Sick/Injured Crab Recovery Status & Care Tips

[Guest]

I am proud to announce that Clyde successfully molted, gre back all legs and is now back in the main tank with his buddies. It is a great feelong to save my little buddy. Thanks for all your advise and wishes.

[Guest]

A few weeks ago, my E, Speedy pulled a surface molt on me. I had already ISO'd him due to a shell fight. He molted in a huge shell, then decided to go naked for a week afterwards. We finally got him in a shell, but now he's missing some legs from the molt. The shell he's in is so big, we can't even see him when he's tucked all the way in. I didn't know he was in it and was worried after a week of not seeing him. I sifted through all the sand expecting to find a naked, dead Speedy. I was transferring everything to a new KK ISO, and when I couldn't find him in the old one, I looked over to the new one. He was there peeking out of a shell. I had even rinsed all the shells lightly in declor before moving them! He seems to be able to move himself around a little bit. I've still been moving him between his food and water a few times a day just to be sure. He seems to be eating and drinking OK. His exo has been gone (eaten) for a while. I just don't know when to put him back in the main tank. All my other crabs decided to dig down and molt about a week and a half ago. I'm not sure if Speedy could do anything to them if he could even get to them, but I still have him ISO'd more for his own safety that theirs. If anyone thinks I'm doing anything wrong, please let me know! Speedy is a lot shyer than he used to be and has trouble moving around with all the legs missing. Every leg on his left side, and his BP is gone.

[Guest]

I posted this at CSJ earlier today, but I figured I'd post here too, though I haven't posted at all in a while. I have a sick ruggie, here's the details:

I am a little sad today because I think my favorite micro ruggie is not going to make it through the next couple of days. I got him last September, and he was so teeny that he fit, shell and all, on top of a dime.

Anyway, yesterday I was doing some spot cleaning, and I noticed him behind a flowerpot hanging out of his shell, and he looked dead. So I prepared to get him out of the tank and have a look, and he had moved and retracted back into the shell. So I let him be and decided to just keep an eye on him.

Today, I saw him in the same position, only this time he had sort of twisted his body sideways in his shell and looked almost like he was stuck. So I picked him up and he semi-retracted, I dipped him into the fresh water to clean him off and he perked up. Then left his shell and went streaking.

Righht now I have him in a KK ISO with small dishes of fresh and salt water, a bunch of shells, and some Crab Island Fruit and Flower food. I took a good look at him, and he appears to have molted recently, he's very pale in color, and he grew back a missing leg. But his abdomen is pretty large, and I think it may be swolleng. Poor guy.

Last I checked, he was sitting in the dish of fresh water, looking pretty weak.

I haven't lost a crab in so long, I forgot how sad it is. Any thoughts on what could have caused a distended abdomen? Any idea if there's anything I can do to make him more comfortable? I hate seeing him look so miserable.

I've offered the old shell with a bunch of others as well.

Tank's a 20L, substrate is 1/2 tank of EE, 1/2 play sand, tank humidity is about 78, temp ranges in different areas of the tank from 70 to 82 (depending on whether you are directly over the UTH or far from it in the cooler sand), and all the other 10 crabs in that tank are thriving. I'm suspecting that this particular crab either had a bad molt for some reason or perhaps he ended up with an injury or soemthing.

Dunno.

Now I'm just working to keep him comfortable. The ISO is covered with a towel, last I saw him he'd actually crawled over to the shells and was just sitting among them

I didn't want to bother him by checking up on him, so I left him alone all day, and peeked in a bit a little while ago. He's still alive, perched on top of the shells, but he's not attempting to get into any of them, and he's still looking rather swollen to me.

I do have honey, I thought of that but then didn't want to disturb him so I did not open up the ISO to offer more food. Yet.

I've been trying to figure out what could have happened to him, and I'm wondering if he may have injured himself wedged into his teeny hiding spot between the glass and flowerpot. The way he was twisted in his shell looked rather awkward, and as soon as I removed him, he fled his shell.

We'll see how he's doing in the morning. Right now, I just want to keep him in the dark and quiet, poor guy. it'd be great if I got up and found that he'd surface molted, but I'm not confident that that's what he's up to!

Edited to add: Checked on him at 10:45 PM, he's still alive, and I offered him a bit of honey on the top of a toothpick. He refused it, but I notiched that he had rummaged around in the dish of fruit-n-flower, so that's a good sign. I dipped the tip of a toothpick into the seawater and offered that to him as well, and he turned away from me, so I took it as a sign to just leave him be and let him rest.

To be continued . . .

[Guest]

I just wanted to post an update on Speedy. I was worried because we're in the middle of a move and currently in PA. When we left NY, he was buried again and he stayed that way till this morning. I checked on him and he was up and has all his legs again! His BP even came back, but it's slightly smaller than his LP. I handled him a bit and he's back to his friendly old self. As soon as he eats just a little more exo, I think he's ready to go back in the main tank. His new legs are thinner than his old ones, but not by much. It looks like the only exo left is some legs and a claw, so I don't know how much more he'll eat, I put them in his food dish for now. I thought this crab had died about three times in the past few months! First he surface molted and I thought he died, then he went naked for a week till we coaxed him into a shell right after the surface molt. Then he could completely hide in the shell we got him into and I thought he died because I couldn't find him, and then he changed into a better shell and buried himself for what seemed like forever. I thought the stress of driving from NY to PA got to him under the sand, but now I can see it didn't. I feel bad because he's been in ISO so long, but it looks like it only did him good. I can't wait to get him back in the main tank, but I think another day or two in ISO would be a smart idea.

