Death questions

[KellyCrabbieLove]

When I had my 55 I had a flood and found 2 dead. I figure these were flood related but neither had molted with me yet so it could have been pps as well.

When Megmaholm and I moved my guys from the 55 into my 125 I found 2 deaths. Both hadn't molted with me yet so it could have been that. One had been the one that streaked after pinching me to the point of almost going to the hospital the day I got him so I figured he was stress related. The other I don't have a reason for.

When rearranging my tank in December I stumbled across the empty shell of one of my Es. One of the 2 I had rescued in late September from bad conditions.
He had been perfectly active and happy before molting so...I don't know. He had been missing a foot when I got him and was a big small. The people I got him from had him over 6 months so...maybe putting it off too long.

When I emptied out my tank the other day to replace the false bottom and rescue Godzilla I found 3 gone.

1 of which was one of my first ones. I had bought him in June. He slowed down before digging down like normal back in November and finding his empty shell was something I had been really worrying about. I don't know if he had molted with me but I do not believe so. I think he probably waited too long since he was a small and I had him since June. I am not sure why though.

Another was a more recent addition and it was his first molt. I have no idea what happened to him. He was perky and active before going down. Maybe a bad molt or a tunnel collapse. I don't know. I do remember noticing his eyes had that weird shape connected with postponing a molt for too long.

The final one had me sobbing. My jumbo Atlas. While it was his first molt with me he was amazingly active and exploring before going down to molt. He had been in bad conditions before I brought him home in late September so maybe being a big guy he put it off too long as well. That or a cave collapse. I don't think it was PPS because he didn't seem to have a care in the world.

The reason for my rambling is I am really sad. I am afraid that everytime I have to do something like this that I am going to find more empty shells. Does this get better with time or am I going to continue to find my beloved crabs' empty shells? Those that have been doing this a long time, tell me it gets better. The idea of being faced with multiple deaths whenever I have to clean out the tank is horrifying.

I am not overcrowded considering almost everyone I have is a small and I have a 125 and my conditions are perfect. The eat really well and have plenty of clean water of both kinds. My pools are even cycled! I don't think my Es are responsible. They are friendly and non agressive. The only one doing anything is Jockey and he is just being a brat stealing seats and flipping poor Aphrodite into holes.

I am just so sad thinking about everyone I have had and lost. I have only been at this 8 months. The majority of the ones I have lost have been pps above ground. I had 1 above ground that I had for awhile die for an unknown reason.

[CallaLily]

If they all passed before or during their first molt with you, PPS may be the cause of most or all of them. http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... 67&t=92531

If you're really worried you could go over your tank conditions in detail just to triple check. I'm so sorry for your losses.
Edit: Also, it seems to me, cases of PPS and deaths jump a lot over the winter months. If any were purchased during colder months, they may have been exposed to dangerously low temps during shipment. Sometimes the extent of the damage isn't obvious right away.

[wodesorel]

When the shells were found, what was it like? Was there a cave and the dead crab/empty shell? Were there parts right in front of the opening? Were they packed in tight? Was the shell full of sand?

If crabs die from a bad molt or PPS you'll find either a completely empty shell sitting in a loose hole, and if it's somewhat recent there will still be a body - possibly falling apart, possibly just bits of hard exo left. Even after a few months there may be no parts at all left. It's exactly like you think it would be - a molting crab that just passes away where it's sitting.

If crabs are attacked, generally the shell is packed tight in the substrate and usually full of substrate - the evidence of another crab having come through, removed the inhabitant, and backfilled their tunnel on the way out. You may find legs or pincers on the opposite end of the tank, usually buried tight in the substrate.

That's the first step to figuring out if it's bad luck (which does happen!) or a bad crab.

[CallaLily]

If crabs are attacked, generally the shell is packed tight in the substrate and usually full of substrate - the evidence of another crab having come through, removed the inhabitant, and backfilled their tunnel on the way out. You may find legs or pincers on the opposite end of the tank, usually buried tight in the substrate.

Couldn't this also be true if a crab happened across another already passed crab and took advantage of the situation? I'm just wondering how we would tell the two apart?

[wodesorel]

Possibly, but at the same time it's not a good sign that another crab came across one that died underground. The death smell is the same as the molting smell, and the caves are designed so it shouldn't attract them.

[KellyCrabbieLove]

The ones that were underground were a mix of them. The big one that pinched me was intact. The others were empty shells but a mix of packed sand and just loose sand. I had a few inside caves as well?