My hermit crab lost a leg!! Help soon!

[Mr.Crab]

I never noticed this before. I don't think this is recent I think he lost it along time ago becuase I never saw a leg when cleaning out my tank. But what do I do??? Im providing heat right now (my lamp is on) and Im spraying the tank with drinking water conditioner water. I'm gonna get some cuttlebone, sprinkle it ontop of some meat or something. What offers alot of protein? Will this grow back on his molt? (this is my newest crab I got like 3 months ago(he is bigger than a golf ball)( I think he might of lost the leg a while ago cuz I didnt notice one around the tank. WHAT DO I DO? I see where he lost it. its a little bit of gel where his limb was. PLEASE HELP ASAP AND SOON

[Wai]

Did you bother reading the hermit crab care information that I spent hours writing up for this site?

http://www.hermitcrabparadise.com/crabc ... tlimbs.php

[erikleeson]

Mr. Crab, you need to calm down. Your crab will be fine. Hermit crabs DO drop limbs under stress, but that might not be the case. Are your other crabs picking on him? That may be why. They also may drop limbs because of an accident like a fall from a tall branch. If you see the gel limb, he may molt soon. He probably won't grow back the leg in one molt, but you should see some change.

Keep in mind that he will be down for longer than usual this time. Just keep the substrate deep and moist and provide shells, salt water and shelter and he may molt. Protein aids in muscle growth so it may be beneficial for him but I think its pretty unlikely it will provide any change for him. Give him so honey and other treats for a bit to keep him happy and it may be a good idea to dust off your foods with cuttlebone powder to help his exo.

Its harder to molt with a lost limb. So providing calcium and a good molting environment will contribute to the likeliness of it growing back soon.

Just check your conditions to see if they are to a crabs liking. Then just sit back and wait.

[Mr.Crab]

Did you bother reading the hermit crab care information that I spent hours writing up for this site?

http://www.hermitcrabparadise.com/crabc ... tlimbs.php

Kay man sry bout that.. sorta freaked becuase I didn't know what to do. I just wanted some early replies.

Mr. Crab, you need to calm down. Your crab will be fine. Hermit crabs DO drop limbs under stress, but that might not be the case. Are your other crabs picking on him? That may be why. They also may drop limbs because of an accident like a fall from a tall branch. If you see the gel limb, he may molt soon. He probably won't grow back the leg in one molt, but you should see some change.

Keep in mind that he will be down for longer than usual this time. Just keep the substrate deep and moist and provide shells, salt water and shelter and he may molt. Protein aids in muscle growth so it may be beneficial for him but I think its pretty unlikely it will provide any change for him. Give him so honey and other treats for a bit to keep him happy and it may be a good idea to dust off your foods with cuttlebone powder to help his exo.

Its harder to molt with a lost limb. So providing calcium and a good molting environment will contribute to the likeliness of it growing back soon.

Just check your conditions to see if they are to a crabs liking. Then just sit back and wait.

As I said my other 2 crabs are down but I dont think he lost his limb recently. I don't Know.

[Wai]

Did you bother reading the hermit crab care information that I spent hours writing up for this site?

http://www.hermitcrabparadise.com/crabc ... tlimbs.php

Kay man sry bout that.. sorta freaked becuase I didn't know what to do. I just wanted some early replies.

Shouting will not help you get any faster responses, after all, this is a forum and we cannot hear anyone's voices. All we can do is see. We will be able to notice what you've written regardless if it's all in all-caps or not. However, people may view shouting as immature or rude and that may prompt them to ignore you instead. Just relax and wait for someone to assist you if they can.

[Mr.Crab]

So what should I do? He's underground now.

[emmac350]

As hard as it is (trust me, I have 2 of my 3 down right now) be patient and wait for him to come up on his own. Resist the urge to check on him continuously, and continue to provide the proper surface conditions (heat, humidity, food, water, etc.) for when he comes back up from the molt. The one day you forget to give them food or water because you haven't seen them in several months...that's the day that they come up. So keep the conditions as if he were still up there, and leave him alone. That's about all they need from us.