Tips to be a better crab dad!

[Hermiearth]

Hi all,
I was wondering if anyone out there could give me any tips to take better care of my 20 pp's. I feel like I have a lot more to learn about crab care as I am still a fairly new owner. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

I keep my 20 crabs (about 5 tinys, 10 smalls, 3 mediums, and 2 larges) in a 29 g tank with dimensions 30 L 12 W and 18 H. I know to most crab owners this would seem small but I have added a second level out of wood plank as well as a large shower caddy filled with moss. I rarely see the crabs out of the shower caddy during daylight! They love it and I would recommend it to any owner out there. Also, I would like to clarify that I never intended to have so many crabs in the first place, I was on craigslist looking for another companion for my 2 large crabs when I came across a guy who clearly had no clue how to care for his crabs in the first place and was soon moving and felt for whatever stupid reason that he could release all of his crabs into the wild. A tried pleading with him not to but he said he had done "research" and that they would survive on a CA beach, but I was sure that they wouldn't survive through the winter let alone be able to fend for themselves. So anyways I took all of them and they are now in my upgraded 29 gal.

The crabs have 8 inch sub. 5 parts sterilized playground sand to one part EE. They have 2 bowls one for salt and 1 for fresh, I am worried that these bowl may not be big enough, my two jumbos cant fully submerge there shells- is this a problem? I also keep sponges in the bowls as I am worried for the smaller crabs safety. I clean out the bowls once weekly and swap out sponges after air drying them- do any further steps need to be taken to sterilize the sponges? I hear that they grow lots of bacteria.

I feed the crabs a home made mixture of nuts, seeds, dried fruit, dried insects, and calcium powder while supplementing there diet with fresh fruits, veggies, sometimes meat, and popcorn as a treat. I spot clean when necessary but have not done a deep clean in the 7 months I have had the crabs as I always have almost half of the colony molting at any given time. The tank has a glass lid and I use a repti fogger along with a spray bottle to keep the tank at 80% humidity and have a UTH mounted on the side of the tank to keep it at around 70-75.

So anyways, please let me know if I am doing something wrong or you have any strategies so I can improve.

[LadyJinglyJones]

Heya! Welcome welcome!

So I'm pretty new to crabbing too - newer than you!
Buuuut... I read enough that I can certainly guess what more experienced crabbers will want to say.

You already know the tat is rather crowded... I'd be saving up for either a much larger tank (like, minimum 75 gal), or else a second tank to split your population. Craigslist is, of course, a great resource for tanks, as well as for crabs.

The thing about overcrowding is that people have reported that it can lead to agression. Also, crabs aren't stationary when they dig down, and if a crab on the move tunnels into the space of a mid-molt crab, you will likely have one crab fewer because the moulting smell of crabs is so tasty to their peers.

People on the forum report that their crabs are more active & happy at 80° temp. I've certainly found this to be true! (I currently keep my room uncomfortably warm to keep temps up, and my crabs are rewarding me with a great deal of activity!

Humidity looks good... do you like the reptifogger? I was wondering if I should get one.

You can do away with sponges all together. If you're worried about the lil ones getting out safely, put some shells or pebbles in the bottom. I made a series if steps my pool using aquarium sealant & stones. My crabs seem to like it and can submerge all the way. Have you ever considered setting up a bubbler in your pools?


That's all I can think of... If you get the chance you should post some pictures of your crabbie clan & setup! I'd love to see what the second level looks like!

[daws409]

I agree with tossing the sponges. They're bad for harboring bacteria. Like suggested above, you can also use plastic canvas as a ramp.... Also recommend getting a bigger tank or another smaller tank to split them up. I would definitely be worried about cannibalism in your current setup. Glad you stopped them from being released into the wild!

Sent from my HTC6515LVW using Tapatalk

[GotButterflies]

Looks like they covered it. I would definitely get larger bowls. They all need to be able to submerge. You can purchase craft mesh for them to use to get out...69 cents a sheet a Michaels craft store, can be cut up, can also use a coupon on it if you want. 40% off. 80% humidity 80 temp are minimum recommended . I too would love to see pics. I just heard Petco is doing their a dollar a gallon sale and it includes 75 gallon aquariums ~ go grab one


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Hermiearth]

Heya! Welcome welcome!

So I'm pretty new to crabbing too - newer than you!
Buuuut... I read enough that I can certainly guess what more experienced crabbers will want to say.

You already know the tat is rather crowded... I'd be saving up for either a much larger tank (like, minimum 75 gal), or else a second tank to split your population. Craigslist is, of course, a great resource for tanks, as well as for crabs.

The thing about overcrowding is that people have reported that it can lead to agression. Also, crabs aren't stationary when they dig down, and if a crab on the move tunnels into the space of a mid-molt crab, you will likely have one crab fewer because the moulting smell of crabs is so tasty to their peers.

People on the forum report that their crabs are more active & happy at 80° temp. I've certainly found this to be true! (I currently keep my room uncomfortably warm to keep temps up, and my crabs are rewarding me with a great deal of activity!

Humidity looks good... do you like the reptifogger? I was wondering if I should get one.

You can do away with sponges all together. If you're worried about the lil ones getting out safely, put some shells or pebbles in the bottom. I made a series if steps my pool using aquarium sealant & stones. My crabs seem to like it and can submerge all the way. Have you ever considered setting up a bubbler in your pools?


That's all I can think of... If you get the chance you should post some pictures of your crabbie clan & setup! I'd love to see what the second level looks like!

Thank you for your great advice! I am planning to get a bigger tank to split them up and hopefully I have not lost any crabbies underground so far My repti fogger works great for me, BUT be sure to save your receipt as the first one I got from petco was defective and after looking at amazon reviews looks like it is a pretty common occurence. I will take your advice on the sponges! Thanks again

[Hermiearth]

I agree with tossing the sponges. They're bad for harboring bacteria. Like suggested above, you can also use plastic canvas as a ramp.... Also recommend getting a bigger tank or another smaller tank to split them up. I would definitely be worried about cannibalism in your current setup. Glad you stopped them from being released into the wild!

Sent from my HTC6515LVW using Tapatalk

I will toss the sponges! Thabk you for your canvas idea I will use it!

[Hermiearth]

Looks like they covered it. I would definitely get larger bowls. They all need to be able to submerge. You can purchase craft mesh for them to use to get out...69 cents a sheet a Michaels craft store, can be cut up, can also use a coupon on it if you want. 40% off. 80% humidity 80 temp are minimum recommended . I too would love to see pics. I just heard Petco is doing their a dollar a gallon sale and it includes 75 gallon aquariums ~ go grab one


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Ok, will order larger bowls. Cant wait for the dollar per gal sale! Thats where I got my current tank, my mom wouldn't let e get a bigger one, pretty sure she has given up on controlling my crab craze... lol. I will upload pictures as soon as I get back from my vacation!

[GotButterflies]

The dollar a gallon sale is going on now at Petco