To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: xxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Thu, 31 Mar 2005 22:41:26 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
This is a spin-off from Lucky's goldfish method. The idea is that cannibalistic hermit
crabs may be deficient in some type of nutrient. I postulated that it might be vitamin
B12... but now that I know a little bit more from my nutrition class.. it could be
anything!
So, the goldfish method was based on the idea that organ mean (brains and eyes
included) contain high amounts of vitamins and minerals, which is true. And Lucky
reported fewer attacks using this method.
The problem was that some people were not comfortable giving their crabs feeder
goldfish, which is fine as everyone needs to make decisions for themselves....
Well, there might be another answer... we'll need to see if it helps stop cannibalism
though.
Here it is:
"Total" brand cornflakes as a vitamin & mineral supplement. My crabs have already
had some for about a month, off and on, and are doing well. (So, it's safe so far.)
What do you guys think?
Lisa
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Feeding fish to prevent cannibalism
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Julia Crab"
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 2005 14:54:06 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
--- In CrabDr@yahoogroups.com, Crab Researcher wrote:
> Why the switch to silversides? Do they come frozen?
>
People had so much ire and upset from killing innocent goldfish, and
there were so many people that were worried about
disease/bacteria/flukes from sick feeders that we needed to find an
alternative treatment for the whole-animal feed. Z'ava found
silversides first, then I found them at Petco (different company). The
crabs love them, nobody has to kill anything, and people stopped
telling me I was cruel (for murdering feeder fish) or endangering my
crabs (from bacteria/parasites).
Win-win situation!
I personally am of the opinon that crabs are evolved to eat
diseased/infested foods by their very nature and wouldn't be at risk
for some (if not all) of the goldfish diseases. I wrote to Dr.
Greenaway to ask his opinion, but I think he's forgotten to answer. So
in the interests of peace, I switched my recommendation to the
silversides.
Kerie
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Crab Researcher"
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 2005 10:24:31 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Re: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
I'm sorry you had to deal with people saying you were
cruel. That always hurts, especially when you had the
goal to feed what you thought was the best for your
crabs.
Well, I'm glad Z'ava found a very close alternative
that other people can live with too. ..and if the
crabs like it, then why not?
I still don't think it would completely clear up the
danger of bacteria/parasites... as I'm sure the
factory does not hand pick only the healthy one to be
packaged. But they must have some quality control...
or else they would go out of business.
I agree with you Kerie, most animals (if not all to a
certain extent) have an immune system... especially
fortified in the GI tract. Like you said, rotten food
has been on the hermit crab's plate since the
beginning I would assume. Heck, they'll eat a dead
animal carcase for as long as it takes! and they eat
other animals feces for goodness sakes! It's all
about putting things into perspective.... but it's
also about putting the concerns of the hermit crab
owner in perspective as well. Not many owners would
intentionally give their crabs a rotten meal...
Humans as well, have a really immunologically
fortified GI System, and we are still brought down by
salmonella and virulent E. coli.
I guess feeding sick goldfish might be like playing
Russian roulette, but we don't know the odds.
I bet feeding silverside is still Russian roulette,
but with better odds.
Were the odds still acceptable with goldfish? It
depends on who you ask... and we may never know for
sure.
I'm glad it worked out though.
Thanks for bringing me up-to-date.
-Lisa
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Julia Crab"
Date: Sat, 02 Apr 2005 02:01:37 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
--- In CrabDr@yahoogroups.com, Crab Researcher wrote:
> I'm sorry you had to deal with people saying you were
> cruel. That always hurts, especially when you had the
> goal to feed what you thought was the best for your
> crabs.
>
Thanks so much. I really took a lot of flak for this, and I'm still
smarting.
> Well, I'm glad Z'ava found a very close alternative
> that other people can live with too. ..and if the
> crabs like it, then why not?
>
> I still don't think it would completely clear up the
> danger of bacteria/parasites... as I'm sure the
> factory does not hand pick only the healthy one to be
> packaged. But they must have some quality control...
> or else they would go out of business.
>
One of the things that came up in my research is that most bacteria
and parasites are killed by freezing for a week or more, and the
silversides come frozen. I think that the risk of disease from the
pre-killed frozen fish is next to nil. My crabs like to eat the
siilversides as much as they did the goldfish, and eat the same bits
in the same order. And the silversides are salt water fish, so
they've come "pre-soaked."
> I agree with you Kerie, most animals (if not all to a
> certain extent) have an immune system... especially
> fortified in the GI tract. Like you said, rotten food
> has been on the hermit crab's plate since the
> beginning I would assume. Heck, they'll eat a dead
> animal carcase for as long as it takes! and they eat
> other animals feces for goodness sakes!
And what Greenaway has said about the gastric mill, and the things
I've read about it myself suggest that your average fluke or large
parasitical organism wouldn't survive being ground to bits smaller
than a micron. But the fact that bacteria can get into the substrate
and grow could be of concern, so all in all, I think the new fish
meal has worked out for the best all around. Feeder goldfish are,
apparently, notorious for ick, hole-in-head, flukes, blah blah
gross, ad nauseum, just by their very nature and the way they're
raised. They also are apparently not that nutritious to salt water
fish, and depending on them can cause nutrient deficiencies in large
carnivorous fish.
However, I still thought the risk of aggression was worse than the
risk of bacteria. And my crabs really, REALLY love this meal -- they
get so excited to see a whole dead fish in the bowl. Itchy (a small
compressus) always tries to drag the fish off, it's so cute to
watch. It's just nice that we found a happy ending to this conundrum
and I don't have to feel guilty telling people (some of whom are
strict vegans or members of PETA) to execute a couple of goldfish
weekly. It was hard even for me to do, and I've had reptiles and
other animals that eat live food for over 25 years. So I can only
imagine how difficult it was for someone less callous than I.
Good to have you back, Lisa. Let's cure some crab maladies!
From: "Julia Crab"
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 2005 14:54:06 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
--- In CrabDr@yahoogroups.com, Crab Researcher
> Why the switch to silversides? Do they come frozen?
>
People had so much ire and upset from killing innocent goldfish, and
there were so many people that were worried about
disease/bacteria/flukes from sick feeders that we needed to find an
alternative treatment for the whole-animal feed. Z'ava found
silversides first, then I found them at Petco (different company). The
crabs love them, nobody has to kill anything, and people stopped
telling me I was cruel (for murdering feeder fish) or endangering my
crabs (from bacteria/parasites).
