New crab mom with possible molter!

[Krusty2015]

I have had my pp since monday and this morning I found him digging a little. I took him out to add more soil and put him back in. After doing his lap around the tank he has started digging yet again. He has dug a hole right again the glass in the front and keeps coming in and out again. Looks like he might be taking some away and adding to it. Wondering if this is a molt because this is the first I have ever seen him this active during the day. I'm hoping I have enough for him to molt in. Does he need to be completely buried? I know I need more soil but the pet stores near me won't get a shipment until tomorrow! Why is he next to the glass?

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[Krusty2015]

I have about 3 and half inches in there right now.

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[Dan H]

My big guy seen in my avatar, Sheldon, absolutely loves to dig tunnels near the glass, I think he wants me to see them honestly. They dig for fun, to destress, and sometimes to molt as well. More than likely your crabby is just going down to chill out for a bit. While they are usually at their least active around noon, things like a new tank or a change in scenery can spur on activity. I just re-did my tank and 3 of my 4 crabs are up here at 12 noon, when before it was usually a ghost town this time of day.


Basically the summary here is I wouldn't be concerned about a molt just yet, but glad to hear you're fixing the substrate. I'm sure your crab will appreciate it. Once you get the crabitat stabilized make sure to get a buddy for 'em, they are quite social

[Krusty2015]

Ok that's good to hear that it's not bad for them to be near the glass!

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[Krusty2015]

I am getting him a friend in about two weeks since I am about to go out of town and leave my hubby in charge of Krusty. I did add plants yesterday evening so I wonder if that has anything to do with him being awake at high noon!

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[soilentgringa]

Hi! Welcome to HCA and be sure to check out our care guides here:

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... hp?t=92457

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[Krusty2015]

So he is now dug down again but has been this way for several hours but is moving around and when he had a clearing next to the glass I could see it was a fairly large hole he has dug. He has ate a lot in the past few days and sat in his food dish until I put more food in there for him before going to bed!so is he molting now or destressing again? I was hoping to get a shell change out of him today because his current shell is beat up with chips in it. Found the guy in my front yard! (No idea where he came from) I finally got some shells in the mail and he was already underground. Also what about his heater I found a zoomed/reptittherm at petsmart today and he was underground before I got a chance to put that on too. Can I still put it on since he is on the other side of the tank furthest away from where I was going to put it? Thank you for reading this ridiculously long post!!

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[Dan H]

My crabs have been known to dig down and just hang out for half a day because they can. Probably trying to stress me out

They are probably just destressing still but in regards to the heater you are fine to place it on just make sure to do it above the substrate so that you can heat the tank not the substrate and dry it out.

Have you been able to fix your substrate so that it is at least 6 inches for the crab to dig in? That would certainly help since it sounds like you've got a digger on your hands

edit: Forgot to mention make sure to place the heater where the substrate will be not where it is now if it is still lower than optimal as it can be hard to get them to restick according to information on the forums!

[Krusty2015]

I hope that's all he is doing but he hasn't resurfaced this morning. I am letting him do whatever he is doing and not disturbing just in case. I have 6 1/2 inches of substrate now so I finally got that taken care of. Glad to hear about the heater I was so worried about that and am going to make sure it's above the substrate.

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[Krusty2015]

How hot is too hot for them when I do get the heater on?

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[soilentgringa]

The average year round temps in their natural habitat are in the mid to high 80's.

Also, how large are your crabs? 6" of substrate is fine for tiny or small crabs but anything larger really needs at least 3X deep as the largest shell or about half the tank full. One of my tanks is a 55 gallon with 13" of sub. If you have E's they definitely need deep substrate.

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[Krusty2015]

Oh ok good that will give me peace of mind on the rempature! My crab is in a 2 inch shell right now and he is completely dug down and still has some room from the bottom from what I could see when he had an opening next to the glass. I think I might redo the substrate and mix it with a 5:1 ratio of play sand when he comes back up from his molt. He is a PP.

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[Krusty2015]

This might sound dumb but should I be able to see a hole where he dug down? I know he is ok I heard his claw again the glass last night. Just wondering?

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[soilentgringa]

Cover the "window" with some dark paper or cardboard and tape it. The molting hormone works best in absolute darkness and sometimes peeking in at them or too much light can disrupt the process.

[Dan H]

This might sound dumb but should I be able to see a hole where he dug down? I know he is ok I heard his claw again the glass last night. Just wondering?

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Not a dumb question actually, some crabs cover up their tracks

Jules, my tunnel bore, neatly fills in the opening behind him with fluffed up sand in an attempt to hide his entrance. Sheldon on the other hand likes to leave the openings visible and re-uses his tunnels.

It is probably a security thing for the crabs knowing their entrance is at least mildly protected by filling them in a bit.