HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi guys I just came home and my E seems to be dead. He’s not moving and his leg is off and idk what happened but I’m so devastated and can’t stop crying I have no idea what happened and I’m so upset. He has been acting normal and temperature and humidity has been fine does anyone have any ideas


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Update: his claw fell off but he seems to be moving idk what’s going on. He’s going inside his shell and coming back out but idk


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It sounds like classic Post Purchase Syndrome. They go through a lot between when they were collected on a beach in the wild and when they finally end up in our crabitats. Not all crabs are able to make the transition, and sometimes injuries can happen that we can't see. We can try and help them by providing the best possible conditions and food and housing but even when everything is perfect they can still suddenly die. The first thing they do is drop limbs in an effort to try and conserve as much energy as possible, and in rare cases it stops there and they recover. Just keep him in the best conditions you can and try not to stress him further. If he is still moving and can eat, crabby superfoods like honey, bee pollen, peanut butter and coconut can sometimes help them gain back energy.

I’ve had him for three months and he’s even had a successful molt. I’m really worried and he seems to be alive after closer inspection but I’m just very worried about him, he makes me so happy even if he’s just a crab. My other crabs are really docile and they’ve always gotten along with him. Could it be because the other two are PP’s and he’s the only E? I’ve been trying to get anther E bc I don’t want him to be lonely but maybe since he’s the only E right now he’s stressed?? Ecuadorians are hard to find around me but I’m going to find one tomorrow, idc how far I have to drive


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Him being alone shouldn't have had that kind of effect. If anything, adding a new crab while he is in bad shape could make the situation worse by causing him more stress.

Can you fill out the emergency template? We can check and see if anything might be off. Sometimes even with one molt they can still have PPS, but sometimes it's something more.

Sadly, Big Worm has officially passed on. Here is the template anyways. Thank you so much for the help, this is pretty tough on me


1. Substrate used?
Eco earth and play sand

2. Humidity % level in crabitat?
Mid 70’s

3. Temperature of substrate in crabitat?
Not sure

4. Temperature of crabitat?
High 70’s

5. Location of gauges?
Middle on the left side

6. What is your heat source?
Lamp

7. Types of water available?
Fresh and salt water

8. Dechlorinator used?
None, just purified bottled water

9. What do you feed?
Organic baby food, vegetables, fruit, crushed fish pellets, mealworms, grasshoppers, and crickets

10. How long have you had the crab in question?
3 months

11. Do you know the species?
Ecuadorian

12. Do you bath them, if so how often and with what?
No

13. What type of housing are they in? Tank? Plastic box?
Tank

14. What size is your tank?
20 Gallon

15. How many crabs are in the tank? What size are they?
3 Small/medium sized

16. How deep is the substrate?
6 in

17. If you take your hermies out daily to exercise, do you mist their gill area first?
I don’t take them out unless cleaning crabitat

18. Has there been any cleaners, paints, perfumes, air fresheners, candles, or smoking near the crabitat?
Candles

19. How often do you clean/sterilize and how?
Once every other month wash tank with hot water and boil what is needed and add new substrate

20. Any unusual odors?
No

21. Do you use sponges? Are they rinsed daily with dechlor water? Are they exchanged every 2 days for a sterile one?
No sponges

22. Do you feed fresh food? When do you remove it?
Yes every day to every other day depending on what it is

23. Are your hands clean before handling?
Yes though handling isn’t often

24. Has there been anything new added to your crabitat recently?
Climbing wall


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I have suspicion he was stuck inside his shell. He had a painted shell when I got him and he seemed like he wanted to change. I’m not sure if that would have killed him but just an idea


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First off, I am so sorry about your crab's passing. Although I am kind of late, I noticed a few things. The lamp wasn't drying out the substrate, was it? Also, cleaning out the tat and substrate so frequently could be stressful for the crabs...The purified water could also be an issue if it's one of the brands that add chemicals and other things to the water for "flavor"

5 PPs: Koa, Moja, Siam, Chella, and Ozark.

mxxlane wrote:I have suspicion he was stuck inside his shell. He had a painted shell when I got him and he seemed like he wanted to change. I’m not sure if that would have killed him but just an idea


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If he was stuck in the shell and tried to change, he could have harmed his abdomen. Have you inspected him after his death?

5 PPs: Koa, Moja, Siam, Chella, and Ozark.

I have an automatic mister so the substrate is always very damp. It could very well be the water, I should have been dechlorinating it


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My boyfriend noticed he was halfway out of his shell, I didn’t really inspect him because I’m crying too much. It sounds silly but he was really special to me


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You don't sound silly, we all care so much about our crabs as well When you mentioned cleaning the tat with hot water every other month, were you doing a deep cleaning?

5 PPs: Koa, Moja, Siam, Chella, and Ozark.

No, only done once when we got a 20 gallon. Reading more in the emergency section I see a lot of people say crabs hanging out of shell might not be dead? I’m honestly just anxious because I don’t know what to do. Do I bury him or give him time to see if he makes it? He was perfectly fine this morning :/


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Maybe wait it out and see if anything happens..It would suck so much more if you got rid of a living crab. If you begin to smell the rotten fish smell, you already know it's time

5 PPs: Koa, Moja, Siam, Chella, and Ozark.

Thank you so much for the help I really appreciate it


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