrimp. i also put organic fruits, veggies, honey, oats, etc. it gets replaced every other day, except the pellets. i leave those for over a week when the mealworms and shrimp are gone since they are dried.

myllk- Hi! Most pellets marketed fro hermits contain copper sulfate, which can have harmful effects

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
i have had Big Guy for about four months. hes very purple and red but im not sure of the species. hes large, about the size of a golf ball.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
he has not molted since i have had him.

Myllk- remember the pellets having harmful effects? That includes inhibiting a molt. Which does not allow hermits to develop. Many hermits molt soon after coming home, and I obviously don’t know exactly what’s going on in your hermies’ body IMPO, I would think maybe he hasn’t been able to molt?

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
they are kept in a terrarium. it is a 45 gallon tank and the lid is a mesh lid but i wrapped it in saran wrap to keep the humidity higher. i also have a towel on top for added warmth and darkness.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
i have 3 crabs. i got the newest two this week as i started with 5 and big guy was the only one who made it from the first five. they were from petsmart and just couldnt snap back after two months in my tank. big guy is the size of a golf ball and the newer two are the size of a quarter.

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
there are about two shells per size of the crabs i have. the smaller ones have four shells slightly larger than their current. big guy has three shells larger than him but vary in size to give him options.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
not that i know of

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
i cleaned the tank this week as i wanted to make sure everything was clean since a few crabs had passed in the tank. i replaced the substrate and boiled all of the decor and bowls in the tank. i also wiped the glass down with white vinegar and rinsed with water on a cloth.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
sponges are not used in the water dish. i use sphagnum moss around the tank instead as they like to munch on it and it keeps the humidity high.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
yes i replaced the water dishes and the tank is moved around but he was sluggish before which led me to changing and cleaning the tank completely as i did not want him to pass as the others did.

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.)?
i do not usually touch my crabs unless in the tank to let them run on my hands. i do not bathe them as i dont want to mess with their shell water or stress them unnecessarily. i have mentioned most of what goes on.

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

this is the post i added in molting before being advised to take it here.

My big crab is Big Guy. about four months ago I got 5 hermies from petsmart. sadly only one made it this far. i try my best to not disturb and learned my lesson with my first molting under the water bowl and coming up early after being disturbed. She dropped all of her limbs and passed four days later.

Now that I’m traumatized, my oldest is now super slow. i had a lot of mold growing and it seemed to be bothering him no matter how much i tried to get it to go away. I got new sand and ecoearth and made the tank much better during this clean. i introduced my newest two crabs which are in great condition. sadly i looked in tonight hours later and Big Guy was on his back after not moving at all for the whole day after being placed in the new set up. i dug him a hole and placed him in it gently hoping to help him find some comfort as he looked pitiful and lifeless on his back.

he is usually all over the place climbing on everything so it made me sad to see him so slow. seeing him on his back sprawled out of his shell made my heart break.

also, he has not dropped or left his shell he is simply not tucked in it. hes out of his shell but still wearing it just chillin and looking at everything.

he was super slow and sluggish before changing all of the sub and water and doing a deep clean as my crabs kept dropping like flies!! any tips??? i feel so sad for my little friends.

[myllkti]

Disclaimer: A decent chunk of my notes were guesses btw. Please don’t take my attempts to figure it all out tooo seriously. It’s just based on what I personally know, and that is in no way expert level lol

[curlysister]

Your conditions sound pretty good. If you have only had this crab for two months, and he hasn't molted yet, he could unfortunately be suffering from PPS (Post Purchase Syndrome). It's a catch-all phrase for how they can be suffering from the previous (poor) conditions they have been in, and all the stressors they have gone through when being removed from their natural habitat and transported for sale.
It is unlikely that the food is why your crab has not molted. If he is a fairly large crab, he may not need to molt very often.

[averyanne]

Your conditions sound pretty good. If you have only had this crab for two months, and he hasn't molted yet, he could unfortunately be suffering from PPS (Post Purchase Syndrome). It's a catch-all phrase for how they can be suffering from the previous (poor) conditions they have been in, and all the stressors they have gone through when being removed from their natural habitat and transported for sale.
It is unlikely that the food is why your crab has not molted. If he is a fairly large crab, he may not need to molt very often.

thank you for your advice! he is still very very sluggish and in the hole i made him. i put a dried flower and meal worm next to the hole in case he’d like a snack. i am hoping he will pull thru! i dont want to move him in case i disturb him so he is just being monitored. i will make sure to look into the ingredient list of my pellet food