Post by sorakachan on May 28, 2010 0:14:12 GMT -5
This is a post I wrote originally on another forum. I have questions I've answered since after this write-up that I will post below.
Recently, I moved back into my home for the summer, got a new, bigger terrarium than before, got better substrate (I combined jungle bedding, the gravel, the calci-sand, and crushed up oyster shell and made sure it was moisturized well), got more stuff for them to climb on, got more bowls and got rid of the sponges, added moss and mixed it in with the substrate, and I keep a reptile night light on for them that simulates the moon at night. I recently started turning on the day lightbulb as well just to see if it helps with my predicament.
Basically, before I moved here and changed all those things I had a large critter tank (whatever ya call them) and the same type of substrate without the moss. I had a bowl for freshwater and a bowl for saltwater (I now also have a bowl for food instead of using a shell). I was in my college dorm then. At the point at the end of the school year, I had ten living hermit crabs.
I have had twelve in all. Two died during my months at college (First crabs bought in early March, last month of school was early May). When I get home (I've only been here about three weeks), I get all this stuff set up and even buy new shells for them as well so they have more to choose from. I thoroughly cleaned everything before putting it in the terrarium and I thoroughly cleaned the terrarium before as well (all with hermit-safe stuff and methods).
However, suddenly, I've lost three crabs since coming home. One of which was extremely dear to me. He was my largest one. I also lost a medium one and a very small one (which had just recently finished a molting, so I thought she was doing very okay having survived that well). There are no bug infections in the tank and each time one died, I thoroughly cleaned the tank and everywhere the crab was in it's last moments. I certainly hope that would prevent spread of disease if that's the cause.
Why are these crabs dying so quickly? I don't know what could be wrong. The only explanations I've thought up thus far is possibly getting less sunlight (hence use of the daylight bulb recently) or the overall move from my dorm and a smaller tank to my house and a larger tank. Can anyone else think of any other causes and how to possibly prevent future crab deaths? I really love my hermies!
Questions answered:
What is the volume of your main tank?
10.4 gallons. Once I can find one for a good deal, I plan to upgrade to a 20 gallon at the least (that's the largest allowed in my dorms at the moment. Once I move into an apartment, I plan to get a much larger one).
How many hermit crabs do you currently have? How big are they?
7. I have two very small ones, one inbetween-small-and-medium one, and four medium crabs. Of course, this is all by Earthbound's measurement standards, so they may not be exactly the sizes most crabbers may consider as medium or such. My largest one's leg span is about 2.25 inches.
How long have you had the hermit crab(s) that you are concerned about?
They all have varying times I've had them. The one I've had longest is one of the small ones. I've had her since early March. The rest I've had a little over a month, for the most part.
What substrate or combination of substrates are you using? How deep is it?
I used to use jungle bedding, a small amount of gravel, a small amount of calci-sand, some moss, and a small amount of crushed oyster shell all mixed together. However, recently, I have changed it to a combination of jungle bedding, moss, and coconut fibers. I always keep atleast three inches in my tank, sometimes more.
What do you feed your hermit crabs?
I used to feed them a combination of many different hermit foods, including, but not limited to, two types of pre-made hermit crab foods (these had preservatives), crushed egg shells, freeze-dried fruit, freeze-dried vegetables, dried leaves, and some calcium supplements.
Since I had mixed those all together before, I had to get rid of even the good things. I recently changed it to crushed egg shells, dried shrimp, a calcium block (I looked at the ingredients and it seemed to have no preservatives, getting the powdered calcium was too much on my budget at the moment), dried papaya, dried raisins, and rose hips. I have mealworms but they could mold and such, so I'm saving them for when I can keep a good watch on the food and have a separate bowl to put just those in.
Do you use distilled, bottled or tap water? If you are using a dechlorinator, what brand is it? Does it state to remove all heavy metals, chlorine and chloramines?
I use distilled water. Whenever I clean things, I use tap water with a dechlorinator and stress coat, the brand is API.
What brand of sea salt are you using to supply your hermit crabs with salt water?
I originally used HBH hermit crab salt, but I recently got Oceanic natural sea salt mix
What heat source are you using and where is it positioned?
I am only using a light right now because our house is very hot at the moment. We do not have an AC on this side of the house, so the terrarium has stayed within the temperature range according to my thermometer within the terrarium. During the colder seasons, I also put a heating pad underneath the terrarium.
Have you calibrated your thermometer(s) and hygrometer?
I use a Zoo Med combination thermometer/hygrometer. How do I go about calibrating this?
What is the air temperature range and humidity inside the tank? If you are using an under tank heater, what is the temperature range of the substrate (it is likely to be different to the air temperature range)?
I always stay within the range specified on my thermometer/hydrometer for hermit crabs. Right now, the temperature is 79 and the humidity is 72.
Do you have any photos of your tank or hermit crab(s) of concern? If yes, please attach them to your post.
