Final Update: PLEASE READ!

  Hello my beloved followers and viewers, its great to be on here again.
I have been keeping up on comments via phone and am still so warmed to see how many people out there love these little guys and seek help on care, from me!

  It breaks my heart to tell you all a few pieces of news involving my crabbies and this blog.

Firstly, I will not be posting anymore for reasons listed below. Unless I discover some news on care, on availability/popularity/anything at all on them I will no longer be putting up new posts. I WILL HOWEVER KEEP THIS UP and keep answering any and all questions. I did keep and love these guys for years. I am so happy to give anyone the help and correspondence they need. PLEASE DONT FORGET everything you need to know is here! I have posts about housing, care, everything I could think of!

Secondly, In October I woke in the middle of the night to many strange noises going on in my room, I got up to check everyone (I also have other noturnal creatures in my room) to find that Bubbles was dragging Jack into a hide. THIS IS NOT A GOOD SIGN. I quickly grabbed him away from her and shooed her into the burrow and away. Jack was limp. I put him into a bin for examination and he was sadly dead. Beyond any sort of help, Bubbles had attacked him and crushed much of the front left of his carapace along with im assuming eating some of his legs, as they were completely missing.
  It is my educated guess that he had been mid molt, and Bubbles (being the nasty aggressive meany she always was) took advantage to get him. Normally id attribute this to hunger, but they were always very WELL fed. *sigh*

The Last part of this news is that I then rehomed Bubbles. As much as I love these creatures I am too emotional. It made me so mad at her, Jack had been the sweet one. Still timid but he at least came out, showed himself and observed me. She made me SO MAD. I decided it would be best to rehome her, put her with someone who would give her the care and attention she deserved. I know they cant understand when were yelling and angry at them, they arent dogs. But i was literally calling her foul names every time i misted/fed/changed water.... It was best to give her a loving home.

In conclusion the quick facts are that no, I no longer own these animals. But I did nothing wrong in their care to cause this. And I am still keeping this blog up and tuned so that anyone who needs help and info can get it!! its linked to my email, I will see you commented, I will answer when I can. 

Thank you to my few followers and the many people i have connected with because of this blog. I hope it continues to help people!

Long time, No post!

Its been a while crabbie people! My laptops fan took a poo, so I am currently typing on it from atop an old box fan. Ghetto/redneck fix, but it works! Anyways that's why I haven't been on.

I DO have update pics and info though!
My crabs have tripled in size since February when I got them, and I couldn't be happier. They kind of scare me now with how big their claws are. I'm still doing a false bottom enclosure, but with a good 6 inches of sand to dig in, I have come to terms with that my crabs are super diggers and need it. They also are terrible tank re decorators.
I'm still feeding them a mix of fresh fruit and greens, dried red shrimp, crab pellets, millet, and occasional mealies. They are still provided with a bowl each of fresh (bottled spring) water and salt (bottled spring with a measure of hermie salt) water. Their substrate is mainly sand, with a bit of soil mix in the bottom, kept moist at all times with a false rainfall every evening. I scoop their droppings as i see them and change sand about once a month.
I keep a 50watt red bulb on at all times, in a room that's between 76-79 so that their tank temp is approx 86 surface. I DO NOT keep a under tank heater or heat pad, they need a place to escape the heat.
I do not really handle them. They can cause injury to themselves if they pinch, do not let go, and walk away. or in the struggle to get away can damage their legs or eyes. I would like to some day... but I don't see it happening any time soon.

Both of mine have molted at least 5 times now! and I see them out just about every night. (see photos, compared Boo's first and only preserved molt to them now)

Learning tips:
Tip #1- DONT FREAK OUT. Calm the eff down, Its taken me a long time to learn this. However its a great tip when dealing with these, especially ones like mine that are fresh caught youngins. Its imperative you and your crabs that you (excuse my french) keep your shit together. I cant even begin to explain how many times I up and lost it before during and after Boo's death, though her dying did help me to chill a bit. You stressing doesn't help you or your crabs one bit. The more you stress; the more you bother them to make sure they're okay, the more they stress, and the quicker they may die or get sick! Take it from me and leave them be, let them do their thing. Jack is finally starting to get used to me passing by the tank everyday, occasionally he still runs, but something he does stay out and notices I DON'T HURT HIM. I'm not a bird, i'm not going to eat him. Bubbles is still kind of a spaz... but I think thats just her personality.
Tip #2- Provide them with both fresh and salt water no matter what. Though scientific research on the animal shows that they mainly go to sea only to reproduce, they do wander to the sea on occasion. And my crabs seem to enjoy "tasting" the salt water and taking a quick dip in it. I always keep their sand moist with fresh though as thats what they wet their gills with daily. You will not be able to breed your crabs, so it may not seem like you should have salt water, but trust me they like it and it doesnt hurt.
Tip #3- If they havent been seen in a week or so, let them go! Do not dig them out! They are probably preparing to molt. Care sheets and websites on them estimate it may only take a week or so but the process can be so much longer. Recently a crab owner emailed me asking for advice and it reminded me how long its been since I updated and rewrote my learnings. Your crab may only be "pretty" for a week or two at a time and look ugly and ready to molt the rest. Your crab may take 3 weeks to molt. or they could only be ugly for a few days and molt and be done within a week, It varies by crab depending on their care and the crab itself'... it also varies per molt. Bubbles will disappear for weeks and not even molt.
Now if its been more than 4 weeks and you are really worried they dug away and died, DONT DIG THEM OUT just yet, take a thin reed, a chopstick, or something long and thin and not metal, poke it around in the substrate gently. if you hear scuttling, they are fine leave them be! Keep in mind not to handle them after they resurface, sometimes they stay under to harden and other times they dont. Jack molted above ground in plain view before!