Win-win situation!
I personally am of the opinon that crabs are evolved to eat
diseased/infested foods by their very nature and wouldn't be at risk
for some (if not all) of the goldfish diseases. I wrote to Dr.
Greenaway to ask his opinion, but I think he's forgotten to answer. So
in the interests of peace, I switched my recommendation to the
silversides.
Kerie
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Crab Researcher"
Date: Fri, 1 Apr 2005 10:24:31 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Re: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
I'm sorry you had to deal with people saying you were
cruel. That always hurts, especially when you had the
goal to feed what you thought was the best for your
crabs.
Well, I'm glad Z'ava found a very close alternative
that other people can live with too. ..and if the
crabs like it, then why not?
I still don't think it would completely clear up the
danger of bacteria/parasites... as I'm sure the
factory does not hand pick only the healthy one to be
packaged. But they must have some quality control...
or else they would go out of business.
I agree with you Kerie, most animals (if not all to a
certain extent) have an immune system... especially
fortified in the GI tract. Like you said, rotten food
has been on the hermit crab's plate since the
beginning I would assume. Heck, they'll eat a dead
animal carcase for as long as it takes! and they eat
other animals feces for goodness sakes! It's all
about putting things into perspective.... but it's
also about putting the concerns of the hermit crab
owner in perspective as well. Not many owners would
intentionally give their crabs a rotten meal...
Humans as well, have a really immunologically
fortified GI System, and we are still brought down by
salmonella and virulent E. coli.
I guess feeding sick goldfish might be like playing
Russian roulette, but we don't know the odds.
I bet feeding silverside is still Russian roulette,
but with better odds.
Were the odds still acceptable with goldfish? It
depends on who you ask... and we may never know for
sure.
I'm glad it worked out though.
Thanks for bringing me up-to-date.
-Lisa
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Julia Crab"
Date: Sat, 02 Apr 2005 02:01:37 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Re: New Treatment/Prevention Idea for Cannibalism
--- In CrabDr@yahoogroups.com, Crab Researcher
> I'm sorry you had to deal with people saying you were
> cruel. That always hurts, especially when you had the
> goal to feed what you thought was the best for your
> crabs.
>
Thanks so much. I really took a lot of flak for this, and I'm still
smarting.
> Well, I'm glad Z'ava found a very close alternative
> that other people can live with too. ..and if the
> crabs like it, then why not?
>
> I still don't think it would completely clear up the
> danger of bacteria/parasites... as I'm sure the
> factory does not hand pick only the healthy one to be
> packaged. But they must have some quality control...
> or else they would go out of business.
>
One of the things that came up in my research is that most bacteria
and parasites are killed by freezing for a week or more, and the
silversides come frozen. I think that the risk of disease from the
pre-killed frozen fish is next to nil. My crabs like to eat the
siilversides as much as they did the goldfish, and eat the same bits
in the same order. And the silversides are salt water fish, so
they've come "pre-soaked."
> I agree with you Kerie, most animals (if not all to a
> certain extent) have an immune system... especially
> fortified in the GI tract. Like you said, rotten food
> has been on the hermit crab's plate since the
> beginning I would assume. Heck, they'll eat a dead
> animal carcase for as long as it takes! and they eat
> other animals feces for goodness sakes!
And what Greenaway has said about the gastric mill, and the things
I've read about it myself suggest that your average fluke or large
parasitical organism wouldn't survive being ground to bits smaller
than a micron. But the fact that bacteria can get into the substrate
and grow could be of concern, so all in all, I think the new fish
meal has worked out for the best all around. Feeder goldfish are,
apparently, notorious for ick, hole-in-head, flukes, blah blah
gross, ad nauseum, just by their very nature and the way they're
raised. They also are apparently not that nutritious to salt water
fish, and depending on them can cause nutrient deficiencies in large
carnivorous fish.
However, I still thought the risk of aggression was worse than the
risk of bacteria. And my crabs really, REALLY love this meal -- they
get so excited to see a whole dead fish in the bowl. Itchy (a small
compressus) always tries to drag the fish off, it's so cute to
watch. It's just nice that we found a happy ending to this conundrum
and I don't have to feel guilty telling people (some of whom are
strict vegans or members of PETA) to execute a couple of goldfish
weekly. It was hard even for me to do, and I've had reptiles and
other animals that eat live food for over 25 years. So I can only
imagine how difficult it was for someone less callous than I.
Good to have you back, Lisa. Let's cure some crab maladies!
Molt problems and vitamin B12
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2005 02:20:33 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] NEW IDEA --B12--
What if crabs who did not do well after a molt were deficient in vitamin B12? B12 is used to help synthesis DNA during cell division. A lack of B12 would stop the proliferation of cells needed just after a molt. This could cause what looked like a pause in the post-molt recovery.
The easiest sources of B12 are found in milk, meat, and eggs. I don't know if it is bad to feed crabs milk, but I'm just going to knock out that option for now.
Vitamin B12 is also degraded with excess heat. I bet that hermit crab food and other manufactured pet foods would be more prone to loose the B12 during cooking and processing. Therefore, if vitamin B12 were not fortified in these foods, they could be deficient.
It may be a good idea to supplement the diet with B12. There are some water treatments for coral reefs that contain B12. I would suggest putting B12 in a dish of water of the crabs, or putting the supplement on the food.
Emily, you may want to try treating your crab with vitamin B12, or using an antibiotic that contains B12 like "saltwater Maracyn-Two" which is theoretically nontoxic to invertebrates. (Your crab may also be suffering from a bacterial infection.)
Here's a link to giving antibiotics: http://tinyurl.com/58ywb
I'm trying this myself right now on a crab with similar symptoms. I'll be sure to write in more detail later, but my dad is visiting and there is less time available at the moment.
-Lisa
From: xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 24 Jan 2005 02:20:33 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] NEW IDEA --B12--
What if crabs who did not do well after a molt were deficient in vitamin B12? B12 is used to help synthesis DNA during cell division. A lack of B12 would stop the proliferation of cells needed just after a molt. This could cause what looked like a pause in the post-molt recovery.
The easiest sources of B12 are found in milk, meat, and eggs. I don't know if it is bad to feed crabs milk, but I'm just going to knock out that option for now.
