Red Clawed Crab Newbie

[Shyartist]

Hi all, I bought 2 crabs from a pet store that told me they were freshwater crabs and after researching them, they are now in a 10 gal devoted tank with a large land mass and brackish water. The male Loves it, but the female may just be beyond saving at this point...

A little background.. they were in my 60 gal guppy tank for about 5 days while I constructed their tank, the male nipped off her left claw and I think she went into shock or something because she just got really sluggish, last night she did not move at all so I put her into the shelter thinking that maybe she got thrown into a molt, she is not stiff and no fishy smell (yet), but I am still wondering and worrying.

also what is the correct way to feed these guys, I put a bit of frozen brine shrimp into the water but the male shows no interest and final question..
should I put a reptile heater on the side of the tank where the sand is? It is rather wet and I dont want them getting cold.

Thanks for any and all help!

 

[sophiegackowski]

Hi all, I bought 2 crabs from a pet store that told me they were freshwater crabs and after researching them, they are now in a 10 gal devoted tank with a large land mass and brackish water. The male Loves it, but the female may just be beyond saving at this point...

A little background.. they were in my 60 gal guppy tank for about 5 days while I constructed their tank, the male nipped off her left claw and I think she went into shock or something because she just got really sluggish, last night she did not move at all so I put her into the shelter thinking that maybe she got thrown into a molt, she is not stiff and no fishy smell (yet), but I am still wondering and worrying.

also what is the correct way to feed these guys, I put a bit of frozen brine shrimp into the water but the male shows no interest and final question..
should I put a reptile heater on the side of the tank where the sand is? It is rather wet and I dont want them getting cold.

Thanks for any and all help!

Hi shyartist,

I'm no expert but I've been researching these little creatures for a while. Basically there is no "right" way to feed them, other than when they're young they need and prefer more protein in the form of krill and bloodworms, lancefish etc. However as they mature they live on almost a purely vegetarian diet. You might try some boiled lettuce or spinach, or even chuck in some live plants that they may snack on as they please.

As for your poor female, the best thing is to leave her be, try not to stress her out too much. If the male is aggressive perhaps you could buy a sheet of glass to part them? If she is moulting and seems to be taking too long, or seems to be unwell, speed up the process by adding some iodine or more calcium to their diet (dill weed is good).

Sorry I can't be of more help. Good luck!


oh and also, you shouldn't have to worry about a heater outside of the heater you have in the water: the humidity created by the warm water should be creating the right conditions for them.

 

[Shyartist]

Thank you for the reply, unfortunatly the female died, but I think it was more the conditions that she was kept in at the store rather than anything I did, the male is still doing well, I will do a small amount of bloodworms today, hopefully he will start to eat.