Well thats it for now, this got lengthy... PIC TIME!

Jack (Left) and Bubbles (Right) fighting for the best spot to hide during tank day.

Jackie Boy <3 Look at those claws!

Bubbles =] Please ignore the sand on her one eye, she wouldn't let me rinse her well.

Jack posing all cute

Last one, you can really see his mouth well here. 

I guess thats all for now! Ill try to think of anything new I should post about. FYI I post a lot of Jack and not a lot of Bubbles because shes a spaz and he stays still very well.

Fresh Molts and False Bottoms: How Im trying to get them to bury less and come out more.

  For those of you who have followed my blog, You know my crabs by name. Female, Bubbles: Male, Jack.
For those of you who haven't, there you go! Haha, also for those who have yet to read any of this, I am not an expert. I do not claim to be an expert. What you will read here is what I know from my now 4 or so months experience with these animals and with what research I've done. I also dont claim what I do is right regardless, it just has worked for me. What will be posted here in this post and in others has included my experiments to try different things, my trial and error if you will.

On to this post.
  Jack has molted for a second time, and is BEAUTIFUL. Bubbles still has yet to molt at all. Supposedly they will stop eating a few days to a week before molting, well shes still eating steadily. But she looks so awful! Just wait until you see the photos I will post at the bottom. I would think I am doing something wrong, but Jack looks lovely. I'm still chalking it up to she needs to molt bad.
  I also am starting to devise a plan to get the to come out more, bury less, and hopefully not run ina nd hide the second I come in the room. Id like to actually see them more. and eventually tame them. From what weve deduced, they are wild caught (greeeeaaaat), and will probably take a long time to adjust period.
  What Ive done (shown sort of in photos) is turned over the container I used to try running water previously, and put some large heavy rocks to make a graduating side. The crabs naturally will go down slopes to find water so I would like to keep a gradient of land. The rocks are large and heavy enough that they cannot move them or get under them. 

First Attempt at False Base (as of Sept 2012 or so I put a later of Plexiglass down too)

  

I then put down my soil layer (already shown above), and layered in a sand/soil mixture as my substrate, I think its not as pretty or clean looking as plain sand, but it makes stronger burrows and holds moisture better than just sand. I bury in small terracotta pots for hides and give them a little leeway on sand so they can close themselves in as they molt since there are two of them, and add decoration.

  I make sure to bury the water dishes for ease of access. It makes it harder on me, but easier for them haha. We will see how this works and I will post an update in a few weeks. I generally do a deep clean once a month, but have done it more often recently bc of changing tanks and all those running water problems *sigh*

Now on to the pictures of the crabs!

 Jack, about to take a dip in some fresh water.

Freshly Molted!

So cute.

Bubbles, being defensive.

She just needs to molt already... so little.

Thats all for now. Hope you liked the photos!

Update: No More Running water

 Well, The water didnt work out.
Nutshell: It leaked. I dont know why but it wasnt the container itself. I have switched back to water bowls.
Im also now in a 20 gallon. The boyrfriend wanted his 30 breeder back, and with 2 crabs I didnt need all that room. They seem to like it.
Bubbles will not be shown, shes juuuust about to molt so all i did with her today was pull her out to put in new sand, and put her back in.
Jack is WONDERFUL. Beautiful. Nice dark back with bright white spots, bright red orange underside and legs, gorgeous purple claws. Hes looking super healthy =D Success!!
Now I can only hope Bubbles first molt goes smoothly.

Pictures below- New tank, and Jack!

A Death in the Family

  I am saddened to say, my midsize female has passed. We left her in a separate container as noted in the previous post and treated her as live, but she began to stink horrible and bloat to the point of *gag* explosion. I think she died that day when I moved her, when she stopped clicking. I still feel like it was my fault, I shouldn't have moved her. But she also may have been eaten or still died in her fragile state regardless. Im taking this as a learning experience, and hope when Bubbles molts (because Jack did already underground and completely ate his shell) that she stays underground too and doesnt surface and scare the crap out of me.
  As far as the 1/4 tank goes, it was a flop (also noted in previous post). The crabs at the moment are in a 10 gallon with natural plant food free topsoil. Due to some transportation and time errors, and a walmart employee being an idiot, I could not get the natural play sand I like. Soil will have to do and I think I like it, but am still gonna stick with sand (or mostly sand) when I get the 30 gal breeder up and running again.
  The 30 gallon got freshly scrubbed, sanitized, and detoxed today. As did everything that usually resides within, all is prepared to be set up when I can get out to Home Depot for sand. This time, I am still doing running water but in the safe and kinda redneck way... Let me explain.
 I went to walmart, and got a 97 cent tupperware shoe box. It holds 6 quarts, and fits perfectly in the tank i have with room on the end for my salt water dish. I cut the top off, making it 3 inches deep, and smoothed the edges with a lighter. Hopefully when it all comes together it looks okay, if not oh well ill live. Im planning on hooking up the filter as i did before, just now its in a REMOVABLE and CAULKLESS section that will be easier to drain and clean... not to mention completely nontoxic!