Vitamin B12 is also degraded with excess heat. I bet that hermit crab food and other manufactured pet foods would be more prone to loose the B12 during cooking and processing. Therefore, if vitamin B12 were not fortified in these foods, they could be deficient.
It may be a good idea to supplement the diet with B12. There are some water treatments for coral reefs that contain B12. I would suggest putting B12 in a dish of water of the crabs, or putting the supplement on the food.
Emily, you may want to try treating your crab with vitamin B12, or using an antibiotic that contains B12 like "saltwater Maracyn-Two" which is theoretically nontoxic to invertebrates. (Your crab may also be suffering from a bacterial infection.)
Here's a link to giving antibiotics: http://tinyurl.com/58ywb
I'm trying this myself right now on a crab with similar symptoms. I'll be sure to write in more detail later, but my dad is visiting and there is less time available at the moment.
-Lisa
Medicinal bath for general sickness
Here's how I would suggest doing this:
1) Making the medicinal bath water (which you will make fresh each treatment):
A. The water needs to be the temperature of the crabitat, or about75-80 degrees.
B. You will need to add the appropriate amount of stress coat, or dechlorinater, to purify the water.
C. You will need to add 1tsp -1/2 tbs sea salt per cup of water to recreate the salinity of the hermit crabs natural shell water, which is about as salty as the ocean. (Burrgren & McMahon, 1988).
D. You will need to add the medicine (antibiotic or Mela Fix) and do some math to figure out how to get the dosage right for the amount of bath water you want to create.
2) Treating the Crab
A. Bath the crab as normal, but leave it in the bath water for five minutes or so. (I have seen my crabs voluntarily give themselves a bath for up to 30 minutes.. so they will be fine under water for 5minutes)
B. Do this to the crab once a day, around the same time, for three to seven days. Antibiotics should be administered for seven days (or as long as is indicated on the product label.) This may be hard on hermit crabs, to be bathed seven days in a row... so use your own judgment. Also, if your crab buries... you may not want to disturb him for another bath (AS LONG AS HE HAS BEEN BATHED AT LEAST 3 DAYS IN A ROW, then you can decide to discontinue or not)
C. You may decide you want to use the treated bath water in their water dish as well. This is a good idea... as ideally, the antibiotics or Mela Fix should be given continuously. The only drawback is that you will need to remove the other crabs, so they do not drink the medicinal water. You'll want to only treat the sick crab(because once you start treatment you will need to continue for at least 3 days so you don't create resistant bacterial strains.)
1) Making the medicinal bath water (which you will make fresh each treatment):
A. The water needs to be the temperature of the crabitat, or about75-80 degrees.
B. You will need to add the appropriate amount of stress coat, or dechlorinater, to purify the water.
C. You will need to add 1tsp -1/2 tbs sea salt per cup of water to recreate the salinity of the hermit crabs natural shell water, which is about as salty as the ocean. (Burrgren & McMahon, 1988).
D. You will need to add the medicine (antibiotic or Mela Fix) and do some math to figure out how to get the dosage right for the amount of bath water you want to create.
2) Treating the Crab
A. Bath the crab as normal, but leave it in the bath water for five minutes or so. (I have seen my crabs voluntarily give themselves a bath for up to 30 minutes.. so they will be fine under water for 5minutes)
B. Do this to the crab once a day, around the same time, for three to seven days. Antibiotics should be administered for seven days (or as long as is indicated on the product label.) This may be hard on hermit crabs, to be bathed seven days in a row... so use your own judgment. Also, if your crab buries... you may not want to disturb him for another bath (AS LONG AS HE HAS BEEN BATHED AT LEAST 3 DAYS IN A ROW, then you can decide to discontinue or not)
C. You may decide you want to use the treated bath water in their water dish as well. This is a good idea... as ideally, the antibiotics or Mela Fix should be given continuously. The only drawback is that you will need to remove the other crabs, so they do not drink the medicinal water. You'll want to only treat the sick crab(because once you start treatment you will need to continue for at least 3 days so you don't create resistant bacterial strains.)
Mites vs. eucalyptus
I've heard from crabbers that a mite spray for reptiles that contains eucalyptus will kill mites and is fine for hermit crabs.
Mites vs. mites
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: "Julia Crab" xxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 2005 22:57:24 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Mite Treatment Article
Hi!
I think my experiment is finished, so here's a copy of the article Ijust posted on CSJ:
Mites: Friend or Foe?
The Happy Tale of Hypoaspis Miles
Two months ago, during deep clean, I took my largest compressus,Houdini, out of the tank, turned him over to have a look, and a red...thing fell out of his shell. I couldn't believe it! Mites!Huge, red mites. Houdini had a few, Fifi had some, and poor Ghidra,a pre-molt rugosus, was covered with them.
I was appalled. I inspect new crabs when I get them for mites, and have never seen any. The only explanation I have is that these mites, being a bright red color, must have snuck in on some of the perlatus – they are the same color red. I have seen these mites on my gray crabs, the brown ones and the beige ones, and still haven't seen them on the perlatus. My eyes are just not good enough to find them on the red crabs.
Another thing that made me think these mites came from the perlatus was that they were completely unfazed by a prolonged salt water bath. Mites are supposed to float off the crabs, and if they were another type of mite, perhaps they would have. But they held on to the setae for five minutes under the water and never a one floated up. It seems to me that if they were perlatus mites, they would be used to being dragged into the ocean for long periods of time, as the perlatus love to go swimming.
It didn't really matter where the mites came from, however; just the fact that they were present was a problem enough. My tank is 120gallons, some of the wood doesn't fit in the oven (or can be baked safely). The mites wouldn't come off with a regular salt bath. I've read post after post of people who seem to have perennial mite problems; no matter how hard and well they deep-clean, the mites come back again and again.
Then I found two of the smallest crabs, dead in the substrate. I don't know for sure, but I suspect the mites may have either drained them dry or stressed them so badly during premolt that they couldn't survive. Either way, I had a real problem on my hands.
I looked around on the Web for days, trying to find a solution. I found some things that looked interesting and perhaps useful, like Zoo-Med's Mite-Off, but couldn't get a good answer about whether or not the products would harm the crabs. I know all about insecticides, organic and chemical, but I don't know anything about electrically-charged colloids. I don't know what they would do to the crabs, but I couldn't take a chance. Not this time, anyway. I figured I'd save the Mite-Off as a drastic last resort.
