HCA: Hermit Crab Association

This makes crabs 9 and 10 in the colony now!! Whoop whoop This is Skylar and Lottie I got them on Saturday; so I did not put them in the main crabitat yet, because I am giving them both a less stressful introduction. Acclimating them to better preferred conditions. They came from the ocean front gift shop Sunsations. They had the crabs in terrible conditions. -Dry-Prevents the crabs from respirating properly thus causing them to sufficate-Commercial food/toxins-Slowly can kill the crabs. -Crowded-Painted shells-Toxic So getting them home. I brought a setup carrier cage that I have put togetherWith my substrate mix, cocohut, and my food mixes. I wasn't gonna let the gift shop put them in those small carrier cages with gravel .. Next I set up the 10 gallon iso and put them both In there with salt and freshwater bubblers, and they both washed up, food that I fed them Scrambled shrimp and molting mix And small natural  shells so Lottie can change out of her painted shell. So she changed out and I threw the painted shell away.. They stayed in the 10 gallon the remaining evening and through the night .. This is Lottie -Painted shell on and investigating the natural turbo and murex shells I provided After Shell change to natural Gold mouth turbo  This is SkylarCame in a natural shell , then changed into the apple murex-Note the halfway hanging out of shell. It's not a streak; it's adjusting abdomen. Seconds after changing into the apple murex 10 gallon on the floor holds them both separate from the rest of the colony until they both been fed, checked for mites, acclimated, shell changed and washed up  Introductions to the rest of the colony carefully under my close observation. Nemo; with red/brownish  striped shell introducing herself to Lottie and Skylar Few pushing , grabbing and shoving . The 8 crabs I already have for 2 years have already made the main crabitat their territory , so new comers to the colony will get ganged up But this gang up  activity goes away Without close observation, shoves can turn into fights   

congrats! Good job isoing the newbies, bathing them, and slowly acclimating them to the right environment!

quote:Originally posted by crazycrabber:congrats! Good job isoing the newbies, bathing them, and slowly acclimating them to the right environment! Thanks Updates : They are doing good; Lottie has gone under and Skylar hides during the day and comes out at night. Skylar halfway buries in a far corner of the crabitat