# Poor thing!



## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

My Halloween crab has just moulted today and its awful - the poor little thing has two legs on one side and none on the other! I'm wondering if I ought to just put the poor thing out if its misery? I don't want it to suffer.... Anyone have any thoughts on this? (I saw that there was a similar posting...)


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## chompy (Mar 24, 2006)

I think ciddian just had the exact same problem not too long ago


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## wtac (Mar 17, 2006)

IMHO, it's a simple creature on an evolutionary scale with the only insticts to eat, excrete and reproduce. Assuming that you have everything it needs to thrive and survive I wouldn't worry about it. Sure s/he looks horrible but without predators, I don't think it's suffering at all other than limited mobility. Again point A to point B; where it is to where the food and water is...LOL.

Please don't take my post as a negative one. Just a different look at the whole picture . 

JM2C


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## Thistle (Jun 4, 2006)

Aye, Ciddian's critters had the same problem not too long ago.

Would be nice to find out what's causing them to molt like that cause it sure sounds "awful".


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

Hi rebeccah!

Yes i am having the exact same problem... My female (pale colours) had a bad molt and lost all but three legs.. Two on one side and one on the other.

Then just last week my male burrowed down and went into molt.. In which he actually died..  He was alive for a while with lots of missing legs and never hardened. 

I was really upset about it and worried about thier quality of life.. However my female is still doing well and missing legs are showing some regeneration. 

Here are some things you might wanna feed if you do end up keeping him/her..
Make sure they always have some cuddlebone (ovalwhite thing found in birds, just ask for it  ) 
Noori has been mentioned wich is dried seaweed.. and kelp which can be found in 'some' pet stores i think or health food stores.

I do hope everything works out for you, whatever you decide to do. Post any concerns you have okie


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## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

*Thanks*

If I can gauge gender by colour, I'm gonna go with mine being a male, becuz he's very bright. My concern is that he's spending a huge amount of time in the water right now (uncommon for him) and his remaining legs (and claws) don't seem to be hardening (his body, out of the water, is firming up). When I've nudged him out to eat, he takes a bit then heads straight back to the water. As for cuttlebone, he won't eat it. I've actually given him some gut loaded crickets when they die (I had a lizard too) which he's really enjoyed, and he'll eat a bit, altho not much, kelp. I'm looking for a home for him as I'm moving, and I know it sounds awful, but this makes it harder becuz there was very little interest before and now.... *sigh*


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## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

*Harsh*

I don't know how to not take your post as a negative one. I think that's a very harsh viewpoint for a pet owner. I noticed on your web page that you don't show any invertebrate expertise, so I'm wondering where the assertion that he's fine is coming from...


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## Thistle (Jun 4, 2006)

The only info I could find on moon crabs states that they must have both fresh and salt water. The salt water they use to help them "expand" in preparation for molting.

If they don't have that is it possible that that's why the legs get stuck during molting and get pulled off?


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

Do you have a site addy Thistle? I had a hard time finding sites before... I could use more reading


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## Thistle (Jun 4, 2006)

http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/crabclub/message/403

I do believe this was the site, not a lot of info but at least it's something.


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## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

I hadn't heard about the requirement for both water types. From what I've been able to find, it seems that the legs pulling off is the result of a lack of calcium and the crab rushing for some reason. But now that you've mentioned it, I'm going to poke around on the net and see what else I can find - thanks!


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## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

Just realized that you said moon crabs - I've noticed that while some people use the terms moon and halloween interchangeably, they are in fact two different types of crabs (discovered that when I started looking for info on my guy). So is it possible that moon crabs need both water types but halloweens don't?


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## Canadiancray (Apr 27, 2006)

If they are the crabs I am thinking about they are a member of the Geosesarma species.

http://www.garnalenkweker.nl/geosesarma_sp.htm

http://www.interaquaristik.de/catalog/index.php?xC=Krabben

They don't require salt water for anything. Given the correct diet & water conditions the crab will completely regrow all lost limbs.


