Cursed?

[RudhiraKaama]

For every hermit crab that I have owned, they have all molted within 6 months of owning them and I have lost each of them as a result of molting...
I am very frustrated, heart-broken and confused...
I was under the impression that I'm doing everything correctly -
- they have a salt bath
- plain water with a sponge (both waters are treated)
- plenty to climb on
- half of the tank is sand that is about 3 inches deep so they can dig (should this be deeper?)
- the other half of the tank is the coconut husk type bark substrate with a reptile heating pad underneath.
- I have a cover on the tank to try to raise the humidity but it never seems to go over 40%

I'm not sure what the exact problem is at this point, but every crab of mine has eventually molted and not survived the molt. I had one that was very close but began running around naked and a few days later, passed.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can do differently or if there may be something triggering all the molting?
Please advise, thank you!

[emmac350]

RudhiraKaama - sorry to hear about your losses. Before being able to give you feedback about why your crabs died. Here are the questions that we need more answers for:

1. What brand of salt water mix?
2. How are your waters treated, as in, brand name of the treatment?
3. What climbing ornaments do you have?
4. What kind of tank (size, material) do you have?
5. What kind of sand? Brand name?
6. What brand name coconut husk?
7. Do your crabs dig down over the heating pad?
8. Have you calibrated your humidity gauge?
9. What food do you feed the crabs? If commercial, what brands?

I think that's all that I can think of that will help us figure this out.

[CrabbyJo]

Emma, you posted while I was typing! I'm going to go ahead and post what I wrote anyway to add to what you've written.

Definitely do give us the info Emma asked for, it will help us figure things out for you!

It's very normal for them to molt within the first 6 months that you have them. Even the largest crabs molt once or twice a year.

As to your problem - what kind of salt water do you offer your crabs? An ocean mix is what is needed, and salt mixes made specifically for hermit crabs have been shown to not hold their salinity, and also lack the enzymes and nutrients that ocean salt mixes will provide.

Also, the humidity is a real issue. It really needs to be up around 70%.
First, make sure to calibrate your hygrometer. being at work I cannot give you the link (I don't have it available and they block Wiki sites because of bandwidth), but I'm sure someone will be along soon who has some good links for you on how to do this.

There are quite a few tricks different crabbers use to raise humidity. One way is to incorporate a "moss pit", ie add some wet moss in any kind of container, and keep it moistened. It will hydrate the air quite well for you. You can also keep your coconut fiber bedding moist (I keep mine moist and it helps keep the tank hydrated even with 100w bulbs burning overhead).
It helps if there are second levels too, I have found that the lights will warm the tank but the moisture burns off more slowly when there are levels that limit the amount of direct light on the substrate.

Another thing you can try that some crabbers here do is put votive candle holders over the UTH, filled with marbles (so small crabs dont drown if they fall in) and dechlor water.

You say you have a heat mat - have you temped the substrate over the heat mat? It is very important to do this - use a probe type thermometer, and put it into the substrate in the center of the heat mat, all the way down to the glass. The temp should not be above 81*F.
If it is, there is a possibility that your crabs are suffering from heat damage from burrowing over the heat mat, which is too hot.
I had to install a thermostat to maintain the temp on my heat mat, as it had the substrate up to 100*F.

What do you cover the top of your tank with? You can cut cardboard to fit the top of the tank (or a couple of pieces so you can slide it open if needed) and wrap it with plastic wrap. That will hold in both heat and humidity. It works so well for me I still use it a year later.

[ladybug15057]

Please do answer what Emma and CrabbyJo have asked it is very important for us to help troubleshoot if there is a possible problem.
And you mention you have the reptile heat mat under the coco husk. Is it mounted on the 'outside' of the tank? Prior to purchasing any moss or such please do refer to the Crab Care section here.

