HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hello everyone!

We've had Sam, a purple pincher, for about 3 years now. He has sadly gone through 3 companions, all of whom died, and has now been on his own for well over a year.

To make a very long story as short as possible: His first friend, Maria, was a tank mate at PetCo where we bought them on a bit of a whim (not knowing what we now!) for my then-9-year-old daughter. Because of this forum and other resources, we were able to set up a crabitat (10 gal aquarium, half full of an EE/sand substrate, salt and distilled water, temp & humidity maintained, etc.) correctly, however we did feed commercial HC food initially. Maria died within a few days of bringing her home presumably from PPS and/or crappy food and/or ?. (She was definitely dead, we waited until she was falling apart and smelling ) We replaced Maria with Treasure, knowing hermies like a buddy. Treasure did well for a couple of weeks, then buried herself and never resurfaced. (We eventually found her shell, never found her body). A couple of months later, we rescued a hermie from one of my daughter's friends who was treating it terribly and didn't want it anyway. This was Herman, and he seemed happy for a few weeks, and then... buried himself and never resurfaced.

At this point, we figured it was us -- despite trying to do everything right! -- and that Sam would probably die soon himself. He has always been prone to burying himself for days, weeks, or even a couple of months at a time, and every time, we think "Oh boy, this might be it"... and every time he surprises us. He's in the same aquarium, we now feed fresh food + meal worms + brine shrimp, make sure he has several shells and stuff to climb, hide in & explore. He has grown significantly, appears healthy, and (when he's not buried!) is quite active digging, climbing, rearranging, burying stuff, etc.

Since he seems to be thriving, we are wondering if we should try again to get him a buddy. We are torn because of our crappy track record keeping anyone alive except for Sam (who is maybe a super-crab?), and because he seems "okay" -- why rock the boat? On the other hand, if he is going to have a long life, we don't want him to be lonely and bored. He does *not* like human contact (he tries to get away/hide whenever handled, and will pinch if he can't escape), so we aren't a good substitute.

What do you all think? And if you think a buddy is a good idea, any thoughts on who/how/where? Should they be roughly the same size? I am disinclined to go a chain pet store again, I honestly don't want to support the industry of harvesting these guys from the wild... Wondering about searching for a "second hand" crab?

Any feedback would be great -- thanks so much!

I'm no expert, but I think the short answer is yes. PPS seems pretty common. Crabs have a rough time of it getting to your door. But they are still social animals .

In a smaller tank, cannibalism during moults might be more likely, which, if Sam is always digging about, might explain the no-shows. But you probably know how hard moulting is on them anyhow, and that they may just have not been able to pull through.

Does your current crab seem to dig down soon after your other crabs 'never rose again'?

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Filling out the emergency template questions gives us an idea of your overall conditions and can allow us to pinpoint areas of concern.

Crabs live in colonies of thousands in the wild, and are social creatures.

Cannibalism and molt attacks are an indication that something isn't quite right in their environment.



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>>>In a smaller tank, cannibalism during moults might be more likely, which, if Sam is always digging about, might explain the no-shows
>>>Does your current crab seem to dig down soon after your other crabs 'never rose again'?

Oh man, never occurred to me that Sam might be guilty of crab-slaughter, though it did occur to us that he might have "cleaned up" the remains. With the first "no-show" (Treasure), I honestly don't remember if Sam went underground around the same time she did. With Herman though, he did not if we are remembering right. Both Herman and Sam were on the surface, doing crabby things for a couple of weeks, then Herman went under, but Sam stayed on the surface at least for a bit...

I'll fill out the emergency template and post separately.

Here are my answers to the emergency questions -- feel free to ask any follow ups! More than willing to make adjustments to any of this. Thank you so much!

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
Combo of play sand and eco earth -- approx 50/50 (? it was a long time ago that we mixed it!). It's about 5 inches deep -- not quite half the total depth of the aquarium.

2. Do you have gauges in the tank to measure temperature and humidity? If so, where are they located and what temperature and humidity do they usually read?
Yes, this cheapie by Zoo Med: http://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore ... dity-gauge. It's located about 1/2 way up the back wall of the aquarium, in the left corner. Temp is usually close to 80, humidity usually close to 80%.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
We have used a seedling heat mat similar to this one: http://www.gardenersedge.com/hydrofarm- ... p/MT10006/ We prop it up against the exterior rear of the tank (it almost covers the back wall) and use it as needed to keep the temp around 75-80 (rarely in the summer, more often in summer).