Then I came across something really interesting, that had occurred to me before, but I didn't want to try first: predatory mites. I read on several sites that people use a common soil-dwelling mite predator to combat snake mites and other mites on reptiles and arachnids. The species of mite is even one I had used in my auntie's greenhouse to kill root aphids and thrips: Hypoaspis miles (which shall be called Hypos for short from now on).
Finding evidence that other exotic animal owners had used Hypos successfully, I logged on to my beneficial insect supplier and ordered one bottle of 12,500.
From: http://www.entomology.wisc.edu/mbcn/kyf302.html, a description of H. miles and their commercial use:
Know Your Friends
Hypoaspis miles, A Predatory Mite Hypoaspis miles is a soil-dwelling, predatory mite that is native to the United States. Hypoaspis feeds on fungus gnats, springtails,thrips pupae, and other small insects in the soil. The mite is 0.5mm (1/50 inch) long and light-brown in color. It inhabits the top1/2 inch layer of soil. Females lay eggs in the soil which hatch into nymphs in 1 to 2 days. Nymphs develop into adults in 5 to 6days. The life cycle takes approximately 7 to 11 days.Both nymphs and adults feed on soil-inhabiting arthropods, consuming up to 5 prey per day. They survive by feeding on algae and/or plant debris when insects aren't available. Both males and females are present, but males are smaller and rarely seen.Hypoaspis is well adapted to moist conditions in greenhouses in a variety of growing media, but does not tolerate standing water.Hypoaspis is currently used in greenhouses for control of fungus gnats. It feeds on the young fungus gnat eggs and small larvae and is most effective when applied before fungus gnat populations become established or when populations are low. It has been successfully used in bedding plant production, potted plants, and poinsettia stock plants. The mite is formulated in a pasteurized peat mixture for commercial use. They are usually sold in 1 liter containers,which contain approximately 10,000 mites of all life stages.Containers include a shaker lid which allows for distribution over the soil surface, after which Hypoaspis will burrow into the soil.One application can establish a mite population for an entire growing season under optimal conditions. A recommended application rate from IPM Laboratories, Inc. is 1 liter container per 1000 ft2.In vegetable production, recommended applications rates for cucumbers are 4 to 8 liters per 50,000 ft2 and 10 to 12 liters per50,000 ft2 for tomatoes, with applications being made when young plants are set out in the greenhouse.
Hypoaspsis will also attack thrips pupae in the soil, but cannot be relied on for thrips control alone in a commercial greenhouse. It may, however, enchance biological control when used in conjunction with predators feeding on thrips on the foliage. In small-scale experiments this mite reduced emergence of adult thrips to about 30%of that in controls.As with all purchased natural enemies, it is important to ascertain the quality and/or presence of mites in the container. You can do this by placing a small sample on a sheet of white paper, and examining it with a 10-15X hand lens to look for the quick-moving mites. Hypoaspis moves well on soil surfaces, so it is unnecessary to apply to all surfaces. Although they will move between plants inpots, at least every second plant should be treated. Application needs to be made early enough to allow the mite to spread. They won't move throughout an entire greenhouse from a single introduction point. Hypoaspis doesn't survive below the top 1/2 inchof soil, so mixing mites into the growing media prior to potting isnot recommended. In addition, Hypoaspis doesn't store very well;therefore it should be released immediately upon arrival. The mite is compatible with insect-parasitic nematodes, such as Steinernemacarpocapsae and S. feltiae, and Gnatrol, the biorational insecticide containing Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis.
- Raymond A. Cloyd, Purdue University
When I used Hypos in my auntie's greenhouse, I was astonished to see them still there two years later. This is because my auntie used hydroponics, and the medium was washed and sterilized after each growing season. And yet these hardy little insects were still managing to recolonize the individual gallon pots she kept her vegetables in. It was amazing, and I was very impressed by how persistent these little helper bugs were.
Since I had experience with them, and how and on what they feed, Iwas not worried they'd attack my crabs. They don't even eat adult insects their own size, just the larvae. There is absolutely no way these specialized little fellows were going to be able to hurt the crabs. Furthermore, they only live in the top half inch ofsubstrate, so they won't bother buried molters – as I found out just today when Mothra came up from his burrow in the main tank. He still had a couple of mites on him, but I digress...
I received my mites about a week and a half later. The shipping was more expensive than the mites themselves, as the insects need to be shipped overnight. But, 12,500 mites is less than $30. With shipping, I was out $68. I think that's a bargain for the results I got.
At first, I was very conservative with the treatment plan. The mite container can keep the mites alive for about two weeks, so you can spread out your treatment. I put a clamshell of carrier, which was wood chips (small chips, not shavings) in one ISO, two in Ghidra'sISO, and three large ones in the main tank in strategic locations.Wouldn't you know, one of the rugosus decided to snack on the mite carrier. No big deal, it wouldn't be insecticidal, as it's a carrier for insects. At least Camo got some cellulose that way, and a good dose of Hypos. Later that same day, Itchy galloped through one of the bigger dishes, and I saw her scoot off to spread the love. I rubbed my hands together with glee.
By the end of the two week period, I decided it's better, when treating a mite infestation, to do two large treatment doses over the two week period, and put as many Hypos into a tank as feasible in one shot. It seemed to work better with more Hypos added to the tank at one time.
I used Ghidra as my main subject, as I knew exactly where she was in a small tank, and she was the worst affected by the mites. She literally had dozens of them on her, poor thing, and was just miserable. Daily, I would check her while the treatment was going on. During that time, I got impatient with the Hypos' slowness (this being the main drawback of using natural pest control in this manner) and started using a hand mister of salt water to lightly spray the mites off the crab. Held over a bowl of salt water, they would fall off, and be unable to escape, and I could drown them allin the sink when it was over. A great many adult mites died in this fashion; this is a good thing, as the Hypos won't eat the adults,except in extremes. Daily, fewer adult mites showed up on Ghidra. Ihave checked her a total of three times in the past two weeks, as she is in premolt and I don't want to bother her unduly, and she hasbeen mite-free all that time. After six full weeks of using Hypos in her tank, I think I can confidently say that Hypoaspis miles are without a doubt, the most efficient, cost-effective, non-labor-intensive mite treatment of them all.
So, my recommended treatment plan for mites is as follows:
1) Order Hypoaspis miles from:
http://www.shopgreenmethods.com/
Put "Hypoaspis miles" in the quick search box, and the Hypos will come up, Item Number CHM125C. Wait patiently for your order, but prepare in the meantime.