[RudhiraKaama]

Wow! Thank you all for getting back to me so quickly! Here's my information:
1. What brand of salt water mix?
HBH Hermit Crab salt added to treated water
2. How are your waters treated, as in, brand name of the treatment?
I use filtered water that is treated with API tap water conditioner
3. What climbing ornaments do you have?
Arch log, woven raffia-type hut, rocks, shells, chicken wire ramp
4. What kind of tank (size, material) do you have?
35 gallon, glass
5. What kind of sand? Brand name?
It's a type of Calcisand, but I don't recall the brand name, it's not the tiny bags you see in different shades, it was a more natural looking calcisand that was sold a bit closer to the reptile section.
6. What brand name coconut husk?
TRex Jungle Bed
7. Do your crabs dig down over the heating pad?
Yes and I'm mortified... I held a thermometer to the glass above the heating pad and the tempterature shot up to over 110!!!!!!
I'm not even positive what the real temperature may be cause the thermometer said "H" after 110!
This is a standard tank heating pad... how could it possibly go up so high!!??
8. Have you calibrated your humidity gauge?
I have not but will look up how to do so.
9. What food do you feed the crabs? If commercial, what brands?
I always put in fruit for them, but have a dish of Tetrafauna hermit crab meal as well.

My tank is covered with a standard aquarium lid, one that has an option portion in the back, but I have that sealed off with duct tape, so air is able to flow through several other small openings, it's not sealed "shut", but is 90% closed off.

Where would I obtain this ocean salt water mix you speak of? I've never heard of such a thing... should I be looking more towards the fish section of the pet store?

I will definitely read up more concerning care before attempting anything with moss or involving a more wet habitat.

[emmac350]

All right, thanks for all the answers! It's really nice to get a full answer to every question.

HBH crab salt is rubbish - feel free to throw it away as it gives no value to your crabs. It only adds the equivalent of table salt to the water, which dissolves into Sodium and Chloride ions, whereas what crabs need in an salt water are the trace ions found in ocean water. Instant Ocean and Oceanic brand are both available in the saltwater aquarium sections of all the national brand pet stores (Petsmart, Pet Supplies Plus, Petco, etc.)

Do you know what the raffia-type hut is made out of? Is it one of the chewing huts made for hamsters/rodents? If so it probably contains pine which will kill crabs after enough exposure. The chicken wire ramp should be taken out as well - crabs are very sensitive to metals in their environments and even if the wire is coated they can and will pinch through the coating and eventually get to the metal. Is the arch log one of the half-logs that's hollowed out inside to form a hidey? If so, that's made from cedar, which has also been linked to crab deaths (crabs are closely related to insects; pine and cedar are both used as insect repellents and will cause crabs to drop their shells and die).

Calci-sand is not good for crabs. It does not support molting and will, if wet then dried, form rock-hard clumps that can get into crabs' shells and stab their soft abdomens or even entomb molting crabs beneath the surface. If you want sand, look for bags of aquarium sand - any type of aragonite sand (CaribSea brand) is great for crab substrates.

The forest bed isn't recommended, either. They don't disclose what "forest bed" (one of the listed components) is made from, and vermiculite isn't needed for a good substrate, either. All you need is a coconut fiber substrate - you can buy it in stores or online under the trade name Eco Earth.

Heating pads are supposed to get that warm - if it's a reptile heating pad, it's designed for reptiles that are trying to get a lot of heat. You can put things over the substrate or even just shallow out the substrate so they can't dig in over it.

The Tetrafauna crab meal isn't a good food to offer. It has two ingredients that will kill crabs - ethoxyquin and copper propionate. They're both used as both preservatives and pesticides to keep bugs from eating the food and, as always, crabs will get sick from them. It's why commercial foods aren't recommended. Try searching for 'nutrition' on this forum or check out sites like the Hermit Crab Addiction Store, Hermit Crab Cuisine, and the Epicurean Hermit (my computer is running out of battery so I'm not including the links, but all three are easy to find with google) for a wealth of more information about what crabs need to eat.

You ought to take the tape off of the tank - airflow is very important to keep down mold in the tank.

[ladybug15057]

Wow! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer all the questions. I am sure with some tweaking we will be able to help you and your hermies to live longer happier lives.

1. When the hermie salts were mixed per their instructions and tested, they did not even register a salinity level. Hermies do need the elements that are found specifically in the sea/ocean salts that are sold for salt water fish tanks. Yes, it is found in the fish department and please make sure not to buy the salt for freshwater fish. (please see the link above)

2. Filtered water, as in you have a Brita filter on your sink or? How many drops of API do you use per gallon?

3. Please remove the chicken wire from the tank. No metals should be placed in the tank. Hermies are sensitive to metals and rust can be lethal to them.
The arch log, would it happen to be like Habba Hut?

