HCA: Hermit Crab Association

LonelyHermit wrote:1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
A mix of eco earth and play sand that's about 4in deep.

CL77- is it moistened to sand castle consistency using dechlor fresh or salt water? It should be 3x the height of your largest 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?
Got a thermometer/hygrometer today and set it up somewhat in the middle of the tank.

CL77- What are the readings of each? Should be at least 75-85°F and 70%+ for humidity.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
I use a heatmat placed on the side of the tank.

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 corner pools filled with both kinds of water, although the water comes from bottled and not tap. Just got aquarium salt with directions that say to use 1/2 a tablespoon for a gallon.

CL77- Aquarium salt won't hurt them, but it doesn't benefit them either. You'll need a marine salt like Instant Ocean for their salt water. It's fine to use tap water with a dechlorinator, like Prime, for both pools.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I've been try to give him either a fruit (like an apple slice,blueberries,banana, or a strawberry), lettuce, oats, walnuts, or dried mealworms. If I can't change it out every day, I do every other day, usually around the time when the sun sets.

CL77- are you offering a constant source of calcium? Lots of Protein and calcium are important.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
I've had him for about 2 weeks now. My best guess for species could be a purple pincher, but I am new to this and his colors are kinda dull.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
I don't think so, unless he's in the process 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?
Kept in a 24x12.5x17in glass tank with a glass lid that I can easily lift.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
Only the one crab for now, he doesn't seem as big as I've seen them get.(sorry if that's vague) I wanted to get another one so he isn't lonely, but I wanted to wait until I was sure he wasn't going to drop from stress.

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
2 shells, one that was in the kiddie carrier that I got the crab in although it's too big, and one I bought. I know it's not enough but the only shells you can get in my area are from pet shops.

CL77-HCA recommends 3-5 shells per crab. PPs prefer round openings like turbos.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
None.

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I have yet to clean my tank because of my fear of stressing the crab out to much.

CL77- no need to deep clean anyway unless there is an emergency like a bacterial bloom or flood.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
No sponges.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
Just bought some fake leaves and terrarium moss. Have yet to wash the leaves and the new shell.

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.)?
I don't have a spray bottle so I did my best to pour a little bit of water around the tank since I read that it needed to be misted regularly.

CL77- no need to mist if your humidity is good. Be careful not to over mist as it could cause flooding.

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
Ok so about 2 weeks ago I got a hermit crab from a carnival, that night and the next day I did a ton of research looking up and writing down exactly what they needed. I'm on a tight budget so I couldn't buy things like fake foliage and a thermometer until today, but for the time-being he had two pools, a heat mat, the substrate, a food dish, and a large half-log hide that he could sit in. I did my best giving him proper food, but for the first couple days he sat in the corner and only moved into the log after I put it closer to him. Ever since he's been in it, he's still not noticeably eating or drinking, the only reason I know he's still alive is because he's in a slightly different position every morning I check(not actually lifting the log). And today, he was closer to the edge of the opening of the log, which gave me a little hope that he was slowly getting more comfortable. But then I noticed that the edges of the log now have a fuzzy white mold on it, which is worrying because that mean's I'll have to take his only hide to clean it for at least an hour and that might stress him out too much. I need to know if there's anything I can do to lessen the stress or am I just going to have to clean it and hope it won't worsen his situation.

CL77- he's likely destressing. Offer lots of protein and calcium, keep humidity and temps good, have sufficient substrate for molting, change up your salt water, and work on finding more appropriate type shells. Mold isn't harmful for the crabs. You can soak the log in salt water and dry it throughly to help prevent mold once he's moved away from it. Try using a large whipped cream container with a hole cut out as a hide. I also use those small instant Mac and cheese plastic containers with holes cut out for hides. The more hiding spots for him, the better he'll feel.

hermitcrablover2 wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 05, 2022 6:18 pm

I agree, hermit crabs eat very little and can even survive a few days to 2 weeks without food! If he doesn't seem very active either, maybe he's a little bit stressed out, if he wasn't kept in good conditions at the carnival he might be stressed from that? He might also be lonely, hermit crabs are social creatures and need to be kept in groups of 2 or more. If you can't get another crab, I've heard it might work if you temporarily put a mirror in the tank