2) Daily until the order arrives, hand mist each crab over a bowl of salt water to remove any visible adult mites.
3) When the mites arrive, set up a humid place to keep the container – even in the crabitat, with the lid on, would work. I put mine on top of a bookshelf, inside a plastic garbage bag with a wet sea sponge, with the mouth of the bag hanging down over the shelf, so that air could circulate, but the humidity would stay inside.
4) Lightly dampen your substrate, should it be dry. The mites do better in damp conditions.
5) Place shells or bowls full of carrier around the tank or tanks,about half the total bottle. I would recommend sprinkling it around,but that could set up a mold problem, and would make cleaning the substrate harder in the end. If you use incandescent or heat lighting, do this during the cooler night cycle, so the mites have time to disperse.Leave the shell or dish of carrier in until then ext treatment, in about a week.
6) Continue to mist the crabs during the treatment that have visible mites, to remove them. This is much better than stressing out a crab with an unwanted, long, ineffective bath.
7) In one week, remove the old carrier dishes and replace with new ones, using up the remaining mites in the jar.
8) See number 6.
9) In one week, remove the remaining carrier.
10) Wait patiently. In about a month or so, all crabs above the substrate should be mite-free. Mites are not long-lived species, so the ones that have escaped being removed manually will die of natural causes. The Hypos are there for the eggs and larvae.
My substrate is sand, which worked well, but for people with organic substrate like coconut fiber, I think this will work better, faster,and for longer, by the very nature of the Hypos themselves.
All in all, I am very pleased with this treatment, and I recommend it very highly. Though you can shop around for Hypos from other vendors, the Green Spot is one of the least expensive, and they always send live insects. Some of the other dealers don't always ship live ones.
Got mites? Get some more, but get the right mites for the job: Hypoaspis miles.
Main Address
The Green Spot, Ltd.93 Priest Rd.
Nottingham, NH 03290-6204 USA
Contact Means
Dept. of Bio-Ingenuity
Tel: 603 942-8925
Fax: 603 942-8932
Email: Info@GreenMethods.com
Domains: GreenMethods.com & GreenMethodsForum.com
Kerie
From: "Julia Crab" xxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sun, 24 Apr 2005 22:57:24 -0000
Subject: [CrabDr] Mite Treatment Article
Hi!
I think my experiment is finished, so here's a copy of the article Ijust posted on CSJ:
Mites: Friend or Foe?
The Happy Tale of Hypoaspis Miles
Two months ago, during deep clean, I took my largest compressus,Houdini, out of the tank, turned him over to have a look, and a red...thing fell out of his shell. I couldn't believe it! Mites!Huge, red mites. Houdini had a few, Fifi had some, and poor Ghidra,a pre-molt rugosus, was covered with them.
I was appalled. I inspect new crabs when I get them for mites, and have never seen any. The only explanation I have is that these mites, being a bright red color, must have snuck in on some of the perlatus – they are the same color red. I have seen these mites on my gray crabs, the brown ones and the beige ones, and still haven't seen them on the perlatus. My eyes are just not good enough to find them on the red crabs.
Another thing that made me think these mites came from the perlatus was that they were completely unfazed by a prolonged salt water bath. Mites are supposed to float off the crabs, and if they were another type of mite, perhaps they would have. But they held on to the setae for five minutes under the water and never a one floated up. It seems to me that if they were perlatus mites, they would be used to being dragged into the ocean for long periods of time, as the perlatus love to go swimming.
It didn't really matter where the mites came from, however; just the fact that they were present was a problem enough. My tank is 120gallons, some of the wood doesn't fit in the oven (or can be baked safely). The mites wouldn't come off with a regular salt bath. I've read post after post of people who seem to have perennial mite problems; no matter how hard and well they deep-clean, the mites come back again and again.
Then I found two of the smallest crabs, dead in the substrate. I don't know for sure, but I suspect the mites may have either drained them dry or stressed them so badly during premolt that they couldn't survive. Either way, I had a real problem on my hands.
I looked around on the Web for days, trying to find a solution. I found some things that looked interesting and perhaps useful, like Zoo-Med's Mite-Off, but couldn't get a good answer about whether or not the products would harm the crabs. I know all about insecticides, organic and chemical, but I don't know anything about electrically-charged colloids. I don't know what they would do to the crabs, but I couldn't take a chance. Not this time, anyway. I figured I'd save the Mite-Off as a drastic last resort.
Then I came across something really interesting, that had occurred to me before, but I didn't want to try first: predatory mites. I read on several sites that people use a common soil-dwelling mite predator to combat snake mites and other mites on reptiles and arachnids. The species of mite is even one I had used in my auntie's greenhouse to kill root aphids and thrips: Hypoaspis miles (which shall be called Hypos for short from now on).
Finding evidence that other exotic animal owners had used Hypos successfully, I logged on to my beneficial insect supplier and ordered one bottle of 12,500.
From: http://www.entomology.wisc.edu/mbcn/kyf302.html, a description of H. miles and their commercial use:
Know Your Friends
Hypoaspis miles, A Predatory Mite Hypoaspis miles is a soil-dwelling, predatory mite that is native to the United States. Hypoaspis feeds on fungus gnats, springtails,thrips pupae, and other small insects in the soil. The mite is 0.5mm (1/50 inch) long and light-brown in color. It inhabits the top1/2 inch layer of soil. Females lay eggs in the soil which hatch into nymphs in 1 to 2 days. Nymphs develop into adults in 5 to 6days. The life cycle takes approximately 7 to 11 days.Both nymphs and adults feed on soil-inhabiting arthropods, consuming up to 5 prey per day. They survive by feeding on algae and/or plant debris when insects aren't available. Both males and females are present, but males are smaller and rarely seen.Hypoaspis is well adapted to moist conditions in greenhouses in a variety of growing media, but does not tolerate standing water.Hypoaspis is currently used in greenhouses for control of fungus gnats. It feeds on the young fungus gnat eggs and small larvae and is most effective when applied before fungus gnat populations become established or when populations are low. It has been successfully used in bedding plant production, potted plants, and poinsettia stock plants. The mite is formulated in a pasteurized peat mixture for commercial use. They are usually sold in 1 liter containers,which contain approximately 10,000 mites of all life stages.Containers include a shaker lid which allows for distribution over the soil surface, after which Hypoaspis will burrow into the soil.One application can establish a mite population for an entire growing season under optimal conditions. A recommended application rate from IPM Laboratories, Inc. is 1 liter container per 1000 ft2.In vegetable production, recommended applications rates for cucumbers are 4 to 8 liters per 50,000 ft2 and 10 to 12 liters per50,000 ft2 for tomatoes, with applications being made when young plants are set out in the greenhouse.