5. Calsi sand is not a recommended substrate. It is a very drying sand, it will pull moisture. If used damp it does give off an odor, but when it starts to dry it also hardens. Due to it hardening it can be very difficult for the hermies to dig through. It has also been written by a few crabbers that the calsi sand has gotten within their hermies shell opening and dried sealing the hermie within the shell.

5. T-Rex Jungle bedding consist of coco husk, calsi sand and a forest bedding. Most forest due consist of pine and evergreen, something that should be avoided in a hermies tank.

7. The reptile under tank heaters are made fo reptiles who usually require much warmer temps than hermies do. Yet the under tank heaters they sell for hermies do not produce the heat hermies need on part of their substrate. (they need both a cooler and warmer side to their substrate.) So many of us have invested in thermostats to plug our heating sources in to regulate the temperatures.

9, Majority of commercial foods contain ethoxyquin and/or copper sulphate which both are insecticides. Our hermies are from the arthropod (insect) phylum. No commercial food on the market contains all the nutrients a hermie needs to remain healthy. There are many freeze dried and dehydrated foods one can feed their hermies along with natural foods for the nutrients they need.

http://crabbywiki.com/tiki-index.php?pa ... tion+Table+

http://crabstreetjournal.com/xoops/modu ... storyid=25

http://www.hermitcrabcuisine.com/

If you decide to purchase any more hermies, there is an article about Post Purchase Stress that has helped quite a few crabbers help their hermies to adjust to captive living.

[Wai]

There's a few things that need to be changed (as pointed out by the others already), but give yourself a pat on the back for making the effort to research on caring for your pets properly!

[RudhiraKaama]

Oh my gosh...
I read through all of the care information last night after posting and am mortified... wow. It's like I had the vague right idea, but used everything incorrect I could find!
I wish there were a way to make this more public knowledge. Someone walking into a pet store would have no idea they shouldn't buy the crab related items for their crabs

2. We have a 3 filter system that has a seperate small faucet on our sink. It comes out at the equivalent of bottled water, but then again, I haven't literally tested it.
I add 6 drops of the API to a gallon of that water.

I will definitely go purchase the salt water fish salt!!

3. Will remove the coated chickenwire ramp immediately.
The arch log is similar to the HabbaHut, yes.
The raffia type hut is yes, for guinea pigs... I will remove it.
If I create a rope net for the crab instead, what type of rope do you suggest using?

So if standard wood is no good (at least the pine and cedar) then what is everyone's thoughts on driftwood if it's been baked?

Also, if the crabs are not supposed to have the metal of the chickenwire as well as the paint coating some chickenwires, what should be done if the crab is in a painted shell? Are there any sort of painted shells that are acceptable?

5. Yikes! Calcisand sounds scary. I've never had a problem with it clumping up too badly, but I can definitely see how it can irritate the crab.

What are your thoughts on real sand that has been baked?

5. Ditching Jungle Bed immediately and will get coconut husk substrate.

7. I am immediately going to buy a rheostat for the UTH.
What do you reccommend be placed on top of the heater in the meantime to provide a barrier so that my crab can't sit directly on that hot glass? I know someone mentioned marbles, but being glass, won't they also absorb and conduct most of that heat?

So, would my crab be a masochist then? My one that I have left LOVES to bury himself directly over that UTH, nearly right against the glass. He has the rest of a 35 gallon tank to explore and find cooler areas (overall tank temp with the UTH on is about 75 degrees)... why would he gravitate towards the burning spots?

9. Will be getting rid of the crab food.
What sort of freeze dried and dehydrated foods do you reccommend to feed them?
As far as "table" food, is it ok to to continue to feed them fruit (grapes, cantelope, pineapple, apple, etc.).
Should I add more protein or other things to the fruit?
I read once that red meat is toxic to crabs, is this correct?

I cannot believe what a wealth of information this site is and how knowledgable and helpful you all have been - I am VERY grateful, thank you so much!

[emmac350]

Glad you're making these changes! Let's see...

I'm not positive on this, as I just buy distilled water by the gallon from my grocery store, but I think that API is meant to be one drop per gallon. I could be wrong, though, so hopefully Marie or CrabbyJo can correct me if I am.

If the arch log is like the HabbaHut, it's useless for crabs - it's a variety of cedar (on another forum someone actually managed to get a reply from the company that makes the logs as to the type of wood). Also, if you get rid of it you will need more hideys for the crabs. I suggest coconut huts (found at the pet store), but do soak them in salt water to kill any bugs that may be in the shell, or you could make your own out of a coconut from the store. Hideys are really up your imagination - I've heard of some crabbers even using legos to make them. So create away - it can be fun to see what the crabs do and don't like.

