HCA: Hermit Crab Association

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
playsand 6-7 inches
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 on top and about 90 on both

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
uth
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 and whatever brand u get from petsmart
5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
dried foods from a member
6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
3 yrs pp
7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
yes was molting before all this
8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
10 gal tank with 10 gal tank as a lid
9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
2 and they are both small-med
10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
3 for both each
11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
no
12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
clean the sand once a yr
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?
no
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.)?
no
16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
Very pale lost a leg after i isolated her to try in get her into a shell has not succedded and is very slow now compaired to earlier and also slimy

So your little buddy is naked? Try to put him in a shell yourself very gently. I am having the same problem and my biggest crab refuses to stay in a shell. I learned how to reshell them and it was scary at first but very easy. Wash a shell you think would be good for him in dechlorinated water, then rinse your crabbie as well. place the tail in the shell and hopefully he will slide in! You can pat his head to help him get in too

I tried she kept climbing out then I tried doing the declorinatrd water and shells in a cup and covered her up and nothing looked at her again and she lost a leg and just laying there

oh no, maybe try again in a little while. A naked crab is a dead crab in time!

I know I love my freya

just keep trying and keep us updated

90 can be a bit on the hot side. 80 to 85 would be better. Some crabs will streak when they overheat!

If she is staying naked, keep her in a clean glass or plastic container (like a cool whip tub) with just a coating of dechlorinated water in the bottom and a selection of cleaned shells. If she is dropping limbs it means she is stressed, so the best thing possible is to keep the container covered over and someplace quiet so long as it stays at 80 degrees.

When they do this there isn't much we can do for them. Hopefully she calms down and puts a shell on. If by morning she hasn't, attempt to reshell her again.

Also, try offering her honey, bee pollen, and/or peanut butter. If she is weak that can sometimes help.

Well she died *cries* my fave hermie i so sad

Only thing i can think of is when i moved she got hurt or something cuz she was molting under the waterbowl and not under the sand

misty1989 wrote:Only thing i can think of is when i moved she got hurt or something cuz she was molting under the waterbowl and not under the sand

I’m sorry for your loss.

I agree, way too hot. Also - are you using instant ocean salt? You need salt for making a saltwater fish tank- not hermit crab salt.


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Yes I use instant ocean and this is the first time in 3 yrs this has ever happened don't think its the heat but idk and my crab gone I could never get it under 90 it was that or 100 on both maybe I'm using a too big heater its an 8 watt for 10 gal

Any given heater will raise the temp x number of degrees in your tank. So if your heater can raise the temp by ten degrees, for example, your tank will be about ten degrees warmer than the room. You can get a thermostat that you plug the heater into, that will turn the heater off when the tank gets over a certain temp, and back on when it gets under that temp. A rheostat that "dims" the heater is also an option.

Alternatively, you could buy a smaller heater... but an 8 watt isn't udually huge so if I had to guess I'd say the room temp is pretty warm, on the regular.

What is the average room temp where you keep your tank? Is the tank near a radiator or air vent? And is your tank insulated with anything?

Not sure tbh I live in new Orleans and heat here gets up to 110 easy that's including humidity my house probably got to 80 90 degrees even with ac on but ive moved and my ac can keep up now

Hoo boy - yup, that's a warm house.

I think a thermostat may be a good option for you. It will keep the heater off most of the time, only switching on if, for example, you have a cool evening (do you even get cool evenings?).

If 80-90° is pretty regular for you & you don't get fluctuations into the low 70s, I doubt you really need a heater. But you do need to know the temp to make that decision.

Yea we get some cold days like a month ago it actually snowed lol we really dont get under the 60s here tho now. But I got them a new tank its about 3 ft high and is a hexagon think its around 50 60 gals but setting that up before I even think about any more heroes I'm just waiting for my other cabbie to come up... If he alive