Sick crab black coloring just molted can't hold onto shell

[Amore Fati]

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

I use coconut bedding, and it's 1.5-2 inches deep, enough to fully bury the hermit crab

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?

Yes, they're locate in the back center of the tank. Temperature stays around 70 and and humidity is around 75. When it gets low, I pour warm water in the tank's bedding or place a warm, wet towel partially over the top of the tank.

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

Yes, I use the generic zoo med hermit crab heater usually found in petsmart or petco. It's not very big, and I often wonder if I need a bigger one.

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)?

I have two pools of fresh and salt water available. I treat the fresh water with zoo med hermit crab drinking water, and the salt water with zoo med hermit crab salt water conditioner. I put 8 drops of each per 16 oz.

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

I keep fish food available at all times, and sometimes throw in some coconut shavings in their food bowl. I also have a cuttle bone available. I don't change their food often... I didn't know that mattered. Learned my lesson.

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

This guy I've had for about a month, so he's still kind of new. I think this is his species, but I'm just guessing by coloring. http://www.coenobitaspecies.com/compressus.htm

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

They have a big tank, although I don't know the exact dimensions since I got it second hand. You could probably stack 2 loaves of bread in the tank and still have a little room left over on the sides. I have a grated lid partially covered by a damp towel. One time my crab started crawling on the ceiling. x'D

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

Including the sick one, there are four. The sick crab is one of the bigger ones, and another big one of a different species lives with him. There are also two smaller ones, one of the sick crab's species and one that's another species,

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

I usually keep 5 in the tank of various sizes.

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

No.

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

I don't clean the bedding often... I ran out of it actually when making an isolation tank for the sick crab. Every once in a while I clean the glass, though.

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

I used to have a sponge until recently, but it got so dirty it made it uncleanable so I threw it away. Now I need a new sponge.

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

No.

14. 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.)?

I keep a toy that hangs down from the ceiling of the tank for them to climb on. I also spray them with salt water daily.

15. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

So my crab recently molted, but he's not doing well. When I picked him up to spray him, (I was also checking to see which crab molted. If I found out who it was, I would've let him alone for a week or so in the tank.) he fell straight out of his shell, and slowly crawled to a different region of the tank. It wasn't a healthy looking crawl either, though he had all of his legs. I quickly set up an isolation tank for him so he wouldn't be picked on for not having a shell.

The isolation tank has deeper bedding than the hermit crab tank, but is a lot smaller. I have a small pool of drinking water and fish food in there with a cuttle bone. He's been in there for 3 days now and this is what I've observed: He's often naked, but he still crawls around. Sometimes he takes shelter in the shells I put in there, but he's never worn them while crawling. There's been a strange, fishy odor in the tank for a few days now, but I'm not sure if it's the crab or the fish food. He also has a weird black coloring on his rear, that I'm pretty sure isn't normal.

I have a feeling he caught some sort of sickness or fungus because of the weird coloring. Otherwise, I might think he's just molting. Also, the fact he can't hold onto his shell is alarming. I'm not sure what to do... I've read that bathing the crab might help... but I don't know. I should've cleaned my tank more regularly and changed the food, learned my lesson...

[hermitcrab24]

Hello,
First off, the substrate should be deeper, even if the crabs can fully burry, the minimum depth should be 6 inches. I also think both the temperature and the humidity could be higher, maybe 80F and 80% humidity. Make sure you get more shells, I believe it should be 3 or 4 shells per crab (to prevent any shell fights). Don't worry about getting a new sponge, it really isn't necessary. I also noticed you spray them with salt water, I would recommend spraying them with freshwater instead. I also recommend Instant Ocean as a salt water, it will probably be in the fish section at the pet store. I also don't really recommend fish food, just because it may have harmful preservatives in it, I recommend fresh fruits veggies and meat, fruits and veggies should be organic. Or if you want, the Hermit Crab Patch has some great food, I use the hermit crab meal deal for my crabbies.

You said you think your crab is an Ecuadorian. I had an Ecuadorian who sounds exactly like your crab. He came out of his shell and developed a black spot on his abdomen. He didn't make it . I know you said there is a fishy smell, that can be a sign of death, Check to see if he I moving, maybe remove the fish food to see if the smell goes away. Leave him be until you know fir sure the fishy smell is him.

Good luck,
Bonnie

[Amore Fati]

Now she's completely limp and lifeless but holding on to her shell when I pick her up and I don't smell anything... could this just be a molt?

[WingedWalrus]

Can you share a picture?

[gotta-crab-em-all]

Nakedness is not part of a normal molt. Its very important that you get this crab into a shell. They use the water they store inside shells to help themselves breathe and they will slowly suffocate and also dry out their abdomen if they aren't in their shell. Rinse out the shell and leave some water inside, gently uncurl the abdomen and back the crab into the shell if at all possible. This crab needs high energy foods like honey and sweet fruit if its this weak, and make sure to offer calcium (cuttlebone or eggshells) and protein (shrimp, cooked unseasoned meats, scrambled eggs, etc) which are important, especially around molting time. This could be PPS (post-purchase stress) which unfortunately there isn't much you can do for aside from giving them comfortable and proper conditions and hoping they make it :c Its not uncommon with new crabs, or crabs that haven't molted/have only molted once in your care.

As far as the tank conditions, there could be some improvements. If you have ecuadorian crabs, you'll especially want it warmer, but the lowest recommended temperature is 75 degrees F. I recommend 80-85 degrees for ecuadorians. I would invest in more heaters to see if you can boost the heat up to 80 degrees at least.

You'll want deeper substrate, especially if you have ecuadorians. They are notorious diggers and can find and eat molting crabs if there isn't a lot of room in the substrate and that is not a fun thing to have to experience :c Most people seem to agree that 10 inches or more works well for ecuadorians and their digging habits, but the bare minimum depth is 6 inches or three times deeper than your largest crab is tall. Most people recommend a mixture of eco earth coconut fiber bedding (moistened with salt water) and playsand, although one or the other have also been used successfully by themselves.

About the spraying, too much exposure to salt water can actually cause burns. That's not to say they don't need access to a salt water bowl (Instant Ocean works the best for mixing up salt water) but I would be careful about spraying them with it. Is there a specific reason why you're picking the crabs up to spray them? If you want to increase the humidity in the tank, spraying the inside of the tank with fresh water is a better alternative.

I also second the suggestion about the food, and the lack of need for a sponge. Sponges harbor bacteria and they're really not needed. You can use a fake plant, a plastic ladder, or plastic canvas mesh to make ramps for crabs to climb in and out of their water dishes instead (they should be able to fully submerge).

A note about the shells as well, its recommended to have appropriately sized 3-5 or more shells per crab. If you have multiple species, you should look up which kindsof shells you need to be looking for, because different species prefer different shells and some (like ecuadorians) can be super picky. There's a preferred shell guide here: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=92552

Those improvements should make sure your crab friends are comfortable and healthy. Let us know if this little one makes it, its so hard to watch a crab deteriorate and I'm sure we all sympathize :c I really hope he's okay!