Nice to aggressive!

[StephBaby]

Herman molted about a month ago. He had always gotten along with my crab Mya 2. When Herman came up, Mya 2 went down. He seemed kind oof lonely so last weekend when i was at the beach, I got anew crab Midori. Since i but Midori in the main cage Herman has been really mean. Pushing her away from the food, kicking her across the tank and scaring her away from the shell shop and water pools ( Hermans 2 favorite places).

I guess my question is, what do i do about Herman? Since he is the aggressor i have been moving him away from her. But it keeps happening. Should i put him in ISO? I dont want to cause any more stress on Midori since she is new and is probably already stressed from the conditions she was in at the beach.

Any advice would be helpful.

[StephBaby]

Oh and Mya is still down molting but Im scared that when she comes up Herman will bully her too.

Cant my crabbies just get along!

[blitz]

I'm still kind of a "newbie" but, did you bath Midori before introducing her to your main crabitat? I've read that sometimes crabs can act aggressively towards newbies that have that 'new pet-store smell'... A bath in conditioned or StressCoat treated water might not hurt...

If you're very concerned about Mya 2, I've also read that bathing a crab after they surfaced from a molt (and are behaving normally on the surface again) can help to remove that "freshly molted" smell...

I'm sure more experienced crabbers (than me) will be along soon to share their knowledge!
Good luck!

[Nnnnnnnn]

I'm still kind of a "newbie" but, did you bath Midori before introducing her to your main crabitat? I've read that sometimes crabs can act aggressively towards newbies that have that 'new pet-store smell'... A bath in conditioned or StressCoat treated water might not hurt...

If you're very concerned about Mya 2, I've also read that bathing a crab after they surfaced from a molt (and are behaving normally on the surface again) can help to remove that "freshly molted" smell...

I'm sure more experienced crabbers (than me) will be along soon to share their knowledge!
Good luck!

Never use stress coat. It's bad for them.

When you buy new crabs, they need to be isolated for a month.

Herman won't be lonely, even if he was, a month won't hurt.

[blitz]

Ah, thanks Noswad! I know not to put Stress Coat in their drinking water, but I had read that using it to bathe them was good (never done it myself - just use a safe dechlorinator). Yikes! Sorry to spread misinformation!!!

I also iso for at least 2 weeks.

[StephBaby]

I had a post about iso-ing my new crab and it veried from 5 days to until they molted. I bathed Mixori twice before putting her in. Not only to get rid of any smell but to also ensure she didt have mites.

But im a fraid that if i iso her again she will be stressed. Not sure what im going to do.

Thanks for the advice

[Nnnnnnnn]

ISO isn't just for mites, the new crab could have a sickness that could spread.

[StephBaby]

I know but everyone seamed to agree that one week was plenty

[StephBaby]

So what i did was bathe them together so they both have the same smell. Then i put them both in isotogether. Probably just over night to see what happens. Then put them back in the new tank and hope they get along

[Bridgitmac80]

I would do a bath for her if you haven't already but he could be just showing her he's the boss of the tank.

ISO is also for new crabs to de-stress and molt before putting them in the new tank if you choose to do that.

[wodesorel]

Stress coat isn't a big deal. http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 25&t=84197

Isolation times are totally up to the owner. I never ISO mine past a few days and that's only to make sure they are well fed first and don't need to molt before they go in with my guys. Parasites (like mites) are the only communicable thing we know of with hermit crabs. As far as we are aware there are no diseases that can be passed between them. Two weeks is recommended so you know that they are mite free, but it's not a "have-to" situation by any means. You just have to be prepared to deal with any consequences in case you missed any mites that were one them.


Hermits can change personality when they molt, and while that may have happened, this really does sound like a classic territorial dispute among new crabs. They have to work out who is in charge and who isn't, and Herman is just setting the rules that he runs the tank. As long as he's not running up and physically attacking her, or grabbing her shell, or chasing her around, then it's okay. Just keep an eye on them and eventually they'll both figure out their place in the pack. This might happen again when Mya 2 comes up, but most likely she already knows that Herman is the boss so it should be a smooth transition. Do they have enough space? They can become over-territorial if they all can't claim their own spot in the tank, and it sounds like Herman is a spit-fire about "owning" things.

You may want to put two smaller food dishes in on different sides so that Herman can't claim both at once. Having the water bowls on opposite sides so that he can't be at both places at the same time helps as well. Those things seem to take the wind out of their sails a bit.

[Nnnnnnnn]

Stress coat isn't a big deal.

:O Everyone I asked said it was bad!! Maybe that was old info..

[StephBaby]

Wodesorel you are a genius!!!!! I would have never thought to seperate the food and water dishes.

After i bathed them both together they really seem to be getting along better but ill really find out tinight.

Thank you for all your help