 ] I will take this time to mention yet again, that this is my first time owning these crabs, I have had them since February and am learning as I go. I decided to do this blog because of the lack of good info out there, and post how I work with my crabs and what I think may work best. They are known in pet trade to die quickly and be tricky, so you get to learn along with me. I AM IN NO WAY SHAPE OR FORM SAYING WHAT I KNOW IS BEST. As you can see in this post and last post, I screwed up. I am not perfect and am not a pro. This is just my adventure with an animal that I think makes a pretty neat pet. [

 Until next time readers... I hope this is helping people.

^ Jack, My big strong boy ^

Trouble in Paradise

Okay, so this gets a little complicated down the line. But I feel the need to write this as it happened last night.
-For reference, Jack is my male, the biggest. Boo is my medium female, missing two back legs. Bubbles is my small female. All are generally the same size but I can tell the difference.-
 The water side was a flop, about 24+ hours after the water was put in, there was an inch drop in waterline and it went into the sand. I had to do what I could to drain it and lay stone so they could walk around.

  On to the point of this post... Last night I am on my way to bed, and i hear a loud strange clicking. Now these crabs make noises, you hear their legs walking on hard things, you hear them digging and scraping or snapping their claws, but they also click. This was not a normal click. So I looked in and saw Jack laying awkwardly on the sand. legs in normal curved matter, but tilted flat. Mouth and front laying flat. He was the one clicking so strange.
Now I was worried, then I turn on the light and theres little to no orange color to him. I immediately think of the caulk, did some of the chemicals seep into the water that got into his sand?! They wet their gills with puddled water in the sand sometimes. Oh no!! I gently scooted him onto a piece of paper, and transferred him to a lidded container with a hide. I sprayed him with water to moisten the container and him and watched him go more and more limp, and heard the clicking slow and then stop. Did I kill him!? I had to get the others out (if the sand was poisoned they soon would be too!)
 So I start digging and find... a bright red orange crab.. Jack? Jacks the only one with red orange. Bubbles is the only other one with all legs... but this ones so big and shiny and with a soft shell, Bubbles must have molted! Transferred the REAL Jack to a separate container, rocks, dish of water, hide, misted. Hes fine.
 So I dig for my third... and find a tiny crab. Bubbles?! Boo was never that teeny. Oh my word I am a bad crab mommy who cant tell her crabs apart. In truth and reality it was BOO who was dying next to me... with all her legs? She must have molted... Sure enough after all crabs were in their containers, i found her entire old shell. =( What have I done?
  -You are not to handle a crab after molting. Molting is stressful to the animal and commonly makes them extremely lethargic until their insides expand and their shell hardens. Handling during molting may cause death-  and I handled her... and I moved her!
  Currently. They are all still in separate containers, not ideal size or substrate. Not ideal at all. But I have no more sand and am not moving Boo. Boo is still appearing dead. her eyes are mostly sunken in, still not moving. I feel terrible. Like a horrible person, I should never have touched them but I still fear the sand may be toxic and dont want to risk that. I dont dare touch Boo for a couple days to a week, to be sure she is dead or to be sure she is alive and regaining strength. It can take them time to strengthen. Until then I wont bother her. just look in through the side. This is what the molt looks like:

1/4 Tank: Accomplished.

Can I just let out a big YAYYY!!!!
Tonight we successfully assembled my homemade (kinda ghetto) 1/4 tank.
 Basically, we dug the crabs out, and stuck them each in a separate lidded container with moist paper towel and a hide for the next 24 hours. Tossed all the sand (BAD IDEA, but Good Idea), and cleaned my 30 breeder out. We cut a rectangle of 3 inch high plexiglass to fit as a waterproof barrier, and sealed with caulk... white ... caulk.
Ideal? not so much. Does it work and was it free? Absolutely. We set that in place, sealed it and waited. And then just tonight set it all up! It was a good idea to toss all the sand bc it was stankkyyy.
Bad idea because... Im low on sand! As of right now they dont have quite enough, but theres enough to cover the hides and bottom so it will do. I made sure to use multi sized stones in the water, with places to climb out. the filter is turned into a bit of a waterfall.
Here it is!:

Update: The caulk is crap and is peeling. but the water isnt leaking or anything... yet. I plan to get more sand, get my hands on some better and CLEAR caulking. and re do it when i can!