Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Please post here if you are having a crab care emergency! Use a real subject and not just "HELP!"
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Topic author
squeelvr06
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:37 am
Location: Brisbane, Australia

Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Post by squeelvr06 » Tue Jun 21, 2022 7:40 am

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?
I cant really remember, but it is a mix of play sand and coconut stuff I believe. Sorry I rlly cant remember but its not the stuff that clumps up.

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?
I have a temp&humidity guage that comes through an opening at the top of my tank. The humidity usually stays between 70-98ish and the temp drops to 16 degrees celsius in winter at the lowest and 25 degrees celsius at the highest with my heater on.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
So i have a small heater taped to the right corner, I cant have a full crab heater on the bottom because my tank is plastic. But in winter I usually have the heater on which keeps the tank at about 22-25 degrees celsius.

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)?
I have a fresh water and a salt water bowl, I use the Krabooz tap water conditioner and the Krabooz Aquamarine Salt. I just got these from a chain petstore so im not really sure if it's good.


5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I use I grain hermit crab mix from the pet store aswell. Which has dried shrimp, dried gammarus, oatmeal, wheat flake, cabbage, dried tomato, dried apple, dried carrot slices, dried coconut, popped rice, popped corn, popped wheat, dried fish, corn flour, wheat meal, shrimp powder and seaweed powder. (sorry ik thats long 😭😭)

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
I have two, and i've only had them for about 6 months. I'm not too sure ab the species, they look like purple pinchers except they arent purple, theyre a sandy colour.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
This is the first molt I have had with them. So the first one went down about the end of april and then the second one followed beginning of May.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
It's a 10 Gal square tank. Theres like a door on the front side you can open and close and on the top there is an opening you can adjust for airflow.


9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
Two small hermit crabs (not larger than my palm if that helps)

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
I've been a bit slack and was meant to go get more. But at the moment I only have two spare shells. I threw away the ones that came with the tank because they were painting on.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
Not really, only maybe from candles and incencse

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I usually just spot clean and tidy the sand. I clean the water and food dishes with a quick scrub and boiling water. I havent done a deep clean with changing the subtrate and sand since I got them six months ago.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
One sponge in fresh water, I usually just soak it in boiling water.


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.
So my crabs went down for a molt underneath their food bowl around May. I wasnt able to change their food for like a month which was really bad. Then one moved under the water bowl and I also wasnt able to change that. I didn't hear from them much and was acctually quite worried but I still made sure to mist the tank and stuff. I really just tried to leave them alone, i put a shirt over top of the tank to keep it dark and that was pretty much it for a while. I saw one of the crabs come out a few weeks ago still in his shell but he was a greenish grey tinge it worried me so I changed out the water and stuff while I could but made sure to still leave him alone. After that they were in the same burrow and it was kind of open under the water bowl. Ok so now we're at the current situation lol. I came home and one of my hermit crabs is out of its shell just out in the open in the tank. It's since moved to sitting inside the salt water bowl but i'm not sure what I should do. I've turned on the heater in my room to 25 degrees and I gave the tank a mist. How long do I have for it to get to another shell before it dies? Should I go out asap and get some more shells incase? Is it good to keep misting the tank or should I try not to disturb it? Should I refill water and food??? I'm so scared of disturbing them and I rlly don't want them to die 😭 thankyou so much guys and sorry if this is an over reaction. 🙏🙏


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JoeHermits
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Re: Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Post by JoeHermits » Tue Jun 21, 2022 1:06 pm

We have a guide here on the forum for when crabs are naked: viewtopic.php?t=122302

It also has a troubleshooting section at the end for potential sources of stress. Let us know if you have additional questions.


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Topic author
squeelvr06
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:37 am
Location: Brisbane, Australia

Re: Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Post by squeelvr06 » Wed Jun 22, 2022 7:12 am

JoeHermits wrote:
Tue Jun 21, 2022 1:06 pm
We have a guide here on the forum for when crabs are naked: viewtopic.php?t=122302

It also has a troubleshooting section at the end for potential sources of stress. Let us know if you have additional questions.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thanks so much for your reply, I attempted moving her to an isolation tank but unfortunately I think she was out of a shell for too long and I think she's died. I'm so upset and I feel so horrible, she hasnt moved at all since last night and is starting to smell I think which i'm sure arent good signs. I'm going to wait but I am pretty sure shes dead. Thankyou for your help

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curlysister
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Re: Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Post by curlysister » Wed Jun 22, 2022 10:15 pm

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
I cant really remember, but it is a mix of play sand and coconut stuff I believe. Sorry I rlly cant remember but its not the stuff that clumps up.
Curly - How deep is it? Is it sand castle consistency so that it holds it's shape?

