Back to square one

     Two days after resurfacing Chloe has gone back to normal routine; climbing, eating, and some more climbing. I saw her resting for a bit before she went right back to her crazy hermit crab antics. It's great that she is still active for that was one of the things I was worried about but I've noticed she seems to be a little more unsure of me than before her molt. I'm not taking it too seriously, perhaps after a couple of weeks of not seeing me she needs to get to know me again? Also, I really want to get some new pictures of Chloe but I am waiting for the right time.

     Besides that, I really hope she's okay without another hermie in the tank. I'm not ready to adopt one quiet yet and I'm still not sure if I had done something wrong with Prada who was fine one day and died the next. As I said before, I'll figure it out. For the time being it'll just be Chloe and I. 

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

    

Hey you~

     I could not sleep last night for the life of me and I completely blame it on coffee I decided to drink at nine o'clock. Seriously, I watched movies and ate. Last time I remember looking at the time it was five in the morning. However I slept for the most important three hours of the night! Chloe had dug herself out and changed shells ^^ I'm so happy to see my little energizer bunny moving around and swapping shells until she finds the right one. 

     Chloe has definitely gotten bigger and her coloring is more vibrant, closer to red. I can finally really see her instead of peeking in from time to time. I noticed her quickly move into the hut and reemerge as if she was looking for Prada which made me sad. I'm still not sure if I should get her a friend or not; so nervous they will fight.

     Well, besides that, I was sure to get some pictures of her new little exoskeleton and shell to which she switched three times before staying with it for the time being. Now that she is bigger I will have to revamp the shells inside the ten gallon tank soon but since she just come out from her "den" I want to give her some time to readjust before taking her out to do a deep clean on the tank. 

There she is next to her old shell. This picture isn't the best for her size but like I said I am giving her some much needed time before cleaning the sand out and getting better photos.

 

     I'm so happy and excited I don't know what to do with myself, my little baby is getting so big TT^TT I'm going to have to take a picture showing off the shells she was in from the time I bought her to now soon :)

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Little Action

     Well, its been three days since my last post and I am still completely sad about losing Prada and Louis, which is too be expected. Having no activity in my crabitat only makes me sadder everyday. Chloe has yet to resurface and notice she's all lone however I checked on her this morning and she seems to have started digging to come out from under the driftwood. 
     I'll be happy when she does but at the same time I wonder if I should get her a new friend just so she isn't lonely. Although if they fight I'll have to return the new one... I'll wait it out. That brings back memories of my very first hermit crab, Hermes. 
     I'll keep you posted on Chloe but until she comes up from her molting my updates will be far and in between. 

Until next time,
Pearl Popping~

Better place: RIP Prada

     After coming home from work and walking into my room I was greeted by a fishy odor, I almost cried. I knew right away it was Prada. I removed the fake plants and dishes to get a better view of her to which I saw she never had moved and lifted her up. She didn't fall out of her shell but after testing her limbs I noticed they were weak and moved too easily with my touch. I'm so depressed and have no idea what I did wrong, if I did anything wrong... 

     More questions enter my head; was she walking like that because she was in fact missing a claw or was it something else I didn't notice? Is it the food I gave them? The play sand I placed inside the crabitat? That damn tree?! Every since I bought it two of my babies have passed on. Just to be on the safe side I removed it for now; what if Chloe decides to resurface now and climbs all over it only to die by morning? 

     I'm completely heart broken and am really paying close attention to Chloe now. Since she is molting she's extremely weak and I don't want another dead crab. 

I hope you're eating the largest bowl of raisins right now, Prada :{

      That was my favorite picture of my little girl, I really caught her beautiful red coloring. 

Here is a video by expert village that states how to tell if your hermit crab is in fact dead.

Molting?!

     Wow, don't I feel like an idiot... I came home from work today and checked on my babies only to see that Chloe is molting now. This means that about a week ago she was just preparing, go figure. I also looked for Prada, who was very active last night, and saw her sitting behind the tree I just placed inside the crabitat last Saturday only to see she wasn't moving. I misted down the tank, hitting her with a little bit of water and she was still lifeless.
     I refused to believe that two of my crabs died within such a short time span and searched it up on google.com. I hope she's just surface molting, I'm scared to lift her up and she falls out or something so for the next couple of days my eyes will be glued to the both of them for any abnormal signs. Oh, wish me and my hermies the best of luck, if I loose another one I don't think I'd be able to take in anymore for the fear that I'd kill them :'(  

Until next time,
Pearl Popping~

Better Place: RIP

     I noticed Louis was sitting kind of funny in the tank last night but left him alone as I didn't want to stress him out more. Early this morning at about two o'clock I saw he had dropped another leg and was still in the same spot. After having a tiny fight with myself about checking on him I decided that it would only stress him out more to do so and leave him be after making sure the temperature and humidity were perfect inside the crabitat. At around four he was still in the laying in the middle of the tank and so I opened it to check on him. To my horror he was dead. At first I thought, "Oh no, he's surface molting!" But after I moved him around to place him in the ISO tank he fell completely out of his shell and didn't move - and I mean completely.

     I'm scared to believe I did something so wrong that he died within the two days I had him. I remember last night when placing the food inside the tank (that no one ate) all the shells I had put onto the burlap net had fallen off; could they have hit him and I didn't know? 

     I also wondered if he was sick from the get go; malls aren't the best place to buy any living creature. Could it have been the painted shell; it was chipping pretty bad... That's the problem I have no idea what caused this. Ugh, my poor baby :{ 

     I hope Louis' in a better place now. 

    

This was the only picture I got of him within the two days. Rest In Peace Louis.

