An isolated crab
An isolated crab
It is an accepted fact that crabs need the company of other crabs to be healthy. My particular crab was isolated for so long before I acquired her (approximately five years) that some changes occurred. Long before that, she stopped tolerating the presence of other crabs. She tended to attack them. This is not good and I don't recommend it. However, there is something to be learned from this minor tragedy.Azazul has become attached to me. She asks for attention sometimes. This is something a normal cab wouldn't do (I suppose).Here are some behaviors that that I see:1) Azazul sometimes makes a fuss - activity that causes me to see what is causing this commotion. She is looking right at me and rushes forward for a couple of inches, then stops. Lately I respond to that by crawling over to the crabitat. She rushes forward more, until I get right up to the glass. I wiggle my fingers to simulate antennules, by the way. Azazul seems to enjoy looking me DIRECTLY in the eyes. She likes it. I eventually go away because I have no idea what to do after that. But this is a big change from my early encounters with Azazul She was originally afraid of me and ran away all the time. I've had her around 6 years or so. She must be 11 or 12 by now.2) Sometimes Azazul sits up on a branch and looks in my direction. One of her legs is sort of "coyly" stroking the branch. I get the impression she likes me. Also I've seen here jiggle laterally from side to side a little. It seemed like she was in a good mood at the time and was doing that as a communicative act somehow. It's possible that she was nervous but I seriously don't think that was the message.3) Azazul has been known to be angry with me. I spent one summer aggressively spraying the crabitat to keep humidity up. She hates that.She runs from it, no matter how much care I take to make the spray indirect. At one point, she charged at me violently. Her antenules and antennae were tucked under the shell. She was just angry looking if such a thing is possible.4) In the past I had a screen top. Azazul would climb up on the screen an violently rattle it for hours like a trapped monkey in a cage. It was disturbing and probably meant to be. When not doing that, she would dock in one place and not move except to eat. Sometimes she was inactive for days or seemingly weeks. When I take the top off, she's climbing all over the place and seems happier. She acts like a much better pet in the sense that she's more rewarding. The humidity in the crabitat is 80 directly on the sand, then drop off sharply toward the top. I guess she is compensating for it with water in her shell because she INSISTS on this set up.5) I had to re-install the vertical climb branch. She loves it. The first time I installed it, she had great difficulty climbing it, but she took the effort to peek around the branch and flick her long antennaes at me three times while making direct eye contact. Then she went back to climbing about two feet above the top of the aquarium. I swear this is where the crab "seems" happiest and feels the free-est.6) Azazul faces me while I sleep sometimes. Seriously... I sleep better knowing that she cares. Except for the crab dreams she sends sometimes, but she doesn't do it to annoy.
An isolated crab
Hm, nice observation, pretty cool how their behavior changes when things happen to them.On a side note this reminds me of when Benjamin seemingly knew where I slept, escaped, crawled into my room and onto my shoulder while I was lying in bed.
An isolated crab
Things have changed this week with Azazul.She is now definitely seeking attention. She goes up to the glass and looks at me. I can get so close now that I can look directly into those tiny eyes from an inch away through the glass. I can see tiny "eyelashes" on top of them. This happened a couple of times a day on average this week.I mimic her antenule movements with my fingers and do the best I can with the leg moves. This demonstrates friendliness, I guess.And... For the first time ever Azazul is starting to notice Hellboy over in the other tank. He climbed up on his tree and she started doing the friendly antennule movements and the stroking leg movements that she does when she looks into my eyes. So I know she likes him. The last time they met, she was extremely rude, but this is going in the direction of good. The world will be righter if I can get them to hang out peacefully.
An isolated crab
Maybe try reintroducing them only on neutral ground not in there personal space so they're not territorial. If they keep doing well maybe redo a tank so that neither of them consider it to be their personal space and leave them together.
An isolated crab
Jenok, that sounds like a good idea.But the biggest problem here is that Azazul has been isolated so long, she's basically a sociopath. This is the first friendly gesture she's made to another crab. She just might not have what it takes to coexist peacefully.Beyond that, (I assume) the larger crab has to exert dominance no matter where they are. So I don't know if a change in scenery would make a difference. The standard thing to do is wash their scent off. But if they're making friendly overtures, then that might be the important thing.This may take quite awhile because the two crabs are almost 6 months out of synchronization for molting. And THAT is what is probably going on here... She might think it is mating season, and is in the mood to be friendly - even if she is messed up psychologically. Whereas HE is not necessarily in the correct cycle, even though he is really kind of good natured, at least up until now.