[Guest]

This is absolutely awesome news!! I'm am so glad to hear this.

P.S. Amie, I got your PM, I'll message ya back tomorrow.

[Guest]

Hi everyone, my name's Claudia and I'm 13. I'm new here, I just stumbled accross this site when I was searching for some info.

I'm in a huge dilemma.

One of my crabs, Mo, had molted, but I didn't realise that I was supposed to put him in isolation. Another crab, Helmet, stole his shell. Now I've bathed him and tried to put him into a new shell, but he wouldn't go in, so I've just covered him with it in the hopes that it will keep him warm. I've left him next to his exoskeleton, and he's in isolation now. I have a reptile heat rock in his tank, so that should keep him warm, and it's fairly humid in there. Should I leave water near him too? I really don't want him to die

Can anybody help me or give me any advice?

Thankyou.

[Guest]

Okay, I'm not sure if Peter, my pp, is molting or not. He had be digging minor holes and sitting in them for two weeks ish. Then I cleaned the habitat and tried a new substrate mix, sand and eco earth. I had just gotten an E, Eustace, and was told the eco earth would hold humidity better. Well, he dug more holes, sat in them and this morning we can't find him. So, he's tunnelled down and hasn't popped up during any time when we're in there. I just let it be for a bit. Till I caught Eustace tunneling and panicked. I didn't know where Peter was so I moved Eustace to my ISO and put the toys in there with him. I'm not sure what's going on and if he is molting, then this will be my first molt. I'm just going to keep watching for right now.

[Guest]

He was very beautiful in his striped turbo, and his postmolt color was a very pretty salmon. It was his first molt with us, after nearly two years. I wish he had pulled through.

About 3 weeks ago Lil Guy decided to do a surface molt. I quickly put him in iso right next to his exo. A week went by, and he didn't eat his exo, so I crunched it up and placed part of it on a dish with some other foods, and the rest next to him. So now, practically a month later the poor guy passed.

[Guest]

My Hermie Missy was found on the stoop of a pet shop(she had been left there OVER NIGHT by some uncareing individual) and was missing a leg, the pet shop took her inside and put her in with the rest if their Hermie's. Then I came and didn't have the heart to leave her there, she was VERY shy and didn't want to come out at first but within a month was active and as friendly anything. Then when a third month passed she had molted and had her leg back and is one (if not the most) sociable crab in my tank!

[Jedediah]

A while ago I found Jason (a PP) out of his shell with only two legs and the feeder pincher left. I managed to coax him into a shell (a bit too big) again and left him in the main tank hidden under moss and a piece of cork bark. I handfed him every second day and offered fresh and salt water on a spoon. Jason ate and drank every time and after three weeks of this he changed into a new shell and pinched me hard when I tried to feed him, so I figured that he was better.
He was active, moved around in the crabitat a lot and seemed to be fine.
Yesterday I found Jason again out of his shell and this time with just one leg and no pincher at all. He seems to have molted. His feelers move a lot and he doesn't look sick (no drooping eyes, not lethargic or something like that). Again, he moved readily into a shell - a very light one, so that he's able to move it around - and he's eating well from my finger. I put him into a small container with moist moss and the container is in the main tank to ensure that he has proper temperature and humidity.
Jason gets the food the other crabs eat. If he doesn't eat when I offer it to him, I place the food next to him. Last time he used to eat it during the night.
I'm not sure if he will make it this time, but I can hope

[Guest]

Came home tonight and found a nightmare. Top of my tank open, everything moved around, huge mess, one hermit crab (Dumbledore) missing! Found him under a bookcase- Guessing Samson and/or Delilah (cats) responsible. Got him out and held him a while- miracle of miracles he was ALIVE! Quick bath (guessing that gills were getting dried out), seemed active but disoriented/ confused. Back in (reordered) crabitat now, keeping it dark/quiet. Afraid he won't make it.

UPDATE: Dumbledore went over and immersed himself in the water dish in the iso tank. Very hopeful!!

[Jedediah]

Jason is still alive and kicking. Literally. He kicks at me with his one leg when I pick him up. I wasn't home for the last two weeks and my BF took care of him, he tells me Jason ate well, but never drank anything. I really didn't think he would survive and now I hope for a quick molt

[Guest]

I left him in ISO for a week and he was doing GREAT!! Moved him back into the main tank and he has been hiding under the log ever since. Starting to think he and Shaq might noit like each other? Looks like Shaq is digging in (possibly pre-molt?). Thinking maybe I should move Dumbledore back into ISO. Amazed that he is still alive, really don't want to lose him now...

[Jedediah]

Jason has his first gel leg! Yay! He drank lots of salt water last night (for about five minutes) and keeps eating everything I offer him.

[Jedediah]

Here's a picture of Jason during breakfast, you can see the gel leg behind his normal leg: