Found my Hermit Crab laying down with no limbs. He was fine when I last checked up on him

[1luvmyCrabs]

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 don’t know


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? don’t have any


3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? i couldn’t buy a heat source


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 both fresh and salt water. i just add water and a bit of salt that i have but i dont know if thats okay


5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced? i only bought a type of food that is sort of like little pellets. i dont know if thats safe for them


6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known? ive had the crab for maybe two weeks or so


7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen? hasn’t molted


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 in a glass tank with a mesh lid on top. that’s what the woman at the store told me to get


9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they? 2 crabs but i’m not sure what happened to one of them. they are both small.


10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any? i couldn’t get any extra shells


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


12. How often do you clean the tank and how? i recently got them so i don’t know how many times im supposed to clean it


13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned? i do not have sponges


14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently? nothing new has been added


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.)? These are new crabs i got them recently


16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail. So i’m new to this website and I don’t know how to really work this so i’m sorry if i did anything wrong. Today my dad came and he looked at my Hermit crabs and he saw that one of them no longer has limbs and that the limbs were scattered around him. I have no idea what happened. Last time i checked up on him he was completely fine and moving. I am confused and upset because i don’t know what i did wrong. Is there a chance that he is still alive???


.

[curlysister]

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? i don’t know
Curly - Are you using sand? If so what kind? Or coco fiber? Or pebbles? Or something else?

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? don’t have any
Curly - A hygrometer/ thermometer is an essential item. Crabs have modified gills and need high humidity in order to breathe.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? i couldn’t buy a heat source
Curly - First you need to get a thermometer/ hygrometer, then you will know what you need for a heat source. What is the temperature in the room where the crabs are kept?

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 both fresh and salt water. i just add water and a bit of salt that i have but i dont know if thats okay
Curly - You need to use a dechlorinator to treat the tap water, and then you will need to add marine salt for the salt water. Using tap water untreated, and using kitchen salt are not safe. Check the 'water' care sheet.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced? i only bought a type of food that is sort of like little pellets. i dont know if thats safe for them
Curly - Most commercial foods have preservatives that aren't safe long term. Check the 'nutrition' care sheet.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known? ive had the crab for maybe two weeks or so


7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen? hasn’t molted


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 in a glass tank with a mesh lid on top. that’s what the woman at the store told me to get
Curly - How big is the tank? You will need to get something to put on the lid to hold in humidity - you can use glass or plexi glass, or even plastic wrap.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they? 2 crabs but i’m not sure what happened to one of them. they are both small.


10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any? i couldn’t get any extra shells
Curly - HCA recommends 3-5 extra shells per crab. Check the 'shells' care sheet for more info.

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


12. How often do you clean the tank and how? i recently got them so i don’t know how many times im supposed to clean it


13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned? i do not have sponges


14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently? nothing new has been added


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.)? These are new crabs i got them recently


16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail. So i’m new to this website and I don’t know how to really work this so i’m sorry if i did anything wrong. Today my dad came and he looked at my Hermit crabs and he saw that one of them no longer has limbs and that the limbs were scattered around him. I have no idea what happened. Last time i checked up on him he was completely fine and moving. I am confused and upset because i don’t know what i did wrong. Is there a chance that he is still alive???
Curly - While he may still be alive, he will likely not survive. You have many things that need to be improved in your tank. Read the 'basics' care sheet first - it has all the info you need for a basic tank, including a photo of a basic tank. Ask more questions if there is anything that isn't clear in the care sheet.

[1luvmyCrabs]

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? i don’t know
Curly - Are you using sand? If so what kind? Or coco fiber? Or pebbles? Or something else?
currently i’m using some sort of sand that i bought when i first went to get the crabs but i think i need something different because when even a bit of water gets onto it, it clumps up badly and i think that may be bad for them.

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? don’t have any
Curly - A hygrometer/ thermometer is an essential item. Crabs have modified gills and need high humidity in order to breathe.
i didn’t know i needed to get those thank you! i’ll make sure to get them next time

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what? i couldn’t buy a heat source
Curly - First you need to get a thermometer/ hygrometer, then you will know what you need for a heat source. What is the temperature in the room where the crabs are kept?
i don’t know what the temperature of the room it is but i try to keep it warm for them

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 both fresh and salt water. i just add water and a bit of salt that i have but i dont know if thats okay
Curly - You need to use a dechlorinator to treat the tap water, and then you will need to add marine salt for the salt water. Using tap water untreated, and using kitchen salt are not safe. Check the 'water' care sheet.
Thank you for telling me

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced? i only bought a type of food that is sort of like little pellets. i dont know if thats safe for them
Curly - Most commercial foods have preservatives that aren't safe long term. Check the 'nutrition' care sheet.
what should i feed them instead so it’ll be okay for them?

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known? ive had the crab for maybe two weeks or so


7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen? hasn’t molted


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 in a glass tank with a mesh lid on top. that’s what the woman at the store told me to get
Curly - How big is the tank? You will need to get something to put on the lid to hold in humidity - you can use glass or plexi glass, or even plastic wrap.
i don’t really know how big the tank is but i can’t afford anything bigger than what i have now. but i will make sure to put plastic wrap on top next time.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they? 2 crabs but i’m not sure what happened to one of them. they are both small.


10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any? i couldn’t get any extra shells
Curly - HCA recommends 3-5 extra shells per crab. Check the 'shells' care sheet for more info.

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


12. How often do you clean the tank and how? i recently got them so i don’t know how many times im supposed to clean it


13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned? i do not have sponges


14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently? nothing new has been added


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.)? These are new crabs i got them recently


16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail. So i’m new to this website and I don’t know how to really work this so i’m sorry if i did anything wrong. Today my dad came and he looked at my Hermit crabs and he saw that one of them no longer has limbs and that the limbs were scattered around him. I have no idea what happened. Last time i checked up on him he was completely fine and moving. I am confused and upset because i don’t know what i did wrong. Is there a chance that he is still alive???
Curly - While he may still be alive, he will likely not survive. You have many things that need to be improved in your tank. Read the 'basics' care sheet first - it has all the info you need for a basic tank, including a photo of a basic tank. Ask more questions if there is anything that isn't clear in the care sheet.

thank you for letting me know. i hope he is still alive but i don’t know how long i should wait before i toss him. should i wait a day or a couple hours?

[curlysister]

Where is he currently? He will start to smell if he has passed away.

[1luvmyCrabs]

Where is he currently? He will start to smell if he has passed away.

i put him back in the tank hoping he was okay but no he passed away. thank you for helping me when i thought there was still a chance

[curlysister]

I am sorry to hear that.
There are a number of things that you will need to improve in your tank. Have you looked at the 'basics' care sheet yet?

Play sand is cheap and is safe, you can add some coco fiber if you want but you don't have to. It should be at least 2-3 times as deep as your largest crab, and moistened with dechlorinated water so that it holds it's shape, like a 'sand castle' consistency.

Crabs need a varied diet, including animal protein and calcium daily. You can buy dried foods or feed them fresh from what you eat. Meat, seafood, vegetables, fruits, grains, nuts, seeds, eggs and their shells, greens, leaves, flowers, etc.

For cleaning, some crabbers do a 'deep clean' where they replace all the substrate once every year or two, but some don't even do that. You can just scoop off bits of food they have dragged around, and remove any poop that you can see.