Lost all limbs UPDATE**5/05/14

[Jlee1985]

He looks like he's doing good
And I'm not trying to be mean or any thing but dose he remind anyone else of the worm guys from men in black

[MuseCrazy]

Lol he does

[CrabbyMom33]

Gel buds!!! Looks like he's doing well. Keep up the food - especially calcium and protein, with a good measure of everything else also. I fed calcium and protein every meal and rotated other things. My attacked one had the stringy poop thing as well, so it may be based on how their system is processing things.

[crabbienewb]

Gel buds!!! Looks like he's doing well. Keep up the food - especially calcium and protein, with a good measure of everything else also. I fed calcium and protein every meal and rotated other things. My attacked one had the stringy poop thing as well, so it may be based on how their system is processing things.

do you know of other calcium sources that can be ground into powder? With the protein I can easily find enough sources to give a variety, but with the protein I have coral calcium, and cuttlebone. I couldn't get eggshell to crush enough for him to eat it, he tried, but no. Not sure if he needs different sources of calcium as much as different sources of food, I know they like a variety of food, but im having trouble with finding calcium sources that are different if he prefers different.

Also this crab is wanting to sit in the water for hours. I've read all the other threads on attacked crabs and did not see anyone saying the same about theirs. He never goes into his shell when set in the water, and he goes in his shell when he's done eating. He is set propped up so no water is going into his shell and he is coming out to drink, or possibly not drink but soak, and dunk in and out. I can't give him free access to water since he has no legs and I feel bad taking him out when he obviously still wants to be in it. I'm not sure if it's good or bad to let him stay in there that long. He is only doing this with the salt water, with the fresh he takes about 45 minutes. But the salt he is going on 7 hours straight and he is still sitting there in it. I can only assume he wants to be in it since if he didn't he would go in his shell, or at least stop making the effort to stretch out of his shell to stick his head into the water. Not sure how long I should let him do this, if i should just let him go as long as he wants as long as i can keep an eye on him.

[crabbienewb]

well he's gone back to gorging on food again I guess he wasn't slowing down he just didn't want what i was giving him

[Nia]

So happy that he is doing great! You are doing a wonderful job with him. Good luck to you.

[Snickers]

So great hes doing well!!!!

[crabbienewb]

No update things are still the same.

but added a video of him eating. This was the first 2 mins of him eating before i put him back in the tank.

http://youtu.be/HpHSIXcQOTg

[Ladysun1969]

Does he eat that whole dish full???


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[CrabbyMom33]

He actually looks pretty good in the video, given the condition he is in. He seems to be alert and very intent on eating. Those are good signs! Keep up the good work and hope for the best.

[crabbienewb]

Found him naked at 5am. would be max 6 hrs that he's been naked. I don't know why, and I don't know how to get him back in his shell.

shell is clean, body is clean. he's very weak. he was fine a few hours ago. The only things he's had today are water (both kinds and he did drink), crabby din din from hcp, which he did eat.

Not sure why drastic decline but I really don't want to lose him. He is still alive feelers are moving and he curls his abdomen any time I try to uncurl it to reshell him. I have him set on partially in his shell, his gripping legs are touching the shell, could he reshell on his own like this?

[wodesorel]

He'll need to uncurl his abdomen on his own to get inside the shell properly, but you can help by holding him in the shell opening in a way where gravity will do most of the work for him. Set him so his bum fits inside the opening, and then hold him facing upwards so that he naturally drops back inside. Don't hold him, just make a cage with your fingers so he can't fall out of the shell. If he's strong enough he'll do the rest.

He could be soon to molt, which is why he's weak. They will go limp shortly before shedding and he could have lost his grip that way. He needs to be in a shell though for the molt to go off safely! There's also the possibility that he was indeed more severely injured internally and it's just now catching up to him. All you can really do is try to carefully get him back into his shell and see what happens. I'm so sorry.

[crabbienewb]

I do see what looks like possibly injury to his abdomen, im not sure it's a little bump but it's pink and it's near his gripping legs but not sure what a newly formed molt sac would look like.

He won't uncurl can i put him in a larger shell? He is strong enough to move because he's moving his body towards me when I try to reshell, and he gripped the shell opening so to NOT go in.

is it possible that he is ready to molt like now? He was still eating and drinking, although less today, but he definitely was not weak, although while drinking he came out so far i thought he was going to climb out, which he obviously did end up doing while i was asleep.

Not sure what to do, the way he's sitting in his shell now all he would have to do is uncurl the abdomen and he'd drop in. I'm scared to take him out to keep trying because he's naked and I don't want him to dry out fast outside of the tank.

edit: also he doesn't smell fishy. but he does kinda smell like what reminds me of formaldehyde, like when dissecting things in biology.

[wodesorel]

The smell sounds moltish rather than something bad.

Yeah, I think maybe a different, larger shell might be a good idea. A Tapestry Turban if you have one that would fit might be a good choice. If he had legs I could see him being in a larger shell so if he's going to molt he might still have urge to give himself more room, first!

[crabbienewb]

He has been reshelled twice now and came back out within minutes. Not sure what's going on, he still has the strength to get out, so I think he'd have the strength to get in. We've settled on putting water in his shell, a larger tapestry, and he is sitting in it, got his bum in, but it's still curled so he's not in it but upright on top of it and he is not moving from this position, while he does if i get him any further in.

I'm not sure where to go from here. I could cover him in moistened moss and put a hut over him and just leave him alone for a week and hope for the best.

I'm not sure what other options i have. he's not falling out of his shell he is climbing out and it seems very intentional. I've rinsed him. I don't know how to keep him alive without his shell.