Hypoaspsis will also attack thrips pupae in the soil, but cannot be relied on for thrips control alone in a commercial greenhouse. It may, however, enchance biological control when used in conjunction with predators feeding on thrips on the foliage. In small-scale experiments this mite reduced emergence of adult thrips to about 30%of that in controls.As with all purchased natural enemies, it is important to ascertain the quality and/or presence of mites in the container. You can do this by placing a small sample on a sheet of white paper, and examining it with a 10-15X hand lens to look for the quick-moving mites. Hypoaspis moves well on soil surfaces, so it is unnecessary to apply to all surfaces. Although they will move between plants inpots, at least every second plant should be treated. Application needs to be made early enough to allow the mite to spread. They won't move throughout an entire greenhouse from a single introduction point. Hypoaspis doesn't survive below the top 1/2 inchof soil, so mixing mites into the growing media prior to potting isnot recommended. In addition, Hypoaspis doesn't store very well;therefore it should be released immediately upon arrival. The mite is compatible with insect-parasitic nematodes, such as Steinernemacarpocapsae and S. feltiae, and Gnatrol, the biorational insecticide containing Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis.
- Raymond A. Cloyd, Purdue University
When I used Hypos in my auntie's greenhouse, I was astonished to see them still there two years later. This is because my auntie used hydroponics, and the medium was washed and sterilized after each growing season. And yet these hardy little insects were still managing to recolonize the individual gallon pots she kept her vegetables in. It was amazing, and I was very impressed by how persistent these little helper bugs were.
Since I had experience with them, and how and on what they feed, Iwas not worried they'd attack my crabs. They don't even eat adult insects their own size, just the larvae. There is absolutely no way these specialized little fellows were going to be able to hurt the crabs. Furthermore, they only live in the top half inch ofsubstrate, so they won't bother buried molters – as I found out just today when Mothra came up from his burrow in the main tank. He still had a couple of mites on him, but I digress...
I received my mites about a week and a half later. The shipping was more expensive than the mites themselves, as the insects need to be shipped overnight. But, 12,500 mites is less than $30. With shipping, I was out $68. I think that's a bargain for the results I got.
At first, I was very conservative with the treatment plan. The mite container can keep the mites alive for about two weeks, so you can spread out your treatment. I put a clamshell of carrier, which was wood chips (small chips, not shavings) in one ISO, two in Ghidra'sISO, and three large ones in the main tank in strategic locations.Wouldn't you know, one of the rugosus decided to snack on the mite carrier. No big deal, it wouldn't be insecticidal, as it's a carrier for insects. At least Camo got some cellulose that way, and a good dose of Hypos. Later that same day, Itchy galloped through one of the bigger dishes, and I saw her scoot off to spread the love. I rubbed my hands together with glee.
By the end of the two week period, I decided it's better, when treating a mite infestation, to do two large treatment doses over the two week period, and put as many Hypos into a tank as feasible in one shot. It seemed to work better with more Hypos added to the tank at one time.
I used Ghidra as my main subject, as I knew exactly where she was in a small tank, and she was the worst affected by the mites. She literally had dozens of them on her, poor thing, and was just miserable. Daily, I would check her while the treatment was going on. During that time, I got impatient with the Hypos' slowness (this being the main drawback of using natural pest control in this manner) and started using a hand mister of salt water to lightly spray the mites off the crab. Held over a bowl of salt water, they would fall off, and be unable to escape, and I could drown them allin the sink when it was over. A great many adult mites died in this fashion; this is a good thing, as the Hypos won't eat the adults,except in extremes. Daily, fewer adult mites showed up on Ghidra. Ihave checked her a total of three times in the past two weeks, as she is in premolt and I don't want to bother her unduly, and she hasbeen mite-free all that time. After six full weeks of using Hypos in her tank, I think I can confidently say that Hypoaspis miles are without a doubt, the most efficient, cost-effective, non-labor-intensive mite treatment of them all.
So, my recommended treatment plan for mites is as follows:
1) Order Hypoaspis miles from:
http://www.shopgreenmethods.com/
Put "Hypoaspis miles" in the quick search box, and the Hypos will come up, Item Number CHM125C. Wait patiently for your order, but prepare in the meantime.
2) Daily until the order arrives, hand mist each crab over a bowl of salt water to remove any visible adult mites.
3) When the mites arrive, set up a humid place to keep the container – even in the crabitat, with the lid on, would work. I put mine on top of a bookshelf, inside a plastic garbage bag with a wet sea sponge, with the mouth of the bag hanging down over the shelf, so that air could circulate, but the humidity would stay inside.
4) Lightly dampen your substrate, should it be dry. The mites do better in damp conditions.
5) Place shells or bowls full of carrier around the tank or tanks,about half the total bottle. I would recommend sprinkling it around,but that could set up a mold problem, and would make cleaning the substrate harder in the end. If you use incandescent or heat lighting, do this during the cooler night cycle, so the mites have time to disperse.Leave the shell or dish of carrier in until then ext treatment, in about a week.
6) Continue to mist the crabs during the treatment that have visible mites, to remove them. This is much better than stressing out a crab with an unwanted, long, ineffective bath.
7) In one week, remove the old carrier dishes and replace with new ones, using up the remaining mites in the jar.
8) See number 6.
9) In one week, remove the remaining carrier.
10) Wait patiently. In about a month or so, all crabs above the substrate should be mite-free. Mites are not long-lived species, so the ones that have escaped being removed manually will die of natural causes. The Hypos are there for the eggs and larvae.
My substrate is sand, which worked well, but for people with organic substrate like coconut fiber, I think this will work better, faster,and for longer, by the very nature of the Hypos themselves.
All in all, I am very pleased with this treatment, and I recommend it very highly. Though you can shop around for Hypos from other vendors, the Green Spot is one of the least expensive, and they always send live insects. Some of the other dealers don't always ship live ones.
Got mites? Get some more, but get the right mites for the job: Hypoaspis miles.
Main Address
The Green Spot, Ltd.93 Priest Rd.
