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Mid-moult
What should I do if I think one of my buried hermit crabs is moulting?
Nothing. Moulters already have to suffer from stress and disturbing them will make it worse. Never dig up hermit crabs unless you suspect that another hermit crab is disturbing them. Moulting is also one of the reasons why hermit crabs should not be allowed to bury on top of UTHs due to the high risk of dehydration and overheating even with a thermostat.
What should I do if I accidentally dig up a moulter?
Move the moulter with its shed exoskeleton to an isolation tank. Leave a small amount of fresh water, salt water and food in the isolation tank. Your hermit crab will eat its shed exoskeleton to regain lost nutrients. Instead of burying them again in the isolation tank, place a hidey cave over them to provide darkness. Most hermit crabs will harden quicker above the surface, but by no means should you start deliberately digging up moulters to put them on the surface as it stresses them. Do not spray or wet the moulter with water as this will slow down their hardening rate, but you can mist the air inside the tank to keep the humidity up.
What should I do if I have a surface moulter?
Follow the instructions in the previous paragraph.
How do I distinguish a moulter from a dead a hermit crab?
It is easy to mistaken a moulter for a dead hermit crab. Many new crabbers have buried their moulters in the garden thinking they were dead.
1.
Look for a claw in the shell. Moulters will look smaller without their exoskeleton, but they will swell and grow as their new exoskeleton hardens.
2.
The eyes of the exoskeleton should be hollow and translucent, since hermit crabs shed their eyes too. The eyes of dead hermit crabs are still dark in colour, just like when they were alive.
3.
If your hermit crab moulted above the surface, try gently squeezing the 'body'. If it crunches or feels hollow, then it is just the shed exoskeleton.
4.
Hermit crabs do not shed their soft abdomen. If there is an abdomen attached to the body, then your hermit crab may have died, or is just about to moult. Move the hermit crab to an isolation tank and place a hidey cave over it. Keep the hermit crab warm and humid with deep bedding in case it is alive and wants to bury itself again.
5.
Bad odours are not a reliable indicator of death. Some moulters smell rotten and fishy, but they are still alive. The only reliable indicator of death is signs of decay, such as the abdomen turning black and having mould grow on it.
How long should I wait for a moulter to surface?
Hermit crabs can take up to three months to surface from a moult, so do not check to see if they are dead until three months have passed. It is difficult not to worry, but patience is very important. You are better off digging up a dead hermit crab three months later than stressing one to death that was alive and could have surfaced on its own.
Where do moulters usually bury themselves?
Moulters tend to bury themselves under objects such as the water ponds and climbing ornaments. Some hermit crabs prefer burying themselves at the cool end, while others prefer burying themselves at the warm end.
Mid-moult
