HCA: Hermit Crab Association

We're on a beach trip and I bought some more hermit crabs at one of those sad tourist shops.
Look at how this poor guy is stuffed into a shell way too small!
Not surprisingly he is missing two legs.



Is this not the cutest little crab ever?!


This guy was the first to switch to a natural shell.



Last one:


Can't wait to take them all home tomorrow to the crabitat!

I hope the first goes straight for a nice healing molt!!!
Cute little guys!!


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They are so tiny! Make sure you dip them in the fresh water of the crabitat Good luck

Congrats on the newbies!

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Congrats

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How cute! What nice leg colors!

SO small. They are so cute.

I have some sad news.
The little guy squeezed into the tiny turtle shell missing two legs may have passed away
We were going to call him Squirt.

They were all hanging out on the wheel and seemed to like it.
Then I came back a few hours later and Squirt looked lifeless hanging out of the shell.
His eyes looked crossed and had lost another leg.
Definitely not responsive when picked up.

Now is there any chance he's molting and not dead?... He seems dead to me but I've heard a surface molt can look like a dead crab.

My son will be so sad! He loved that one.
He's at his dad's for 7 days now so will have to break it to him when he gets back.
I put Squirt in the old tank alone.
It's just so sad because he was the one who needed saving the most and I feel like I killed him..

If he is gone will the body keep long enough to show my son so we can bury him together?

Here are pics of the gang before this happened.

In happier news here is our first crab "Crabbie" up from his first molt with a freshly regrown leg!!

nice. much better. you should scrape off the paint from those shells and see whats underneath

So sorry to hear about Squirt!!! It can be really hard to lose a crabbie. . Sending you virtual hugs!!!

From your description, I wouldn't think he's still alive, but it's better to be safe than sorry, so if you want to keep him around in ISO for a week or so, that's probably a good idea. General guidance here is when he starts to smell and fall apart, he's gone. .

Try not to feel too badly about it. Sounds like he was in a bad way long before you got him. He died so soon after you brought him home, he probably would've died anyway regardless of what you had or had not done. If he is dead, at least you know his last days were in a good environment where he was cared for. The capture and shipping process for wild crabs is so harsh, it's a wonder more of them don't succumb to PPS. Personally, I don't think it was anything you did, so please don't feel guilty.

But the rest of your crew sounds healthy, so that is awesome! A successful molt is always cause for celebration!

FYI, my second crab came in a "fancy natural " shell. It was actually dipped into the varnish/clear coat. No way that coating was coming off. Even if I took it off the outside, it's still all up in the inside. And it's clear coat, so you feel it more than see it. Depending on how your shell is painted, it may not be worth removing the paint, cause you'll never be sure you got it all out of the inside. And acetone, or any solvents in the original paint penetrate the shell somewhat, and acetone does leave a residue, which could be toxic ( I can't say for sure if the residue is toxic, but I wouldn't chance it. Industrially folks always have to wash things in isopropyl alcohol after using acetone on them to remove the residue from the acetone). Acetone also probably makes the shell more brittle. Alcohol doesn't leave a residue, but isn't as good a solvent for most paints. i can't think of a good safe solvent for removing paint from a snail shell.

Here's a pic or two of Helena's varnish coated shell. (Will edit in Tapatalk-give me a minute)

And here you can see Helena was in it so long, she did cutouts for her eyestalks. Needless to say, she changed in the first two hours after I brought her home. Yes, they had a purple pincher in this shell.

Thank you!
It helps to hear there was nothing I could have done.
I'm worried my son will be devastated..
If he's dead will he fall out of the shell easily?
I think my son would probably like to keep it to remember him.

If he's dead, he should fall out of the shell easily (I think), but give it a few weeks if you want to be sure. You might cover the 10 gal iso so your son doesn't see him during this time. If he is molting, he'll need it to be dark for his molting hormone to work, if he's dead, your son won't see him fall apart. Can be very traumatic, even for adults.

You should be able to keep the shell for your son no problem. I'd boil it for about ten minutes in regular water to be sure it's clean before giving it to him. Also, (you may know this already) please don't ever give that shell to another crab due to the paint on it (had to say it, wouldn't want anyone reading this to get the wrong idea).

Hugs to you, I'm so sorry for your loss!!!!

Oh, one more thing you can do, if you feel the need to do something. (Been awhile since I've read this thread, I seem to recall you're already be doing this) Make sure you follow the food pyramid and safe foods list under the Food &Water forum to be sure your crabs are healthy and well fed and don't need to eat another crab to get missing nutrients. (Crabs don't understand that cannibalism is wrong.) Doesn't sound like this is what happened to your crab, and there was really nothing you could do to feed him properly since he was only alive with you for such a short time, but it's a good practice to follow. Helps minimize/prevent heartbreak for us owners.

Best of luck!!! I'm glad the rest of your little guys are doing well!!!