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the tepm is fine and he has about 15-17 differnt shells. he's being running around the cage naked all morning! what do i do and why is this going on? i read you can rince the crab to get the sand off & his old shell. next put both in a galss cup and leave it. they say it will go back in it's shell this way. dose anyone know if this is true?? i don't want to kill it. thank you for your time.

2007-03-25 07:02:34 · 7 answers · asked by rblankenship_rblankenship 5 in Pets Other - Pets

7 answers

This could or could not be serious. Check your hermit crab's coloring. Is he pale? If he is, I'm sorry to tell you this, but he might be very sick and possibly dying (I lost a hermit crab the same way because he refused to move out of his shell!). Make sure that you have many different sizes of shells.

The only reason your hermit crab will move from its shell is if it is too small or he has found one he likes better.

DO NOT put him in a glass cup with the shell. This will only stress out the animal and he may not even move back into his shell. He could also become dehydrated if you do this.

Make sure all the shells you have in his cage are different sizes and are clean. Try washing them all off if they're a bit sandy or dirty.

Just watch and make sure your hermit crab is still eating and drinking, and keep him out of drafty places or places exposed to sunlight. Put him in a corner and put a towel over his cage if it has an open or screened top. This will help keep him warm!

Contact me if you need any more help!

I hope this helps! Good luck!

2007-03-25 07:11:19 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2 0

HELP! My Crab is NAKED!!

Though it's your first instinct, don't panic. Run your hands under water to remove any perfume and/or hand lotion. Try the GLASS CUP METHOD. . Take the nudie crab and dip him in water to wash the substrate off him. Then rinse out his old shell. Put him and his shell into a glass cup together, and put into the isolation tank and leave him alone. It keeps him from running around frantically (as naked crabbies do) and conserves his energy. Besides he is in close quarters with his shell and can't walk away from it. I've been using this method for two years now, successfully.

A second method is to calmly pick up the naked crab and dip him (and his shell of choice) into dechlorinated, Stress Coat treated water and, using your finger, try to gently curl his abdomen into the shell. If he doesn't like the idea, use your fingertip to rap him a little on the head and 'scare' him into withdrawing. If he pops out of the shell, set him into the bath water and take a good look at the shell. Put your fingertip down inside it to make sure there are no protrusions or anything which would irritate or poke his abdomen. Then, try again to get him into the shell. If you still don't have success, try a new shell the same size as his previous shell. If that doesn't work, get him into a shell that is larger. Do not under any circumstances force him into a shell that it too small or uncomfortable for him. He is already under tremendous stress, and forcing him into an unsuitable shell may put him into shock and eventually death.

But WHY?
It is my experience that crabs streak (go naked) because of the following things:

Shell Fights
"Shell fights occasionally occur among wild and pet hermit crabs and can often be detected because of chirping sounds. From a position slightly above the defending crab's shell, an attacking crab seizes the defending crab with its walking legs and rapidly rotates it back and forth. While doing this, the attacker's claws are usually inside the opening of the defending crab's shell. This shaking often drives the defending crab from the shell that the attacker wants. Practically leaping out of its shell, the loser waits and enters the victor's shell. Typically, neither crab is harmed and both might get a better-fitting shell." Taken from Hermit Crabs: A Complete Pet Owner's Manual, by Sue Fox

Environment Too Hot
I've seen crabs have sequential shell fights down the 'intra-tank-pecking-order' until the weakest crab was left naked. This was because the air in the tank got so hot that the crabs required a thinner shell to aide in cooling their abdomens. Keep a close watch on the temperature -- 78 degrees is warm enough to overheat a hermit crab.

The Unexplained
Sometimes a crab will go naked for no immediately obvious reason. In that case, you must examine your entire method of crab-keeping. The crab would not be naked if something weren't amiss. Go back and look for any possible stressors, in particular the temperature and humidity. Also be sure you are bathing the crabs no more than once a week (twice a week in desert climes).

2007-03-25 15:09:47 · answer #2 · answered by brandi9976 3 · 1 0

I would just put about five different sized shells in his cage. He is looking for a larger shell. Make sure they are all rinsed out and nothing is in them.I would also go to some kind of vet website to see if they would know if it was sick.
Best of luck to you and your crab,
roo_toto

2007-03-25 07:20:07 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0 0

it might have outgrown its old shell. so for a while it's not going to be in a shell until it finds another one. no need to worry. or it might just not have liked its old shell and is looking for a new one. just keep all the shells in the cage so it can find a new one. and in about a day or sooner it will have found one.

2007-03-25 07:07:13 · answer #4 · answered by glamorous 2 · 0 0

I am sorry, but I am not sure if this is true or not. You can probably find the answer if you research books, magazines, and the internet. If you still can not find adequate information, contact a veterinarian.

2007-03-25 07:53:27 · answer #5 · answered by TaCaBu 2 · 0 0

don't freak. Maybe he is molting. Sometimes they do that. I would just watch him closely and just let him be.

2007-03-25 07:07:12 · answer #6 · answered by tropikanagirl 3 · 0 0

he will cone out of his shell so it dont matter

2007-03-25 07:31:04 · answer #7 · answered by Jessica H 1 · 0 0

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