i need help with hermit crab

[zig zag zoey]

i have 3 hermit crabs i think 1 of them hasto molt its relly meen hees usaly relly loveing he bilt a bed fore himself and he has been just laying ther this is day 5 no change i picked him up to se if he died he tryed to bite me so i put him back in his bed and he continued to lay ther his scin isnt dusty or whatever so i am wondering whether os not i should seperate him from the other to fore molting? i allredy have a molting cage set up so i dont have to worry when hay molt about stress

i was also wondering about litter i have to change ther litter and i was wondering what i should use? i went to petsmart and found this litter that i think would be great its some kind of moist wood so it has the right humitty and temp or at least thats what the bag sead should i use that? or thers this stuf that some in eather sand or gravle its dyed and thats what thave been liveing on the gravle but its relly ryf with allot of points and i was thinking about using sand but i domt want it to slump up when it gits whet or is that good?

[flamcannon1]

Sounds like "he" mite be pregnant =\

[zig zag zoey]

how do you sex hermies??? and i herd thay only mate when the wethers at a serten temp does anay1 know what the temp is??? and if this is the rong place to put this than somone moove it i have no clue how

[flamcannon1]

You said he made a nest? I read a page it says if the water gets to cold, he will go into hibernation to warm up.. he's probably all stappy cuz u wont let him sleep

[I_Love_Iggy]

I had been researching hermit crabs a while back because i wanted to get some, heres some good sites, read it ALL! hermit crabs arent as easy to take care of as most think

http://www.hermit-crabs.com/
http://www4.tpg.com.au/users/vanessap/hermit/
http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/index.php

heres a page on motlting as well
http://www.crabbytalk.com/


hope this helps :)

[zig zag zoey]

ok now i am conscernd i changed ther bedding thay had the hermi rocks that you can git at a petstore but i need to shange it so just fore now i put grass in ther so thay could borrow and that well its been 3 days now i dont want to dig them up becouse if thay are molting i could kill them but if i leev them in the same cage and thay are molting thay will kill etch other what should i do???

[I_Love_Iggy]

use the pop bottle technique, put a pop bottle over them burrowed into the sand so that the others cant get to him and he can molt safely

[zig zag zoey]

so you think thay are molting? thay dint even come yp at night to eat or drink i checked lastnight i will try the pop bottle teckneck

[I_Love_Iggy]

from the signs youve said it sounds like it


anyways i dont have time for a long post, im running off to go get my snakes on a plane ticket! CANT WAIT!

[zig zag zoey]

ok ..... i have nothing els to say so i am just filling the empty space i need to post this reply

[I_Love_Iggy]

alright i just re-raid and it says you HAVE a molting cage ready on hand? if thats so and you just have one hermit crab use that, the pop bottole technique is for if you have more than one and dont have an extra molting tank or if you dont have a molting tank(for emergencies)

[zig zag zoey]

well i thaught i had a molting taink but its not and its not finished i have 3 hermies and ther scin doesnt look dusty and when i was looking fore the crabs to seperat them i picked 1 up becouse it was so close to the other hermi i couldnt git the bottle inbetween both of then so i put the 1 in a corner and it didnt fall out of its shell i dont think it did eneything noteven try to pinch all it did is burrow back in when in set it down

[zig zag zoey]

i think my crabs are just lazy i tell you every once on a while thay just do that maby every 2 - 3 weeks fore 1 week and 1/2 i think thayn just rest not molt becouse i have been watching them and thay wock up and came to the top and ther was no scin or eneything and the 1 i was haveing truble with is a boy i only have 1 girl shees my smallest hermi tray short fore tracy

[jenniferm]

i have 3 hermit crabs i think 1 of them hasto molt its relly meen hees usaly relly loveing he bilt a bed fore himself and he has been just laying ther this is day 5 no change i picked him up to se if he died he tryed to bite me so i put him back in his bed and he continued to lay ther his scin isnt dusty or whatever so i am wondering whether os not i should seperate him from the other to fore molting? He is not 100% molting, depending on the substrate and tempertaure and humidity of the tank, it could cause the crab or crabs to become inactive or act like they are stressed.i allredy have a molting cage set up so i dont have to worry when hay molt about stress

i was also wondering about litter i have to change ther litter and i was wondering what i should use?Clean play sand or moist coco-fiber bedding or a combination of both only. i went to petsmart and found this litter that i think would be great its some kind of moist woodNever use wood or wood products, most of them, almost all of them are NOT hermit crab safe, any type of evergree like pine is deadly to hermit crabs. Wood and wood type products will draw the humidity OUT of the air and out of the crab's bodies. so it has the right humitty and temp or at least thats what the bag sead should i use that? Noor thers this stuf that some in eather sand or gravle its dyedGravel is also not good at all for a mian substrate, it does not allow proper digging or tunnling, ir is abrasive and an irritant to both their sesnsitive abdomen and exo-skeleton. It is a bad thing to use, and who knows what kind of dyes or other chemicals that would also be toxic to the crabs. and thats what thave been liveing on the gravle but its relly ryf with allot of points and i was thinking about using sand but i domt want it to slump up when it gits whet or is that good?

Please provide clean playsand for your hermit crabs, get the temp between 76-82 degrees F and the humidity between 75%-85% relative and your crabs will be happier and healthier not to mention also more active.

[jenniferm]

how do you sex hermies??? and i herd thay only mate when the wethers at a serten temp does anay1 know what the temp is??? and if this is the rong place to put this than somone moove it i have no clue how

I can assure you that your crab is not pregnant, they do not reproduce in captivity and there is a small chance a crab was harvested from the wild gravid with eggs already but they do not act preganant like a mammal or human.

If you would like to know how to determine the gender of your pet hermit crabs I can help you off site if you like. Our site also has the info up if you want to see.

Jenn

[zig zag zoey]

i allredy saw the site somewere and thanks fore all the info