buried

weber86 · Post by **weber86** » 29 Mar 2006, 03:57

Hi! I am an new hermie owner - DJ was only 2 weeks at home when we remplaced his gravel with sand and he dug under ground, have not seen him now in a week. I guess he may be molting and have read alot about hermies so I know not to bother him. But I am concerned that he has not eaten or drank anything, and shows not activity, altho there is a small airhole in the sand where we think he went down. Should I be doing anything or just let him surface when he is ready?

Jaci · Post by **Jaci** » 29 Mar 2006, 08:17

i have 2 hermies doing the exact same thing. he could be digging for fun or to molt. i've heard that if they dig for fun they dont' stay under long than a day. since yours has been under for a couple days he could be molting. don't dig him up unless there is a fishy smell (in which case he passed away) or the other crabs are digging in the same area. do you only have one? how big is he? and, just out of curiosity, what's his name?

weber86 · Post by **weber86** » 29 Mar 2006, 08:21

Yes I only have 1 for now - he is about the size of a big gumball and his name is DJ 9my son named him for Derek Jeter). I fully plan on getting atleast 2 more hermies after reading so much about them but I want DJ to come out first - I'd hate to hve him surfce adn be surprised by friends checking him out! Thanks for your input!

Jaci · Post by **Jaci** » 29 Mar 2006, 08:31

i have 3, my biggest is the same size as DJ. then i have 1 with a turbo shell the size of a quarter and another in a conch shell about 1 inch long. he's my baby and could be molting. before you replaced the gravel with sand, did you notice him eating or drinking a lot? that is also signs of molting. just be sure he has plenty of shells to chose from when he resurfaces. if you're not home all the time and suddenly he's up, check his feet. black bands means he successfully molted. he may or may not be in a new shell. also, be sure that your temperature is between 70 and 75 degrees. sometimes they dig if they're cold. it's a good idea to wait until he's above ground again. when you get additional crabs, try to bring DJ with you. Add the crabs in with him to be sure they get along. i've made that mistake before and had to return one of my new ones because he was aggressive toward my mild tempered crabs. good luck! keep us updated with DJ!

shelly_rusty · Post by **shelly_rusty** » 04 Apr 2006, 07:00

hello i am a new crab owner and my crabs names are rusty & shelly. one (shelly) is small and shy. Rusty on the other hand.... he's almost out of his shell. i have a ?. when they move to another shell, does that mean they'll molt soon?

i sorta hope so!!! he hasnt (rusty OR shelly) hasnt molted yet!!

weber86 · Post by **weber86** » 05 Apr 2006, 22:18

So last night my daughter (in her words) accidently spilled water in DJ's hole when changing his water and caused the airhole to close up. She then dug up DJ as she was afraid he'd suffocate, and reburied him. Within a few hours he had uncovered himself and was just sitting watching us watch him in a big hole. Now I don't know if he is going to molt or just likes hanging out in a hole! I have taken all crab care duties away from the kids for a bit and guess I'll just have to see what he does. He did seem happy and was waving his antenae at me when I checking on him this morning - any thoughts from my new hermie friends?

Jaci · Post by **Jaci** » 06 Apr 2006, 04:30

shelly_rusty-moving into new shells is not necessarily a sign of molting. each crab is different, however, they do have some things that they do. check the Molting forum and read the "Signs of Pre-Molt" for more information. they may or may not follow that. i had one, tweek, who showed a couple signs, however he crawled out of his shell (very bad sign) and passed away. the main sign is digging. but even this can be confusing. they dig for fun, to find a preferred molting spot, or to actually molt. ike changed shells 3 times when i first got him. he's also been digging a lot, i think he could be finding his place to molt. lemi, my littlest did not show any signs at all, he just dug and that was that. he came up this past sunday fully molted and active as ever.

weber86-i dont' remember lemi (successful) or shelley (unsuccessful) having air holes when they went under. bebe (currently under) doesn't seem to have one either. how strange. i think he'll be fine. if he is going to molt, he'll dig himself under again. that's cute about the antenae lol. if he does go under a 2nd time, replenish the food and water, obviously because he could be doing 1 of many things (listed above with shelly_rusty). they seem to know what they're doing when they dig. as long as the temp and humidity is kept at the optimum levels, i would just leave him alone and let him do crabby things.

fyi: he's a jumbo crab, so he doesn't molt very often, but when he does he'll stay under for 3-4 months. so don't be worried if you don't see him for a while (if he's molting). and NEVER dig him up. that can confuse them and cause their molt to be unsuccessful. hope this helps. there are other crabbers in this forum that know so much more than i do, hopefully they will provide more info for you guys.

weber86 · Post by **weber86** » 19 Apr 2006, 05:34

Great news - DJ molted!!!!!!! He has been sitting in a small hole and interacting with us all week, last night he must have molted right in the hole (on top if you will) as I found what looked like a skeleton hanging out of the shell but saw a small pink "thing" waving at me from the shell - I really wasn't sure if was a molt or something bad, happily the hubby just called and he saw the same pink thing moving.. Now a question - do you think hermies have ears? I talk to him when I take him out and he seems to respond to me, but doesn't respond yet to my son - I told the son it is because DJ recognizes my voice but I am totally guessing. Any ideas?

hermiesrokmysox · Post by **hermiesrokmysox** » 19 Apr 2006, 05:55

i know they can sense sounds, like vibrations. not sure about actual hearing...like, HEARING, but they can feel vidrations.

SOOOO happy about the sucessful molt.

Post by **Wai** » 19 Apr 2006, 17:01

I think they sense sound with their antennae. Sound is formed when the air vibrates, thus vibrating their antennae.