) On the 10 hour ride home, I did a lot of research on the internet and learned we were nowhere near properly prepared for this journey. We rushed to a couple of local pet stores yesterday and got a 20 gallon tank with a screen lid, a hiding cave, a beautiful piece of mopani wood, a water pool, 3 new shells, and some grapewood. Believe it or not, both stores were out of thermometers! Yikes. We set up the tank with a 5:1 sand/EE mixture moistened with saltwater. (The only aquarium salt they had was for freshwater fish, however I read a few posts which said to use 8 teaspoons per gallon instead of 1/2 teaspoon.) I booked the new shells, wiped down the tank with hot distilled water, cleaned the bowls, etc. before placing in the tank. We set up one saltwater pool and one freshwater pool using distilled water. We have ordered other necessities from Amazon which should arrive tomorrow including uvb light, day and night bulbs (25W), sphagum moss, digital thermometer/hygrometer, light timer/thermostat. I am aware it is best practice to establish a consistent, ideal temp and humidity in the tank before placing the crabs, however all we had was the horrible carriers we got at the souvenir shop in Florida which they had already been inside for two days (including that 10 hour car ride I mentioned earlier). Needless to say I know they had to be stressed to the max and I wanted to get them out of there as quickly as possible. We placed a small space heater by one end the tank which has adjustable temp and built in thermostat so it turns itself off and on. I misted the tank with distilled water and placed plastic wrap loosely over the screen top to try and keep the humidity in. We keep our house around 68 at night and 72 during the day, so I know the tank isn't too hot for sure, however, I am sure it could definitely be warmer. One crab "Pinky", headed straight for the saltwater pool and sat in it for about 4 or 5 minutes straight. I felt so sorry for him! "Spiral" sipped on some freshwater for a minute or two. They both walked around a little and climbed on top of the cave. It was very fun to watch! The other two "Ghost" and "Rocky" seemed more quiet. Neither wanted water or food (I had provided some grated organic carrots, a couple of torn spinach leaves, and some dried shrimp.) Instead they hid either in the cave or under the mopani wood. Rocky and Spiral met for the first time when Rocky attempted to enter the cave where Spiral was blocking the entry. They were clicking and touching their feelers and it almost seemed to be getting a little heated, however Rocky (who is smaller) pushed his way past Spiral and got into the cave. Rocky came out again last night and was standing on the extra shells. However, this morning he is missing. I know he buried himself but I have no idea where! I was assuming there would be a little hole or something, but there is no evidence that any digging occured anywhere.
My question is whether or not this is normal. Is Rocky molting? Is he sick? Is it just from all the stress? I know I shouldn't dig him up, but I'm just wondering if I need to do anything at all? How long should I wait before trying to find him? My fear is the stress may have been too much for him. After learning more about these little guys, I'm already getting attached to them. I want them to be as comfortable as possible, but I know despite my best efforts, their crabitat still isn't ideal yet.
I'm not sure if this matters, but from what I have read, I'm pretty sure Rocky is a Purple Pincher. Spiral and Ghost seem to be Ecuadorians. Pinky may be a Purple Pincher but his coloring is more pale than Rocky, however his legs have a lot of the little hairs on them and his big claw is very purple.