Nottingham, NH 03290-6204 USA
Contact Means
Dept. of Bio-Ingenuity
Tel: 603 942-8925
Fax: 603 942-8932
Email: Info@GreenMethods.com
Domains: GreenMethods.com & GreenMethodsForum.com
Kerie
Streaking, naked (without shell)
Background:
It seems streaking is caused by dehydration, a salt imbalance, and/or sickness.
Hermit crabs will naturally hang out of their shell to dry off some of their shell water to make it more concentrated (saltier). Maybe streaking is an extreme form of this behavior that happens when the hermit crab has lost too much body salt and is unable to keep its shell water salty. (This could be caused by too many fresh water baths, or not enough access to a salt source.) Hermit crabs are not that well adapted for life on land so use their shell water to help regulate their bodies chemistry.
The idea of this treatment is to recreate the shell water and re-hydrate the crab at the same time, hopefully allowing the crab to bring it's chemistry back to normal levels.
Initially, water gain is the priority. A crab without a shell will dry out very quickly, and has probably lost a lot of water already before you discovered it.
Step 1
Rinse a cup several times to get off any residual dish washing detergent. Place the naked crab in the cup with a little fresh water treated with dechlorinator at 75-80 degrees. Not enough water to cover the crab, but enough that it submerges most of the length of its legs, but not the thorax. Offer a shell that is the right size to slightly smaller than usual. Cover the cup with plastic wrap and poke only a few holes for air flow. This will increase the humidity and make it easier for the crab to breath and become re-hydrated. Then place a hand towel over the cup to create a dark environment that will decrease the stress on the crab. Allow the crab to find the shell, or place the crab's tail in the shell to encourage its reentry (if the crab does not do it on its own). The crab may take from 30 minutes to an hour to get back in a shell. Let the crab rest in the shell for 30 minutes to an hour before filling the shell with sea salt water. If the crab has still resisted the shell after 2 hours, then replace the fresh water with sea salt water in the cup.
Step 2
Sea salt water can be made from 1tsp-1/2 tbs sea salt per cup water. Mix it well and make sure it is about the same temperature as the crab (75-80). Either dunk the crab w/shell into the sea salt water or pour the water into the shell. Do not let this step last too long as it is important to limit handling, which stresses the crab.However, if the crab is not yet in a shell, please replace the fresh water in the cup with sea salt water. Cover the cup with the plastic wrap and towel. Check it periodically to see if the crab has entered a shell, or if it will go in one with your help. Once it's in a shell, start at the top of step 2. If the crab has not moved into a shell, it is up to you if you would like to do. You can modify step 3 if you like, or try something different.
Step3
Empty out the cup but for the smallest amount of fresh water it takes to cover the bottom. Replace the salted crab into the cup without spilling too much shell water. Replace plastic wrap and hand towel. Leave the crab undisturbed for 12 hrs (or overnight). If the crab is active (or at least responsive to movements), its chances of survival are good. If it is hardly moving at all, you can continue to let it sit in the cup or try something else you can think of. Either way, it is good to keep the crab in the cup for another half day to let it rest. It has been shown that crabs take longer than 24 hours to fully recover from dehydration. (Don't worry about feeding the crab)
Step 4
Depending on which environment is better, place the crab back in the main tank or in an iso tank. Continue to monitor the crabs progress and be sure to put the crab in the fresh water and salt water dishes daily. After about 1 week, or after the crab has regained its full activity level, you may return to your normal general care routine.
It seems streaking is caused by dehydration, a salt imbalance, and/or sickness.
Hermit crabs will naturally hang out of their shell to dry off some of their shell water to make it more concentrated (saltier). Maybe streaking is an extreme form of this behavior that happens when the hermit crab has lost too much body salt and is unable to keep its shell water salty. (This could be caused by too many fresh water baths, or not enough access to a salt source.) Hermit crabs are not that well adapted for life on land so use their shell water to help regulate their bodies chemistry.
The idea of this treatment is to recreate the shell water and re-hydrate the crab at the same time, hopefully allowing the crab to bring it's chemistry back to normal levels.
Initially, water gain is the priority. A crab without a shell will dry out very quickly, and has probably lost a lot of water already before you discovered it.
Step 1
Rinse a cup several times to get off any residual dish washing detergent. Place the naked crab in the cup with a little fresh water treated with dechlorinator at 75-80 degrees. Not enough water to cover the crab, but enough that it submerges most of the length of its legs, but not the thorax. Offer a shell that is the right size to slightly smaller than usual. Cover the cup with plastic wrap and poke only a few holes for air flow. This will increase the humidity and make it easier for the crab to breath and become re-hydrated. Then place a hand towel over the cup to create a dark environment that will decrease the stress on the crab. Allow the crab to find the shell, or place the crab's tail in the shell to encourage its reentry (if the crab does not do it on its own). The crab may take from 30 minutes to an hour to get back in a shell. Let the crab rest in the shell for 30 minutes to an hour before filling the shell with sea salt water. If the crab has still resisted the shell after 2 hours, then replace the fresh water with sea salt water in the cup.
Step 2
Sea salt water can be made from 1tsp-1/2 tbs sea salt per cup water. Mix it well and make sure it is about the same temperature as the crab (75-80). Either dunk the crab w/shell into the sea salt water or pour the water into the shell. Do not let this step last too long as it is important to limit handling, which stresses the crab.However, if the crab is not yet in a shell, please replace the fresh water in the cup with sea salt water. Cover the cup with the plastic wrap and towel. Check it periodically to see if the crab has entered a shell, or if it will go in one with your help. Once it's in a shell, start at the top of step 2. If the crab has not moved into a shell, it is up to you if you would like to do. You can modify step 3 if you like, or try something different.
Step3
Empty out the cup but for the smallest amount of fresh water it takes to cover the bottom. Replace the salted crab into the cup without spilling too much shell water. Replace plastic wrap and hand towel. Leave the crab undisturbed for 12 hrs (or overnight). If the crab is active (or at least responsive to movements), its chances of survival are good. If it is hardly moving at all, you can continue to let it sit in the cup or try something else you can think of. Either way, it is good to keep the crab in the cup for another half day to let it rest. It has been shown that crabs take longer than 24 hours to fully recover from dehydration. (Don't worry about feeding the crab)
Step 4
Depending on which environment is better, place the crab back in the main tank or in an iso tank. Continue to monitor the crabs progress and be sure to put the crab in the fresh water and salt water dishes daily. After about 1 week, or after the crab has regained its full activity level, you may return to your normal general care routine.
