HCA: Hermit Crab Association

She molted last week and didn’t eat her exoskeleton so I took it out and been giving oyster shell calcium supplements and coral calcium. The regrowing legs still aren’t hard and it’s been a week


1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
coconut fiber and it’s 4 inches plus my crabs are small


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?
They say 80 degrees and 70-80 humidity

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
No

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)?
Distilled water and saltwater from the fish store

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
Gardner’s hermit crab food, natural wild bird food, cooked chicken liver, natural duck chicken and quail eggs and eggshells from the yard (sometimes cooked sometimes raw) and powders: mineral supplement, oyster shell suppliment, coral calcium

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
It’s a Halloween crab I’ve had for a month

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
Molt a week ago

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
It’s about 55 gallons I think and has a normal screen lid and a humidifier. There’s a waterfall (no pond) plastic hamster toy, rabbit hay treat ball, plastic beach ball, plastic plants from Walmart (nothing contains paint or metal)

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
3 small crabs (two female one male) one full grown crab (male)

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
0

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

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I clean when my crabs drop food or use the bathroom in one spot too many times

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
No

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
Rabbit hay treat ball

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.)?
I try to pet him a few times a week to get him used to me and he hides under the waterfall because he’s scared so I walk away

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
An hour ago I found this crab on her back not moving behind the alpha males log (which he lives in). It doesn’t look like the alpha did anything to her. I wrapped her in a soft cloth and took her to an isolation tank with a plastic hamster hideout, raw egg mixed with calcium powder, eggshell, and coral calcium. Her abdomen and backside feels strangely hollow. She’s had her back to the corner for 30 mins and hasn’t moved much.

.

I have absolutely no knowledge of Halloween crabs but I did want to wish u all the luck in the world kiddo. It sucks when things aren’t going the way u want or need and unfortunately life happens all the time in these ways. No matter what happens, I’ve been following your last post and now this one, pls know that u were doing everything u could within your capability. Just remember to always do your best and if you’re doing something wrong, fix it ASAP and move on. We have ALL been there and we have ALL made mistakes throughout our journeys as pet owners. Good luck I’m routin for ya!

Are these the same crabs that you had in October, or new ones? Or some of each? If new, do you know what kind of conditions they were in before you got them? When did you get the 55 gallon up and running?
Did the crab surface molt? From what I have read, they should bury just like hermit crabs. Also from what I have read, they need more sub - like 12 inches.
Do you feed any leaf litter?

https://www.petful.com/other-pets/halloween-moon-crabs/


^^^^^^excellent information from a person who has kept these crabs alive in captivity for more than 8 years. Click the link and read it merry Xmas kiddo!

curlysister wrote: ↑

Mon Dec 23, 2019 8:26 pm

Are these the same crabs that you had in October, or new ones? Or some of each? If new, do you know what kind of conditions they were in before you got them? When did you get the 55 gallon up and running?
Did the crab surface molt? From what I have read, they should bury just like hermit crabs. Also from what I have read, they need more sub - like 12 inches.
Do you feed any leaf litter?

They’re newer ones I got some time after Sally died because after that Jack was alone. They were probably in bad conditions because the crabs from this seller didn’t arrive with all their limbs, and apparently he also thought a 55 gallon could fit a ton of crabs. I had only 4 in there which is still pushing it by one crab, but I wasn’t able to get less than 3 at a time for the price of 1 because they are a “damaged product”. They’re only half the size of an adult anyway. The 55 gallon was set up before they arrived. The crab molted underground in a sturdy burrow. I don’t feed leaf litter. I feed them a variety of fruit and vegetables, eggs (raw or cooked) wild bird seed mix and occasionally cooked meat and gardners hermit crab food. I want to feed other things like freeze dried or canned insects/shrimp, so I’ll buy some really soon. I’ve read that they can have raw seafood, but I seriously can’t wrap my head around how they can handle that yet they can’t have uncooked meat or poultry.

One thing I want to note is that this crab died only about a month after I got her and she came from a really stressful and possibly terrible environment. She was springing back to life towards the end and I was almost sure she would be completely better the next day, only to find out I was completely wrong.

If I quote everyone here things will get too spammy so I just want to say thank you everyone in this message board for your support