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?
I have a temp&humidity guage that comes through an opening at the top of my tank. The humidity usually stays between 70-98ish and the temp drops to 16 degrees celsius in winter at the lowest and 25 degrees celsius at the highest with my heater on.
Curly - 16 is a bit cold, so it's good to use the heater to keep the temp above 22.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
So i have a small heater taped to the right corner, I cant have a full crab heater on the bottom because my tank is plastic. But in winter I usually have the heater on which keeps the tank at about 22-25 degrees celsius.

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)?
I have a fresh water and a salt water bowl, I use the Krabooz tap water conditioner and the Krabooz Aquamarine Salt. I just got these from a chain petstore so im not really sure if it's good.
Curly - Those products are unfortunately not appropriate for long term health. You will need a dechlorinator like Seachem Prime, and a marine salt like Instant Ocean. Be sure to check the 'water' care sheet for full info about dechlorinators and salt waters.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I use I grain hermit crab mix from the pet store aswell. Which has dried shrimp, dried gammarus, oatmeal, wheat flake, cabbage, dried tomato, dried apple, dried carrot slices, dried coconut, popped rice, popped corn, popped wheat, dried fish, corn flour, wheat meal, shrimp powder and seaweed powder. (sorry ik thats long 😭😭)
Curly - If mixes/ crab commercial foods don't have preservatives, they are safe. Crabs need protein and calcium daily.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
I have two, and i've only had them for about 6 months. I'm not too sure ab the species, they look like purple pinchers except they arent purple, theyre a sandy colour.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
This is the first molt I have had with them. So the first one went down about the end of april and then the second one followed beginning of May.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
It's a 10 Gal square tank. Theres like a door on the front side you can open and close and on the top there is an opening you can adjust for airflow.


9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
Two small hermit crabs (not larger than my palm if that helps)

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
I've been a bit slack and was meant to go get more. But at the moment I only have two spare shells. I threw away the ones that came with the tank because they were painting on.
Curly - HCA recommends 3 to 5 extra shells per crab. Be sure to check the 'shells' care sheet to ensure you have appropriate types of shells.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
Not really, only maybe from candles and incencse

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I usually just spot clean and tidy the sand. I clean the water and food dishes with a quick scrub and boiling water. I havent done a deep clean with changing the subtrate and sand since I got them six months ago.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
One sponge in fresh water, I usually just soak it in boiling water.
Curly - Sponges aren't needed, and just harbor bacteria. You can put it in dry for the crabs to munch on, but not in the water.

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.
So my crabs went down for a molt underneath their food bowl around May. I wasnt able to change their food for like a month which was really bad. Then one moved under the water bowl and I also wasnt able to change that. I didn't hear from them much and was acctually quite worried but I still made sure to mist the tank and stuff. I really just tried to leave them alone, i put a shirt over top of the tank to keep it dark and that was pretty much it for a while. I saw one of the crabs come out a few weeks ago still in his shell but he was a greenish grey tinge it worried me so I changed out the water and stuff while I could but made sure to still leave him alone. After that they were in the same burrow and it was kind of open under the water bowl. Ok so now we're at the current situation lol. I came home and one of my hermit crabs is out of its shell just out in the open in the tank. It's since moved to sitting inside the salt water bowl but i'm not sure what I should do. I've turned on the heater in my room to 25 degrees and I gave the tank a mist. How long do I have for it to get to another shell before it dies? Should I go out asap and get some more shells incase? Is it good to keep misting the tank or should I try not to disturb it? Should I refill water and food??? I'm so scared of disturbing them and I rlly don't want them to die 😭 thankyou so much guys and sorry if this is an over reaction. 🙏🙏
"If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went." -Will Rogers


Topic author
squeelvr06
Posts: 18
Joined: Sun Dec 26, 2021 5:37 am
Location: Brisbane, Australia

Re: Health: Crab been molting for weeks and has resurfaced without shell!!!!