4. What types of water are available (fresh or salt) and how is the water treated (what brands of dechlorinator or salt mix and what ratio is used to mix it)?
One bowl of bottled distilled water, and one bowl of salt water which is made with Instant Ocean (http://www.instantocean.com/Products/Se ... xture.aspx). We add about 1/4 cup to one gallon of distilled water.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
Variety of fresh foods: (all organic, unsweetened) lettuce/other salad greens, crushed nuts/seeds, tiny-diced fresh or dried fruit. Often drizzle a couple of drops of fish oil onto the lettuce to make "crab salad" which seems to be Sam's favorite. Add a pinch of dried brine shrimp to this. All that goes into his food dish and is changed daily if he's up and around. When he goes underground, we put "dry food" (ie dried coconut + brine shrimp) in the food dish, and basically don't changed it until he "wakes up." Also leave one of these "mineral blocks" -- http://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore ... ral-blocks -- out most of the time, discarding only when it looks really dirty and used-up. Also have a cuttle bone in there, as well as a couple of sea sponges, all of which he nibbles on/plays with.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
About 3 yrs, pretty sure he is a purple pincher (based on purchase at a chain pet store and the descriptions/photos I've seen here)

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
Multiple molts. Not sure when last one was off hand.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
10 gal glass aquarium. Mesh lid, however we keep an open plastic-covered three-ring binder on top of it to keep the humidity in. Usually it's only covering about 80 % of the mesh, we move it around depending on hygrometer reading. (Also a heavy book on top of the binder, to protect from the sometimes-curious cat!)

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
One crab. His big claw is just over 1" at its widest measurement. (Just measured to order more shells!)

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
Right now he has 3 extra shells (turbos) but one is way too big (2+" opening) and 2 are too small (just barely 1" opening). Ordered more last night. However at the time of the "disappearances" of crabby 2 and crabby 3, there were always at least 5 shells available, all reasonable sizes for both crabs.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
No.

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
We will occasionally (maybe 2 times a year?) take Sam out, take out all the dishes and play things, rinse them with distilled water, scoop out any yucky pockets in the substrate, dig up any buried shells, and neaten up. In between, we just scoop out yucky bits, and rinse the dishes & sponges with distilled water as needed -- maybe every week or so when he is active. We have never taken out all of the original substrate and deep cleaned.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
Sponges (2) are not in the water dishes, they are just lying about. Rinsed with distilled water when they look extra dirty or are dry.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
Two days we replaced the fake plant with a live pineapple plant! Sam loves it. (not really relevant to The Case of the Disappearing Crabbies, but... fun!)

15. Is there any other information you would like to share that might be helpful (anything that is regularly part of your crab care, playtime, bathing, etc.)?
Think that's it!

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
N/A

I wish to see the pineapple plant.

Hi, after reading through your answers I see some areas of concern.

Substrate should be able to cover the largest crab 3 times over, unforrunately a crab with a 1 inch pincher would likely dig through 5 inches of sub rather easily. With as large as your crab is, I would really suggest a larger tank with deeper substrate before adding another. Petsmart has a dollar per gallon sale periodically throughout the year, that's where I got my 55 gallon.

You'll want to try to keep your tank around 80 degrees, though I have heard of seedling mats being used, is it insulatable? If so, that might help. If not, if you decide to get a new tank I would suggest an ultratherm the length of the new tank.

Even with bottled water you'll want to treat your salt and fresh water with a dechlorinater before use. Prime is a popular one, but there is a guide under the food and water section that lists safe ones.

Your food list sounds fine, though I'm not sure about the calciblocks, there is a sticky under food and water that should help you determine if that is safe. I don't think that would cause death though.

Make sure there is 3 shells of preferred type (turbos for pps) of appropriate sized shells to prevent shell envy, but it sounds like you have that covered.

As long as sponges are natural, no problem, as they will eat them. If not, I'd remove them for the same reason. I hope this helps! Good luck in your endeavors to find Sam a friend!




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