Emergency naked crab

[samdeanandjulia]

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?

a mix of Eco earth and calcium sand

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?

no

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?

a heat lamp

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)?

both, not sure what brand for the fresh, instant ocean for the salt, and the ratio on the package

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?

meats, vegetables, fruits, grains and oats
every other day, or after 3 days at the max

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?

a little over a month and unknown

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?

it is molting right now

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?

a 10 gallon fish tank, there is no lid

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?

2
I'd say medium, about 1.5 inches

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?

3-4

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?

no

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?

not very often
I replace some of the Eco earth and sand

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?

no

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?

it's still sort of in progress so things are moved and stuff

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.)?

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

My hermit crab, Dean, molted. I came from my dads to my moms to check on him and I couldn't find him in his shell. I looked around and I looked in their freshwater (which is deep enough for them to fully submerge) and he was sitting in there naked. His body is still soft. I had a soccer game to get to so I drained the water so he wouldn't drown, but there was enough that he still had access. When I came back, he still hadn't moved, so I took some of the substrate, put it into a container with the shells, and very very very carefully moved him into the container. He is moving more but still hasn't walked yet. I'm misting the container and him every once in a while and when I do he moves his legs.

[samdeanandjulia]

please respond, I don't want to lose my buddy

[DebeeS]

Has he gone back into his shell yet.

[kieagcarm]

He needs to be warm, the temp and humidity in his tall needs to be at least 80/80 constantly. How deep was your sub, a crab can't dug down unless it's 3x as deep as he is tall. What kind of container did you put him in? Please read the guide lines here in the forums for the proper care techniques. When a crab does this, it's usually a bad sign. I'm sorry you and your crab are going thru this and prayers blessings and crossed fingers sent your way

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[Giner13]

Yes echoing what kieagcarm said. Get some good therm @ hydrometers to monitor.
Sometimes you can reshell them, but it has to be done pretty soon.

One of mine went naked after the other stole his shell post molt. He was backed into a log so I had to iso him with lots of shells nearby. Fortunately he reshelled himself.

Keep us updated!


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[Kermie16]

As Kieagcarm stated, usually when there is a naked crab in the pool, it is usually not a good sign that he will survive. Please look at the stickies in this forum about hermit crab care - I would post the link but I'm not sure how to do so. Hermit crabs have modified gills. They need heat at a minimum of 80 degrees and humidity of at least 80% to be able to survive. To avoid a similar situation for your second crab, I would suggest changes to your crabitat asap.
1. Substrate: the EE is good but the calcium sand is not. The calcium sand can harden when wet. The depth of the substrate needs to be at least 3x the size of ur largest crab. Most of us do a 5:1 mix of EE with playsand .
2. Again please look at the stickies on this forum forum for proper hermit crab care. The heat and humidity need to be at least at 80. Thermometers and hygrometers are a necessity to be able to monitor these. I would highly suggest a digital thermometer from reptile basics (runs around $7). Calibrate it - again if u search this forum for calibration, it will come up how to calibrate. The digital thermometer/hygrometers tend to be the most accurate.
3. A heat lamp is fine but can dry out the substrate. Most of us use UTH's (under the tank heaters) - these are placed on the back of the tank and NOT under the tank as the name suggests - and it is placed above the substrate level so not to overheat any crabs under sub.
4. Prime is best for dechlorinator. Both fresh and salt water need to be dechlorinated. The instant ocean ur using for the Marine salt water is perfect.
5. Check the foods list stickie for foods safe for hermit crabs- sounds like ur feeding them good stuff. Want to make sure the foods are untreated with any pesticides.
8. The fish tank needs a lid to help trap the humidity. I highly suggest a plexiglass top u can get cut for u at Home Depot or a glass top from Drs Foster and Smith online - I use a versatop hinged glass top for mine - or from ur nearest pet store.
10. U need to have at least 5-6 shells per crab in the tank. If u have pics of ur guys, u can post them on this forum and we can help identify which species you have so you will know which shells would be best to have in ur tat.
16. You can ISO dean in the proper conditions - he is vulnerable being out of his shell. You need to reshell him asap , put him in ISO, with he heat and humidity he needs and if u don't have access to playsand now, then just The EE is better than any calcium sand. In the ISO place a hideout, foods to give him energy such as organic peanut butter, organic honey, a source of calcium such as cuttlebone/egg shell/calcium powder, a bowl of FW and MSW, and several shells. He needs to be in the dark as well.
Hope this helped. Good luck and prayers that he pulls through.


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[Rawrgeous]

Usually when crabs ditch shells it is because they are to weak to carry their shells. They dig down to molt, and will take the shell with them. They end up in the water dish to keep their abdomen moist. As others have mentioned get him reshelled as soon as possible. Pick him up gently right behind his head and rinse him and his abdomen and slide it in. If you have any other shells that are light of the right size try those. Offer lots of calcium such as eggshell and offer an animal protein. Unfiltered honey is a great healing food as it contains natural antibodies. After you have him settled check out out basic care guide here http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... hp?t=92457. As others have mentioned you'll want to look into buying some playsand, or more cocofober as the calcium sand can act as a cement as it dries on their abdomen. Good luck and I hope the little guy pulls through!

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[samdeanandjulia]

thank you all for the help. sadly, he didn't make it.

[Kermie16]

So sorry for your loss! For the health of your second crab, I would highly suggest the above changes to your tank and once everything is stable and he has undergone his first successful molt with you, then it would be good to consider a tank mate for him as they are social creatures . Again, sorry for your loss


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[Giner13]

Aww so sorry to hear!!


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[Rawrgeous]

I'm very sorry too hear about your loss. :/