Move? Cover? or Leave Him Alone?
Posted: Mon Jan 08, 2018 3:04 pm
Hi, I'm a newbie here and looking for some advice. I got my hermit crabs 2-3 months ago. My smallest one was buried under, presumably molting, for 5 1/2 weeks... he just came up a few days ago for a few hours and then buried again. My medium one buried about two weeks ago, and I'm assuming that she is molting. Now my largest crab (shell is maybe 1 1/2" tall) has been lethargic for about a week. He stayed in one spot for a couple days, out in the open which is unusual as he usually prefers cover during the day. Then he went in a hut for a couple days, and now he's been out in the open again for the last couple days, not moving. It doesn't smell, and I don't want to disturb him to make sure he's still alive. I'm hoping that he's not sick and is just getting ready to molt too, but I'm wondering why he hasn't buried?? I'm worried that he isn't going to bury and is going to molt on the surface. Is this normal? Should I be worried?
So I'm wondering if I should...
#1. Just leave him alone and trust that he will tunnel when it's time. He's dug tunnels before, so I know he knows how, lol!
#2. Isolate him. I've read about making ISO 'tats for them, but I don't have a way to keep a separate tank warm right now and it's pretty cold here... and if he has already started a molt, is it still safe to move him?
#3. Cover him somehow. I saw the suggestion to put a cut-off 2-liter bottle or margarine tub over them, but... the problem is that he is sitting exactly above the spot where I saw my medium crab tunnel! So I can't push the bottle down in the sand for fear of disturbing her.
Of course, maybe he's just lonely since his friends have been molting... or maybe he's sick... or maybe he's cold since the 'tat's been getting in the low 70s at night... or who knows! Any suggestions??
So I'm wondering if I should...
#1. Just leave him alone and trust that he will tunnel when it's time. He's dug tunnels before, so I know he knows how, lol!
#2. Isolate him. I've read about making ISO 'tats for them, but I don't have a way to keep a separate tank warm right now and it's pretty cold here... and if he has already started a molt, is it still safe to move him?
#3. Cover him somehow. I saw the suggestion to put a cut-off 2-liter bottle or margarine tub over them, but... the problem is that he is sitting exactly above the spot where I saw my medium crab tunnel! So I can't push the bottle down in the sand for fear of disturbing her.
Of course, maybe he's just lonely since his friends have been molting... or maybe he's sick... or maybe he's cold since the 'tat's been getting in the low 70s at night... or who knows! Any suggestions??