Limp crab, no smell, not sure if dead

[Happyghetti]

Since you've come to the emergency forum, we know you want a fast answer to your question. In order for us to figure out the problem as quickly as possible, we ask that you answer the following questions as best you can. Some of them may seem odd, but they're all designed to give us the information we need to give you a good solution for your problem. The things in the [ brackets ] are there to make this post easier to read once submitted. Thanks!


1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? The substrate in my take is a play sand/EE mixture of 5 to 1 about 6 inches deep


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? Gauges are located at the cold end of my tank and usually read 80 humidity 80 farenheit.


3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? a bulb, cant remember what it's called but stays on in the day and not at night


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)?
Fresh and salt water, hermit crab fresh water dechlorinator and instant ocean for salt water

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I feed a variety of foods changed every two days, I always make sure they're safe

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
PP, I've had them for around 9 months

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
Last time this crab molted was about 2 to 3 months ago

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
10 gallon tank with aluminum foil on top as lid

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
3 crabs, largest is about a half inch to an inch in size, crab in question is about a half inch

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

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

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
Havent cleaned since was purchased

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?
No

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.)?


16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

I went to check on the crabs as I do every night and this crab had been lying in the same place for about a day, I poked him a little and he didnt move, unusual behavior, especially for him, I picked him up and his body stayed in the shell, barely hanging in, touched his legs and they didnt move at all, there is no smell coming from the tank and the crab has a bent limb that didnt move. I'm not sure what to to from here
.

[scuttlecrusty22]

Since you've come to the emergency forum, we know you want a fast answer to your question. In order for us to figure out the problem as quickly as possible, we ask that you answer the following questions as best you can. Some of them may seem odd, but they're all designed to give us the information we need to give you a good solution for your problem. The things in the [ brackets ] are there to make this post easier to read once submitted. Thanks!


1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? The substrate in my take is a play sand/EE mixture of 5 to 1 about 6 inches deep


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? Gauges are located at the cold end of my tank and usually read 80 humidity 80 farenheit.

Scuttle: Gauges usually work fine work a few weeks but can become very inacurate over time. I suggest buying an Accurite thermometer and hygrometer. They work very well and many of us here on HCA use them.


3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? a bulb, cant remember what it's called but stays on in the day and not at night


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)?
Fresh and salt water, hermit crab fresh water dechlorinator and instant ocean for salt water

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I feed a variety of foods changed every two days, I always make sure they're safe

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
PP, I've had them for around 9 months

Scuttle: How many crabs do you have? How large of a tank are they in?

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
Last time this crab molted was about 2 to 3 months ago

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
10 gallon tank with aluminum foil on top as lid

Scuttle: I'm not sure about using aluminum foil as a lid for their tank, maybe it would be safer to use a towel, or something to that affect so the tank can get some air flow.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
3 crabs, largest is about a half inch to an inch in size, crab in question is about a half inch

Scuttle: There should be at least 5 gallons of tank size per crab. If they are very small right now it might be ok, but keep in mind that they will grow and need about a 15 to 20 gallon tank. Crabs like to have lots of room or they will get territorial.

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

Scuttle: There should be about 3-4 shells per crab in your crabitat.

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

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
Havent cleaned since was purchased

Scuttle: As long as you are cleaning out the old food, that should be fine.

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?
No

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.)?


16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.

I went to check on the crabs as I do every night and this crab had been lying in the same place for about a day, I poked him a little and he didnt move, unusual behavior, especially for him, I picked him up and his body stayed in the shell, barely hanging in, touched his legs and they didnt move at all, there is no smell coming from the tank and the crab has a bent limb that didnt move. I'm not sure what to to from here

Scuttle: At this point it might be best to isolate your sick crab in a different cage, this would be so the other crabs don't attack him/her. Try and supply the crab some healing foods in the new isolation tank. Some healing foods you could give them include... Raw honey, leaf litter, powdered cuttlebone, boiled egg, egg shell, etc. Maybe someone more experienced can give some more information to help you on this topic.

I hope this helped you out! Good luck with your little fella!
.

[Links]

What little experience I have, I can tell you the mistakes I’ve made.

Don’t assume your water is safe or cycled. Keep an eye on it or change it daily. I have 1 gallon pools for now. Bigger pools will make it easier as they are more stable.

I thought my water was good and cycled but now I keep getting nitrites detected in the saltwater so I’m doing daily 80-90% changes. After doing that my crab that appeared lethargic has rebounded and he’s super active, even during the day. He’s all over the tank now. Although I lost his partner before I realized what was going on. She may have already had complications but I certainly wasn’t helping.

Also some cool people here like Scuttle told me of some foods to try. I haven’t found all of them but after researching foods like catappa (aka Indian almond leaves) have antibacterial and antifungal properties. Don’t quote me but it’s what I recall. Also calendula (aka pot marigold), burning bush leaves, decapsulated brine shrimp eggs to name a few.
I was able to find raw organic honey, organic worm castings (home depot garden center), rose hip and petals (health food store).
And never directly suggested to me but I’d also like to find bee pollen, green sand, and bark of some kind they’ll like.
Motorcrab said, “Stuff that is a favorite with other crabs would be a good start. Honey, blood worms, cattapa leaves, eggs yolk, brine shrimp eggs, rose buds, and calendula are usually well received by my crabs.” I think he also went on mentioning burning bush leaves.
I don’t have a clue what I’m doing but I’m learning and I read the care guides from time to time. Getting back to the basics sometimes helps.
I also don’t know if it’s possible or not but I suppose if a crab survived a tragic event or sub par conditions they may have irreversible damage that who knows how long it would take to heal or kill.


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[Happyghetti]

Hey! I do know all of the things you've mentioned, I'm actually saving up for a new tank and accurite thermometer and hydrometer, they were in some better conditions but I had to move them somewhere where they had to downgrade a bit and it put a lot of stress on them. There's still not smell coming from the enclosure but I iso'd the crab inside of a critter keeper and sat it inside of the main aquarium. Cheldon still had not moved or anything. I'm still super scared.