Sadly, not yet. I plan to take pictures once I have time, but I've been so busy lately!
Recently, I moved back into my home for the summer, got a new, bigger terrarium than before, got better substrate (I combined jungle bedding, the gravel, the calci-sand, and crushed up oyster shell and made sure it was moisturized well), got more stuff for them to climb on, got more bowls and got rid of the sponges, added moss and mixed it in with the substrate, and I keep a reptile night light on for them that simulates the moon at night. I recently started turning on the day lightbulb as well just to see if it helps with my predicament.
Basically, before I moved here and changed all those things I had a large critter tank (whatever ya call them) and the same type of substrate without the moss. I had a bowl for freshwater and a bowl for saltwater (I now also have a bowl for food instead of using a shell). I was in my college dorm then. At the point at the end of the school year, I had ten living hermit crabs.
I have had twelve in all. Two died during my months at college (First crabs bought in early March, last month of school was early May). When I get home (I've only been here about three weeks), I get all this stuff set up and even buy new shells for them as well so they have more to choose from. I thoroughly cleaned everything before putting it in the terrarium and I thoroughly cleaned the terrarium before as well (all with hermit-safe stuff and methods).
However, suddenly, I've lost three crabs since coming home. One of which was extremely dear to me. He was my largest one. I also lost a medium one and a very small one (which had just recently finished a molting, so I thought she was doing very okay having survived that well). There are no bug infections in the tank and each time one died, I thoroughly cleaned the tank and everywhere the crab was in it's last moments. I certainly hope that would prevent spread of disease if that's the cause.
Why are these crabs dying so quickly? I don't know what could be wrong. The only explanations I've thought up thus far is possibly getting less sunlight (hence use of the daylight bulb recently) or the overall move from my dorm and a smaller tank to my house and a larger tank. Can anyone else think of any other causes and how to possibly prevent future crab deaths? I really love my hermies!
Questions answered:
What is the volume of your main tank?
10.4 gallons. Once I can find one for a good deal, I plan to upgrade to a 20 gallon at the least (that's the largest allowed in my dorms at the moment. Once I move into an apartment, I plan to get a much larger one).
How many hermit crabs do you currently have? How big are they?
7. I have two very small ones, one inbetween-small-and-medium one, and four medium crabs. Of course, this is all by Earthbound's measurement standards, so they may not be exactly the sizes most crabbers may consider as medium or such. My largest one's leg span is about 2.25 inches.
How long have you had the hermit crab(s) that you are concerned about?
They all have varying times I've had them. The one I've had longest is one of the small ones. I've had her since early March. The rest I've had a little over a month, for the most part.
What substrate or combination of substrates are you using? How deep is it?
I used to use jungle bedding, a small amount of gravel, a small amount of calci-sand, some moss, and a small amount of crushed oyster shell all mixed together. However, recently, I have changed it to a combination of jungle bedding, moss, and coconut fibers. I always keep atleast three inches in my tank, sometimes more.
What do you feed your hermit crabs?
I used to feed them a combination of many different hermit foods, including, but not limited to, two types of pre-made hermit crab foods (these had preservatives), crushed egg shells, freeze-dried fruit, freeze-dried vegetables, dried leaves, and some calcium supplements.
Since I had mixed those all together before, I had to get rid of even the good things. I recently changed it to crushed egg shells, dried shrimp, a calcium block (I looked at the ingredients and it seemed to have no preservatives, getting the powdered calcium was too much on my budget at the moment), dried papaya, dried raisins, and rose hips. I have mealworms but they could mold and such, so I'm saving them for when I can keep a good watch on the food and have a separate bowl to put just those in.
Do you use distilled, bottled or tap water? If you are using a dechlorinator, what brand is it? Does it state to remove all heavy metals, chlorine and chloramines?
I use distilled water. Whenever I clean things, I use tap water with a dechlorinator and stress coat, the brand is API.
What brand of sea salt are you using to supply your hermit crabs with salt water?
I originally used HBH hermit crab salt, but I recently got Oceanic natural sea salt mix
What heat source are you using and where is it positioned?
I am only using a light right now because our house is very hot at the moment. We do not have an AC on this side of the house, so the terrarium has stayed within the temperature range according to my thermometer within the terrarium. During the colder seasons, I also put a heating pad underneath the terrarium.
Have you calibrated your thermometer(s) and hygrometer?
I use a Zoo Med combination thermometer/hygrometer. How do I go about calibrating this?
What is the air temperature range and humidity inside the tank? If you are using an under tank heater, what is the temperature range of the substrate (it is likely to be different to the air temperature range)?
I always stay within the range specified on my thermometer/hydrometer for hermit crabs. Right now, the temperature is 79 and the humidity is 72.
Do you have any photos of your tank or hermit crab(s) of concern? If yes, please attach them to your post.
Sadly, not yet. I plan to take pictures once I have time, but I've been so busy lately!