How Long in iso?

[crabbyjo]

I have a crab that has been aggressive with a newly molted crab. The bully is smaller than the victim, aka, Spot. Spot came up from her molt while we were out for the evening a couple nights ago. Spot & smaller crab, aka Red, were taking turns pinning each other down. We separated them & watched for a while. They stayed away from each other so we went to bed & woke up to Red holding Spot down. God only knows how long this went on. I am hoping not all night. So I read a lot here & then gave them both a dip in the fw pool hoping that would be it. Spot would go directly to the moss pit & hide. Spot was frantic each time we separated them while Red just sat there like no big deal!!! I did put food in the moss pit just in case Spot was too afraid to leave. She ate peanut butter & honey immediately. I was convinced that she hadn't been able to get to the food since her molt. Poor baby!! So I put Red in iso last night. Spot pigged out on high protein food I had just put in the tank for the night.

The question I have is how long should I leave Red in iso? I put a ton of his favorite shells in with him. He hasn't changed into any yet. I have various sizes of the shells he has always been in....murex. Also put in a lot of turbo shells in sizes similar to him.

Any help....advice, would be greatly appreciated.

[soilentgringa]

Has Red molted yet? Usually when a crab comes up from molting, the pecking order is reestablished and you will see dominance displays.

Unless the crabs are actively trying to rip each other apart, this is normal.
Do you mind going over your tank conditions just in case there are any areas of concern?

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... hp?t=46102

Sent from my LGLS665 using Tapatalk

[crabbyjo]

Yes, Red has molted once with us. If Spot wasn't so terrified after each incident I wouldn't do anything but she was trying to go through the glass. It was awful to watch.

1. play sand with cocofiber, 5:1

2. yes, temp & humidity guages, both are always 82-89, it is at the warmer end of tank

3. yes, uth's are the ultratherm heat pads. One runs the entire length of the back of tank. One more on one end

4. sw pool made from Instant Ocean, fw pool is spring water that I buy with Zoo Med hermit crab drinking water conditioner

5. feed organic fruit & veggies along with food purchased at Hermie's Kitchen & recently got an order from Alaska Crab.....flowers & other yummies! Also feed chicken, fish, pork, beef, or shrimp tails & exos. Peanut butter & honey every other day unless we have a molter that just came up. Then it's every night for a while. Also feed from other food groups, oats, nuts....change the food every day

I 'm not sure if you want me to do entire template or just the ones relating to the crabitat.

6. started crabbing last January, 2016

7. bully crab has molted once with us

8. crabs live in a 40b tank. The lid is screen but we put packing tape over all but a small strip. Also keep a towel over it & adjust depending on temp & humidity

9.have 8 crabs....2 new teenies we just got, 2 small, 4 mediums

10. have 3-5 shells for each crab in the crabitat

11. never

12. tank hasn't been cleaned since we set it up, started with a 10 gallon & ended up buying a 40b, April 1, I do remove any food or poop that is in sight

13. started out using sponges in January until I read it's not a good idea, so no sponges

14. only the 2 teenies last Monday, August 15

15. at first we took the crabs out a lot in the evening but we don't anymore, they don't seem happy about it so....

16. situation is what I said in my first post

[crabbyjo]

Good news, Red, the bully took a different shell in iso. I think I'll leave him in there for a few days. I have noticed that Spot has been coming up during the day to eat so I'd like to see her be comfortable again before Red goes back.

[crabbyjo]

Good news!!

We put Red back into the main tank last night & kept a close eye on them & all is well again.