Overheated hermie, frothing, brown liquid
This may be hard to advise in general. It depends on the temperature of the pet store and the temperature of the crab at present. Either way, try to cool down the crab very slowly. You could cool it back down to the temp in the pet store, but it may not need to go down that far. Maybe cooling down the crab to the midpoint of the two extremes will be enough. For example, if the pet store is at 65 degrees and your crabitat is at 75,, then cool the crab back down to 70 degrees. But remember to do this very slowly, probably over a few hours.
Deformed limbs
The crab should be able to straighten it out during the next molt, provided the right conditions: moist, humid, safe, dark, and peaceful.
Stuck in old exoskeleton
To: CrabDr@yahoogroups.com
From: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 1 Mar 2004 22:36:40 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Re: [CrabDr] IMPORTANT: Molting+Spring Break
I have no ideas of my own about hermies stuck in their
old exo... but I'll show you the site where I learned
all that I know about it:
The website is copy protected so you will need to pass
your cursor over "Land Hermit Crabs" in the left
column and then scroll down the pop-up list to the
very bottom... to "Surgery". Click on this and then
read the article.
http://www.hermhtcrabhappy.moonfruit.com/
Basically, you will need to very carefully take away
the old exo tiny piece by tiny piece.
Please read the whole article before doing anything
drastic.
I've also heard through the grape vine, that FMR
recommend soaking the crab's legs in water to try and
soften up the exo.
This means you will need to take Groucho with you for
the six days to better his chance of survival.
From: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Mon, 1 Mar 2004 22:36:40 -0800 (PST)
Subject: Re: [CrabDr] IMPORTANT: Molting+Spring Break
I have no ideas of my own about hermies stuck in their
old exo... but I'll show you the site where I learned
all that I know about it:
The website is copy protected so you will need to pass
your cursor over "Land Hermit Crabs" in the left
column and then scroll down the pop-up list to the
very bottom... to "Surgery". Click on this and then
read the article.
http://www.hermhtcrabhappy.moonfruit.com/
Basically, you will need to very carefully take away
the old exo tiny piece by tiny piece.
Please read the whole article before doing anything
drastic.
I've also heard through the grape vine, that FMR
recommend soaking the crab's legs in water to try and
soften up the exo.
This means you will need to take Groucho with you for
the six days to better his chance of survival.
Dropping limbs
Bathe the hermit crab in luke warm water (77-80 degrees F, 25-27 degrees C) and leave the water in its shell when you take it out of the bath. Check the bath water for mites, and repeat baths with fresh water until all mites are gone if necessary. Increase the the humidity as much as possible by misting the sides of the tank and closing the tank, but for a tiny crack (you may need to use plastic wrap). Keep the tank between 70 and 85 degrees F, or between 21 and 29 degrees C. Hand feed crab occasionally in the evening and morning if the feeder and big pincher claws are both missing. Otherwise keep the crab relatively stress free. This is also the time to prevent the crab's tank mates from loosing limbs by upping the moister. Continue this treatment until the hermit crab has molted. If many limbs are lost, the crab will molt sooner than it was planning on, so nutrition is important as well as access to fresh and salt water( the crab will first grow small limb buds then molt). If the crab only lost one or a few limbs, then the limb buds will develop first to a small size and then pause. Once the limbs begin to grow again, the crab is just about to molt. If the crab lost the limb(s) as it was getting ready to molt, then it will molt before any limb buds form and they will grow back during the next molt. If the substrate goes bad because the tank humidity is so high, just replace it, but keep the crabs in a high humidity environment at all times
Fudgesicle dropping limbs
Name: Sarah
Yahoo ID: xxxxxxxx
Crab Name: Fudgesicle
Crab Type: cavipes
Crab Height At Eye: 1in
Captive Time: 1-2Months
Sickness Time: 1Day
Autotomy: yes
Hanging Out Shell: yes
Other Symptoms:
Have Done To Help?: Removed crab from demitting playpen (never had mites but was in an infected tank so I bathed all crabs 3x a day for 3 days) into an ISO with play sand substrate, 78% humidity, 78*
Crab's Reaction: Dropped two more legs within four hours; died within eight.
Treatment Date: 6/7/05
Should Do Differently: No.
Comments: He had been normally active, eating and drinking the night before at 2 am. I found him minus one leg at 10 am and removed him from the pen. He was gone by the evening. I think he was from an overly stressed band of crabs; I lost three of five from his purchase group. I got them at Petco 6 weeks ago.
Yahoo ID: xxxxxxxx
Crab Name: Fudgesicle
Crab Type: cavipes
Crab Height At Eye: 1in
Captive Time: 1-2Months
Sickness Time: 1Day
Autotomy: yes
Hanging Out Shell: yes
Other Symptoms:
Have Done To Help?: Removed crab from demitting playpen (never had mites but was in an infected tank so I bathed all crabs 3x a day for 3 days) into an ISO with play sand substrate, 78% humidity, 78*
Crab's Reaction: Dropped two more legs within four hours; died within eight.
Treatment Date: 6/7/05
Should Do Differently: No.
Comments: He had been normally active, eating and drinking the night before at 2 am. I found him minus one leg at 10 am and removed him from the pen. He was gone by the evening. I think he was from an overly stressed band of crabs; I lost three of five from his purchase group. I got them at Petco 6 weeks ago.
Nutritional Support for Pale Color
The crab may be getting ready for a molt, and/or its diet may have an inadequate supply of carotenoids (vitamin A), which can been found in dark green leafy veggies, carrots, pumpkin, squash, sweet potatoes, etc.
Please comment if you have had any experience with this.
Please comment if you have had any experience with this.
Aquatic antibiotics for an infection
If the wounds smells bad, try treating with an aquatic antibiotic like tetracycline. Use as directed to create bath water and submerge the crab several time a day for the duration of the prescribed treatment. Or just dab the wound with the treated water as often as possible for the full duration. Also separate the injured crab from the others and treat only its drinking water with the antibiotics. A good idea would be to mix a gallon of treated water and use that until the directions of the package say to add another dose, at which point, you would create a new gallon batch (or whatever volume is most convenient). Make sure the antibiotic that you choose is safe for invertebrates.
Please comment if you have had any experience with this.
Please comment if you have had any experience with this.
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