If you want to make a net, use organic hemp. Hemp is naturally mold-resistant. If you can knit or crochet, this should be a fairly easy undertaking - I was able to make one for my guys without too much trouble at all.

Is the driftwood the kind that comes from the pet store? I do know that pet stores carry both grapevine and mopani wood, which are safe. Cork bark (reptile section) is safe. Cholla wood (most likely will be found at a craft store like Michael's, it is a hollow log with holes all over it) is also safe. Soak any wood in salt water then bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Painted shells are all bad. No matter how many 'protective coats' they put on the paint to keep it from chipping, if you use sand especially they will chip and the crabs can eat the chips (they taste everything in their tanks) and get sick and possibly die. Offer non-painted shells - chances are, your crabs will change very quickly. I've had good luck with buying non-painted shells on ebay - do a search for hermit crab shell and see what comes up. A word of warning, though - not all the shells advertised as being good for crabs are. Also, the bigger lots will have cheaper prices per shell, but not all of the shells will be appropriately sized or shaped for crabs. You can buy lots of 4 turbo shells or sharkeye shells for good prices though. Another option is the Hermit Crab Patch - they sell good shells as well. If all else fails, stores like the Naples Sea Shell company have decent selections.

What kind of sand are you referring to as 'real sand'? Aquarium sands are fine (I've always seen them in 25 pound bags, usually the CaribSea brand), but I'd be careful with playsand used for sandboxes - it's made by crushing rocks, so the grains are much sharper than a natural aquarium sand.

You probably don't want a rheostat - I think you're referring to a thermostat? A rheostat lets you turn the heat down on a heat source manually, like have a low, medium, and high setting on your UTH. A thermostat monitors the temperature in the tank with a probe and automatically switches off the heat sources when it's warm enough. That's what you want - it will allow you to set what temperature you want your substrate to warm to and no more.

If you don't want your crabs to be able to dig down over the UTH, you could for one shallow out the substrate so they can't dig, and put stuff over it so they can't get to it (like put your food bowl or water bowls right over the UTH - can't dig over it then). You could put marbles over it and yes, the marbles/glass pebbles will warm up as well, but they won't get as hot as the glass directly over the UTH.

Crabs do like being warm, and it does seem rather silly that they would dig right over a heat source like a UTH, but if the UTH isn't always on, they'll feel the residual heat while it's off, dig down to enjoy that warmth, fall asleep, and cook when they're asleep.

Freeze dried food - I have a jar each of the following that were all bought at the pet store: baby shrimp, plankton, krill, bloodworms, tubifex worms. You can also get crickets, mealworms, etc. Those are all safe, and all highly recommended for their protein and the calcium in their shells.

Fruits are safe, make sure they're washed well, though. You can feed them most veggies (not onions or garlic). The easiest way to break down foods is this:

1. At least one protein a day. Red meat is safe, and it's fairly easy to just cut off a small bit of whatever meat you're cooking for dinner before you season it and microwave it for the crabs. My guys love pork chop, steak, chicken, turkey, etc. Shrimp and fish are also good too.

2. At least one fruit - don't put the stone of a stone fruit (like a peach) in there, but a bit of the flesh and skin is good because they get the natural fruit sugars, vitamins, and the coloring compounds that will help the crabs to maintain a healthy metabolism and coloring during and after molts.

3. At least one veggie - again, no onions or garlic, but most everything other than that is good. Colorful or dark colored is important for the nutrients they contain. My guys really seem to like colorful peppers, and baby celery leaves and stalks are enjoyed too (the yellow ones).

4. At least one calcium source - cuttlebone (sold for birds) is great because you can just put it in the tank and they'll eat it if they need it. You can save eggshells from making hard-boiled eggs (only if you don't put anything in the water like vinegar or salt) and offer those too - they're a favorite in my tank.

That's kind of the basics, there are a lot of other foods that crabs enjoy. Algae and seaweed is one thing that you should look into offering. You can buy spirulina powder at health food stores, and seaweed sheets at pet stores. Mine really love flower petals, especially the calendula flowers. If you ever want to get some ideas about what foods to feed the crabs, check out the Hermit Crab Cuisine site that Marie (ladybug15057) linked in her post.