HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi there, I work at a pet shop and did a lot of prep work to set up for some crabs, but I would really appreciate some advice.

TL;DR: I'm worried the tiny one isn't eating/drinking and I'm worried they aren't going to eat/drink enough.

I got the crabs 3 days ago, one large and one tiny. Their habitat at the shop had deep enough substrate, and was actually at a good temp and humidity. But the food was garbage and the water pools weren't deep enough for the crabs to submerge. I prepared a tank (130L) according to the Post Purchase Death Reduction method. And I have everything recommended in the forums here for them when the method is done. I am waiting on a digital temp/humidity guage, and a single heating pad (I have 2 currently) that will increase the temp a bit. Their food has been thoroughly researched and organised, and I've even meal prepped to make sure their diet is balanced and varied. I have gone to the extreme to make sure I am prepared because I wanted to give them a better life.

I know the large crab has found the water and the food- they seemed very keen on both water and food -but I haven't seen the little one go for anything. I'm trying to not interfer, but I worry they need to molt and the substrate isn't deep enough to burrow because according to the PPDR method they need to be encouraged to eat and drink first.

How long until I know if they're ok/not ok? I feel like I'm just waiting for them to die and I don't know what signs to look for.

Has anyone else done the PPDR method, and if so, how did your hermit crabs behave? I've been leaving them alone as much as possible, but I also check in twice a day to make sure they are ok.

Will the large one kill the little one? They were snuggling up at the shop for days and I thought that was a good sign but now I'm worried the little one will be eaten if they're both too stressed.

Thank you in advance for any and all information!

Hi.. the HCA actually does not encourage the PPDR method. It is better to get them into optimal conditions as fast as possible. If they need to molt, holding them off from it is dangerous. They will know to eat/drink enough before they do. They can also come up "during" the mold to refresh themselves if necessary.

If you are worried about the little one eating, you can try putting tempting foods closer to him like honey or natural peanut butter

Disclaimer: HCA does not recommend the PPS/PPDR method.

In your case, they shouldn't have it anyways since the pet store had adequate substrate, heat, and humidity. The appropriate food/water is not something that they would need to acclimate to.

The little one may be needing to molt. Is it sitting on the sub or trying its best to dig in the 1in/2.5cm substrate? The smaller the crab, the more often it will need to molt.

As far as aggression goes: if the little one attempts a surface molt, it will be quite vulnerable and could be injured/eaten by the other if you don't ISO it fast enough.

My personal recommendation would be to get their habitat up to ideal conditions now/asap. When the other items arrive, those can be added. You can put the crabs in a small container with a bit of moistened moss while you're setting it up.

Welcome to the board!

Also, you can ISO the little guy within his current tank if you don't have an extra.. just put a butter bowl or cut open pop bottle updside down over him and gentry press a little into the substrate so that the other crab can't get to him.

Jlmills525 wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 17, 2022 8:26 am

Hi.. the HCA actually does not encourage the PPDR method. It is better to get them into optimal conditions as fast as possible. If they need to molt, holding them off from it is dangerous. They will know to eat/drink enough before they do. They can also come up "during" the mold to refresh themselves if necessary.

If you are worried about the little one eating, you can try putting tempting foods closer to him like honey or natural peanut butter

Hey, thank you so much for your reply!
I basically put more substrate in on one side of the tank this morning, in the hopes the crabs would move there - and they did! So I was able to add substrate to the other side and set the whole tank up with climbing things, hides, and fresh food. They are seeming much... Happier? The big crab seems to be tunneling heaps, and the little one is exploring in a way that seems curious rather than stressed (they're ambling about but not in a frantic way). I also smoothed the sand around the water pools and the food plate and could see both sets of footprints leading to all of them so I am pretty sure the little one is eating and drinking.

I'm also wondering if a blue/night light is ok, or if they need 12hrs of total darkness?
They're set up in my bathroom and I'm worried that if I need to use the shower or toilet that any light will mess up their sleep/wake cycle.

Thanks again!

From what I've read and understand from research - total darkness is preferred, if not required, for a large portion of their 12 hr night cycle. That being said, you can use the blue/night light for some smaller portions of that cycle - like if you're wanting to view them or if you need to utilize the facilities in your bathroom, per say. Realistically, this time of year in North America, even with my LED lights off the tank is still semi-lit for an additional 4 hrs each day just due to natural light in my house. Additionally, in the wild, the sun doesn't click off exactly at a 12 hour mark either. So, as long they are getting total darkness for a good portion of the night, you'll probably be just fine.