We just bought 2 crabs. We are new to the crab world and are in the world of learning. We have 4 inches of substrate, salt water that is deep enough for them to submerge in, fresh water for them to drink (I need to get a deeper container tomorrow), humidity at 75-80 and temp just about 75. We had been handling them because we thought it was fine. One seemed active at first exploring his habitat. Now neither are doing much besides sitting in their hidy. They are not eating or drinking today. The substrate is quite moist as it was purchased as a brick and we reconstituted it by soaking it in water.
Do I need to force them to eat or drink? Do I need to give them a "bath"? Is there anything I can do to help them other than let them be?
New crabs not eating or drinking
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MousieMouse
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curlysister
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Re: New crabs not eating or drinking
Welcome to crabbing and to the HCA!
No, you don't need to do anything at all - the crabs will know when they need to eat and drink. They carry a mix of salt and fresh water in their shells, so it is advised NOT to bath them. Just keep offering them a variety of foods, including calcium and protein daily, and they will eat what they need. If you have PPs, they don't 'swim' a lot, they are more the type to wade or dip their legs - so don't panic if your dishes/ pools are deep enough to submerge. I have had my PPs for over 12 years and have never had deep pools.
When crabs are small, they eat so little that you might not even notice - I swear for the first couple of years, I put in and took out the exact same amount of food! The only way I knew they were eating and drinking is that they did not die! LOL!
Happy crabs are actually quite boring - they were probably so actice because they were a bit stressed with the changes.
Oh, and some people do handle their crabs, but it might be better to let them settle in a bit before doing so.
No, you don't need to do anything at all - the crabs will know when they need to eat and drink. They carry a mix of salt and fresh water in their shells, so it is advised NOT to bath them. Just keep offering them a variety of foods, including calcium and protein daily, and they will eat what they need. If you have PPs, they don't 'swim' a lot, they are more the type to wade or dip their legs - so don't panic if your dishes/ pools are deep enough to submerge. I have had my PPs for over 12 years and have never had deep pools.
When crabs are small, they eat so little that you might not even notice - I swear for the first couple of years, I put in and took out the exact same amount of food! The only way I knew they were eating and drinking is that they did not die! LOL!
Happy crabs are actually quite boring - they were probably so actice because they were a bit stressed with the changes.
Oh, and some people do handle their crabs, but it might be better to let them settle in a bit before doing so.
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." -Will Rogers