Post by squeelvr06 » Thu Jun 23, 2022 6:56 am

curlysister wrote:
Wed Jun 22, 2022 10:15 pm
1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
I cant really remember, but it is a mix of play sand and coconut stuff I believe. Sorry I rlly cant remember but its not the stuff that clumps up.
Curly - How deep is it? Is it sand castle consistency so that it holds it's shape?

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?
I have a temp&humidity guage that comes through an opening at the top of my tank. The humidity usually stays between 70-98ish and the temp drops to 16 degrees celsius in winter at the lowest and 25 degrees celsius at the highest with my heater on.
Curly - 16 is a bit cold, so it's good to use the heater to keep the temp above 22.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
So i have a small heater taped to the right corner, I cant have a full crab heater on the bottom because my tank is plastic. But in winter I usually have the heater on which keeps the tank at about 22-25 degrees celsius.

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)?
I have a fresh water and a salt water bowl, I use the Krabooz tap water conditioner and the Krabooz Aquamarine Salt. I just got these from a chain petstore so im not really sure if it's good.
Curly - Those products are unfortunately not appropriate for long term health. You will need a dechlorinator like Seachem Prime, and a marine salt like Instant Ocean. Be sure to check the 'water' care sheet for full info about dechlorinators and salt waters.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
I use I grain hermit crab mix from the pet store aswell. Which has dried shrimp, dried gammarus, oatmeal, wheat flake, cabbage, dried tomato, dried apple, dried carrot slices, dried coconut, popped rice, popped corn, popped wheat, dried fish, corn flour, wheat meal, shrimp powder and seaweed powder. (sorry ik thats long 😭😭)
Curly - If mixes/ crab commercial foods don't have preservatives, they are safe. Crabs need protein and calcium daily.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
I have two, and i've only had them for about 6 months. I'm not too sure ab the species, they look like purple pinchers except they arent purple, theyre a sandy colour.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
This is the first molt I have had with them. So the first one went down about the end of april and then the second one followed beginning of May.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
It's a 10 Gal square tank. Theres like a door on the front side you can open and close and on the top there is an opening you can adjust for airflow.


9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
Two small hermit crabs (not larger than my palm if that helps)

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
I've been a bit slack and was meant to go get more. But at the moment I only have two spare shells. I threw away the ones that came with the tank because they were painting on.
Curly - HCA recommends 3 to 5 extra shells per crab. Be sure to check the 'shells' care sheet to ensure you have appropriate types of shells.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
Not really, only maybe from candles and incencse

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I usually just spot clean and tidy the sand. I clean the water and food dishes with a quick scrub and boiling water. I havent done a deep clean with changing the subtrate and sand since I got them six months ago.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
One sponge in fresh water, I usually just soak it in boiling water.
Curly - Sponges aren't needed, and just harbor bacteria. You can put it in dry for the crabs to munch on, but not in the water.

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.
So my crabs went down for a molt underneath their food bowl around May. I wasnt able to change their food for like a month which was really bad. Then one moved under the water bowl and I also wasnt able to change that. I didn't hear from them much and was acctually quite worried but I still made sure to mist the tank and stuff. I really just tried to leave them alone, i put a shirt over top of the tank to keep it dark and that was pretty much it for a while. I saw one of the crabs come out a few weeks ago still in his shell but he was a greenish grey tinge it worried me so I changed out the water and stuff while I could but made sure to still leave him alone. After that they were in the same burrow and it was kind of open under the water bowl. Ok so now we're at the current situation lol. I came home and one of my hermit crabs is out of its shell just out in the open in the tank. It's since moved to sitting inside the salt water bowl but i'm not sure what I should do. I've turned on the heater in my room to 25 degrees and I gave the tank a mist. How long do I have for it to get to another shell before it dies? Should I go out asap and get some more shells incase? Is it good to keep misting the tank or should I try not to disturb it? Should I refill water and food??? I'm so scared of disturbing them and I rlly don't want them to die 😭 thankyou so much guys and sorry if this is an over reaction. 🙏🙏
(1) yes I believe it's sand castle consistency
(2) I think i'm going to invest in a glass tank so I can get them a better heater because yeah I think it gets way too cold
(4) thanks, I'll definitely replace my declorinator and salt
Thanks so much for the reply I appreciate it 🙏

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