HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hey so I JUST got a new hermit crab. He's a big guy and looks tough. I was trying to get him to unlatch his claw from the box and gently tugging did not work. I decided to just leave him alone for a minute and see if he unmatched. He didn't budge. I didn't want him to die so I carried the box over to my tank and he decided to unlatch and fall right onto the hardwood floor! It was about a 2 and a half foot drop and he didn't break anything so I put him in the tank and he hid. After a minute he started to climb around and explore. He seems fine and happy not even scared when I go up to the tank but I'm worried that he might be hurt. I'm worried he might get stressed out because I plan today to move all my hermit crabs to a new tank. Do you think he will be alright? He shows no sign of illness but I would hate for him to be hurt. Any advice? I'm in tears right now I feel so bad. I've had hermit crabs for 3 years now and only dropped 2 twice and it was very low like an inch above the ground. Pls help!!!!

Also I have a 10 gallon tank and plan to move all of my 4 hermies to a 20 gallon long. The substrate is currently 2 and a half inches deep (my hermits r small) My humidity and temperature are both around 80 percent. And an update: The hermit crab still looks fine but I just want to do what's best for him. Thnx for reading this.

Breathe, relax and don't worry! The same thing has happened to other crabbers, myself included: one of my crabs jumped from my hand and landed on the floor (carpet over cement) 4 feet below -- he was a little stunned and stayed tucked into his shell for a few minutes but was moving around the tank quite normally very quickly -- that was almost 7 years ago and he's still absolutely fine! Remember that these crabs climb trees in the wild and undoubtedly fall out of them, too.

Listen to Crabinski, your crab should be fine!

I'm not trying to jump on your case, I just want to make sure that your new crab can live happily; one thing that you said in your 2nd comment, that you have a 10 gallon w/ 4 crabs and 2 1/2 inches of substrate. Moving your crabs into the 20 gallon as soon as possible would be best. 4 crabs in a 10 gallon is overcrowding. Also, at least 6 inches of substrate is thought of as the bare minimum for your crabbies, to help with safe molts protected from other. But if your new crab is big, as you said, you might want more substrate. Good luck, and I'm glad your new hermie is doing well!

JulesRolyCrab wrote:Listen to Crabinski, your crab should be fine!

I'm not trying to jump on your case, I just want to make sure that your new crab can live happily; one thing that you said in your 2nd comment, that you have a 10 gallon w/ 4 crabs and 2 1/2 inches of substrate. Moving your crabs into the 20 gallon as soon as possible would be best. 4 crabs in a 10 gallon is overcrowding. Also, at least 6 inches of substrate is thought of as the bare minimum for your crabbies, to help with safe molts protected from other. But if your new crab is big, as you said, you might want more substrate. Good luck, and I'm glad your new hermie is doing well!

Thank you, JulesRolyCrab, for picking up on that second post! I didn't see it when I replied about the dropped crab.

Crabinski wrote:Breathe, relax and don't worry! The same thing has happened to other crabbers, myself included: one of my crabs jumped from my hand and landed on the floor (carpet over cement) 4 feet below -- he was a little stunned and stayed tucked into his shell for a few minutes but was moving around the tank quite normally very quickly -- that was almost 7 years ago and he's still absolutely fine! Remember that these crabs climb trees in the wild and undoubtedly fall out of them, too.

Thank you for your advice! Makes me feel much better

JulesRolyCrab wrote:Listen to Crabinski, your crab should be fine!

I'm not trying to jump on your case, I just want to make sure that your new crab can live happily; one thing that you said in your 2nd comment, that you have a 10 gallon w/ 4 crabs and 2 1/2 inches of substrate. Moving your crabs into the 20 gallon as soon as possible would be best. 4 crabs in a 10 gallon is overcrowding. Also, at least 6 inches of substrate is thought of as the bare minimum for your crabbies, to help with safe molts protected from other. But if your new crab is big, as you said, you might want more substrate. Good luck, and I'm glad your new hermie is doing well!

Thanks for the advice as well! This is why I got a new tank so they wouldn't feel overcrowded I will try to put in as much sand as I can both from the old tank and the new bags I bought so it should be about six inches

Awesome! You can always mix the sand you have/bought with an Eco Earth brick, it can help maintain humidity and help tunneling. Also can add some substrate depth without you having to purchase several bags of sand.