Help! My crab's molting!
By coffeeshot
@coffeeshot (3783)
Australia
June 2, 2007 9:05pm CST
I've gone onwww.thecrabbagepatch.com for molting info but I think I've done everything I sholdn't have done! This morning I noticed him looking kind of weird so I told my partner to have a look and we thought he was dead so he took him out of the tank-realised that he's molting (and has lost limbs) and we put him into another tank. i thought that was the right thing to do but according to the crabbagepatch i shoiuld've left him in his natural environment. and we definitely should NOT have handled him. I feel terrible now-he's been in his isolation tank for about 3 hours now and he still hasn't buried himself. I'm stressing out- if he dies I'll never forgive myself. He just looks so limp and helpless!!Does anyone have any tips for me?
1 person likes this
4 responses
@willocfc (963)
• Australia
19 Dec 07
Hermit crabs do lose limbs occasionsally but they regenerate them so there is no need to worry about that, if he is molting he should have burried himself and been left untouched until he comes back out, some great sites for more informed info are
http://www.hermit-crabs.com/
http://www.crabstreetjournal.com/
hope these help and good luck
2 people like this
@shooie (4984)
• United States
18 May 08
I know this is well after the fact but I have hermit crabs and they have molted before and never totally buried themsleves. Some people say move them some say don't. I personally move mine to another tank that has food water and just sand. One time in the big tank I head a lot of noise and it was a bigger crab bother a smaller one that was molting so that is how I knew at the time the one was in process of molting and I moved him to keep him safe. He molted traded shells and is back with the others and doing fine.
@mcc371 (918)
• United States
17 Jun 08
I have crabs and when mine are molting I move them to my iso tank with plenty of food and water both salt and fresh water and either some cuttlebone or crushed egg shells ( they need this for the calsium, mine will usually dig down and will molt once molted they will eat their exo for the nutrients and then I usually give them a bath a few days later and then return them to my main tank. I have currently three crags that I have in the main tank and they have been with us for going on two yrs.
They do require some maintance and the proper temp and humidity in the tank is very important. I feed mine lots of organic veggies and fruits. mine especially love carrots, queen olives, and peanut butter. I occasionally will give them natural honey as a treat.
@jennybianca (12912)
• Australia
3 Jun 07
I hate to say this, but we had hermit crabs, on & off for a few years, and they are very difficult to maintain. THey die at the drop of a hat!
Pet shops would change their care instructions from year to year. The longest living hermit crab we ever had is 6 months.
I think when hermit crabs are molting, you need to provide them with a selection of new shells, so they can try them out.
Other than that, I hope you have better advice from other My Lotters.
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