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## Thistle (Jun 4, 2006)

More links:

http://www.easyinsects.co.uk/site/content/view/22/29/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crab

I got tons of hits when I googled using the scientific name: Gecarcinus quadratus

Really need pics of these guys to see what it matches up to. I found another site that referred to the gecarcinus quadratus as the mangrove crab. *sigh*


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

These are the crabs i have.. Sold to me as "moon crabs" 
I go by the name halloween now.. as i kept getting them mixed up with the sw version.

Male (the set up was made to match the one on Thistle's link)








Female


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## Thistle (Jun 4, 2006)

So it's possible that the moon grab and the halloween crab are the same critter?

Methinks this is when the scientific name is more useful. lol


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## wtac (Mar 17, 2006)

Rebeccah said:


> My Halloween crab has just moulted today and its awful - the poor little thing has two legs on one side and none on the other! I'm wondering if I ought to just put the poor thing out if its misery? I don't want it to suffer.... Anyone have any thoughts on this? (I saw that there was a similar posting...)
> 
> I don't know how to not take your post as a negative one. I think that's a very harsh viewpoint for a pet owner. I noticed on your web page that you don't show any invertebrate expertise, so I'm wondering where the assertion that he's fine is coming from...


Rebeccah, we got off on the wrong foot. I understand how you feel as text based communication does take away expression, especially from my reply. I feel bad about your crab, I honestly do. All I as trying to express was a through a separation of the human element. My invert/crustacean experience comes from the marine aspect of the hobby (import/export/hobbiest) as well as associations made through courses in university such as invertebrate zoology and evolutionary biology.

When you mentioned that putting it down because you thought it was suffering, all I was trying to express was from the viewpoint of that crab;

"Am I really suffering?"

Removing predator-prey relationship, generalization of crab-crustacea behaviour and the "isolated" environment the crab is in, I personally assess that it's not suffering it as it has everything it needs for it's survival that you have provided.

I do apologise that my reply was taken negatively.


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

The nice thing too.. Is now that it is in a safe place it has time to regrow its legs. 

Interesting thing is Wilson is that rebeccah only has the one. So i guess that rids the idea of a rushed molt from another interfearing crab.


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## Canadiancray (Apr 27, 2006)

There are many factors that can cause bad molts.

...too much food (I'm serious)
...Ammonia & Nitrite levels even nitrate to a lesser
...water hardness plays a big part. The harder the better
...Dissolved oxygen level in the water.
...Fish depending on size can pester the crab during a molt.

and and and..........


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## Ciddian (Mar 15, 2006)

When it comes down to the water checks i dont know what much else to do. My crabbies dont hang out in the water much at all.. I've even stayed up at night to see if they go for a night dip.

When my boy went to molt he burried himself up into his cave for almost two weeks....I never saw him soak or anything.. Blah.. never keeping them again till i can find out whats up. i'll take in all the advice given and see if there is a change with my females next molt.. That is if i dont loose her.


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## Rebeccah (Sep 12, 2006)

From what I can find online, Moon and Halloween crabs aren't the same critter, but people use the names interchangeably for some strange reason. So its difficult to tell which is which - I just know that I see both types of crab under both names (altho fortunately it seems they're only trading two back and forth). As for the water, my guy was never really all that interested in it until it was time to moult and then he didn't have any interest in being anywhere else. But my guy seems to be a bit odd compared to others, becuz he's also never had much interest in burrowing - I have a silk plant in there with him, and he prefers to just excavate and bit and then hide behind it, rather than burrow down in the substrate. I had a more traditional set-up for him and had to change it around a bit to accomodate his preferences lol. Whether I've got a moon crab or a halloween crab, it matches the above photos of the bright orange and purple fella. *shrug* I think once I move, I may steer clear of these guys again until I can find more info...


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## Canadiancray (Apr 27, 2006)

For good info check out this site.

www.crusta10.de


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