HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi I.m new , I have 2 m/lg crabs for 3 years. I just got larger crabitat and 3 new small crabs. one new crab mia in morning.only his shell remains. others hiding all 4 ,It's been about 3 weeks Should I worry? one of my older ones visable,others buried. THANX!!

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1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?

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?

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?

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)?

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?

7. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?

8. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?

9. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?

10. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?

11. How often do you clean the tank and how?

12. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?

13. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?

14. 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.)?

! calci sand about 4-6 inchesAll gauges read good I have uth I have fresh and salt water w/sponges.I feed freeze dried shrimp crab fruit salad and fresh fruit and veggies.I have had 2 crabs 3 yrs 2 for 3 weeks. I have aqaurium20 gallons w/ plastic lid.wipe down weekly change food and water daily, Thanx also mist tank at night

Calci-Sand isn't a good primary substrate. It's expensive, smells when wet, and apparently hardens into a rock after it dries. Playsand or shredded coconut husk would be much cheaper and would work better. You can offer some Calci-Sand in a small dish for them to eat for extra calcium, though.

What's "good" as far as the temperature and humidity? They need at least 70% humidity and heat between 80-90 degrees. Also, you don't need a sponge unless the dish is too deep for your hermit crabs. They don't really help with humidity unless they're huge, and they grow bacteria. (Remember how the news media was saying how unsanitary kitchen sponges were a few years ago? Yeah.)

Is the Fruit Salad the all natural one from Zoo Med? If it is, that's fine, but if it's something else with tons of preservatives and chemicals in it, I'd switch to something else.

If you have extra shells in the tank, there's a possibility that the new hermit crab switched shells and buried down to molt and de-stress. Whenever I get a new one, they always seem to switch shells, gorge on food and water, and them bury down for somewhere between 1-2 months. Then they come back up sharp and newly molted. I wouldn't worry about it too much unless you start to smell dead fish.

Really, all you should do is keep changing the food and water and let nature take it's course.

Sorry not calci sand It's vitasand!!! Temp and humidity both 80 So I can lose the sponges? That'great! Fruit salad is zoo med !! Thanx again

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Vita-Sand pretty much the same thing as Calci-Sand? Even if it isn't the same thing, it still would be way cheaper for you to buy playsand and coconut husk to fill your tank instead. Playsand is only $4 for a fifty pound bag, and coconut husk comes in a compressed brick for $3 a brick.

I do use coconut husk also not sure if vitasand is the same but this doesn't get hard. But next time I will definately get the playsand ! THANK YOU for all your help. I have already gotten rid of sponges, Also my husband wants to know about location of humidity/temp gauge mine is in back, mid center ,is that correct location ?

You're welcome. And yeah, mid-center in the back should be fine.