Link to my first post with Louis*

Until Next time,
Pearl Popping~

Update: Molt

     I have moved Prada back into the main ten gallon tank and I could tell she was so happy, so was I. Having my hermies in two different tanks gave me a little bit more to worry about as far as food, humidity, and - sadly- mold/fungus. Yes, I have spotted some kind of growth in my tanks but it's okay I have quickly read up on it and know what I am doing wrong to fix it. See how here*
     Also, I took a peek at Chloe still underneath the driftwood. I know I probably shouldn't have but seeing her tiny face looking back at me made me so happy. She is moving around under there but has yet to remove the sand sealing the exits and step out for some food as far as I could tell. Hopefully soon she will come out in no time and Prada will have her buddy back soon. 
     I am playing with the idea of bringing new hermit crabs home if only because  "Two crabs do not make a colony. Go get him a friend, or better yet, two." as said on www.hermit-crabs.com We'll see. I really want a Strawberry crab ::sigh::, again we'll see. 


Until next time, 
Pearl Popping~

Update: Molt

     Today makes a week that Chloe has hidden herself underneath the driftwood and Prada was placed into the ISO tank. I still have not noticed any change in the main ten gallon but I have no idea what time she started as I was at work. Although time of day has nothing to do with it. Some hermit crabs take weeks (months for the larger ones) to finish a molt. However, I like to hope that when I get home tonight Chloe will be up, walking about and looking for her friend. I know Prada is having a hard time in the ISO tank by herself as I've noticed she hasn't been eating her food lately. 

     Do I really need the stress coat? Sure it has its advantages with removing the last traces of the "fresh molt" scent however in the wild hermit crabs don't have this to bathe in. I think I might just dip her in some water and see what happens lol. 

     Surely Chloe will be bigger then Prada now because of the molt and maybe that is why she chose a larger shell when she swapped out. I'm excited; I hope I am able to see her little eyes tonight, I miss my girl.

Update: Molting, Mall crabs, & Breeds

     It's been awhile since I've made a post but everything is the same for the time being. I still have yet to see Chloe's little eyes and Prada remains in the ISO tank however I am debating on returning her to the main tank even though I haven't bathed Chloe in the stress coat. Hmm, I'll figure it out. 
     On another note, I  went to my local mall again and saw the Hermit Crabs still there. This time I was smart enough to take a picture ("Boo" to painted shells).

     I was told that they sold Strawberry and Blueberry crabs. I've heard of Strawberry crabs but never Blueberry so this is something else I'll have to look into. This had me thinking of the breeds of my own little hermies. I know for a fact that Chloe is a Purple Pincher Crab, her largest claw giving that away. Prada however I'm not too sure. With her missing her largest claw and deeper coloring (red "feet") I believe she might be a different breed of all together.

(An old picture of Chloe) purple claw

Prada's hints of red

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Shopping/molt update

     I went shopping, ran into my local dollar store just to see if they had anything new and to my surprise I saw a lot of things I could use for my little crabs.

Cute little bowels I can use instead of the flat shells :) 

A doilie I can hang so they have something new to climb on.

A new fake plant, more leaves then the other one.

And last but not least, sea sponges!

     I was most happy about the sponges as I did need more of those. They say they're for paint but because it was a dollar I thought what the hell I'll buy them. After looking at them for really and feeling it under after I think it'll be fine :)

     I just wanted to share my finds with you all and show that even in the less likely of places you might be able to find something for your hermies~

   

     Chloe is still showing no signs of coming out but it is only day three. Her driftwood remains sealed up on both ends and Prada seems to miss her real home along with her buddy. I'm trying my hardest to show her attention every chance I get but with her shy personality it only seems like I'm scaring her :( This is probably why you should have more then two Hermit crabs plus an ISO tank that they actually molt in.

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Day Two Of Molt

     Day two of Chloe's molt and she is still deep under the sand with no movement seen - as to be expected. I'm guessing that it'll be about a week or so until I see her again.  Prada is still camping it out in the ISO tank inside her favorite hut which I brought over just for her. She moved around a bit in the night but I think she might miss Chloe. Sorry sweetie but its all for the best.

     I'm worrying about reintroducing them after Chloe is finished molting but I'll get to that when the time comes I guess. I will be giving her a quick bath (dip) in the stress coat* after she resurfaces to wash away the molt smell Prada may pick up on. If you haven't noticed I'm playing it really safe lol.

     I have planed a "photo shoot" of sorts for Prada tomorrow or later tonight so look out for more pictures; I'm excited :3

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Molting For Sure

     I came home from work and did my usual check up on my hermies and to my surprise Prada was walking around! As I continued to look for Chloe, my "energizer bunny", I noticed right away that her favorite piece of driftwood was sealed on one side by sand. Peeking over to other side I saw that it was exactly the same. Chloe must be molting under there and with Prada walking about so early (for her) I quickly decided to remove Prada and place her into the ISO tank for the time being. In my mind she probably smells Chloe and, yeah, I'd rather be safe then sorry.
     I should have kept Chloe in the ISO tank longer then I did the other night, that much I know for sure. But that's what this blog is all about: my mistakes and how I learn from them as well as what I am learning from outside sources too. So Prada and I will have some bonding time over the week or so Chloe will be molting if only because I don't want her to be lonely. I hope she is looking forward to it as much as I am.
     I need to purchase this Stress Coat* too. I'm sure I will be able to find it in my pet store so next time I go I'll keep my eyes out for it :3

Yup, Chloe has made herself very cozy in there

Until next time,
Pearl Popping~

Not Sure...

     After about two hours in the ISO tank Chloe stopped all signs that she might molt. I noticed she had stopped digging completely and only walked around as if taking in her new environment (I could tell she didn't like it). With nothing to climb and only her favorite piece of wood reminding her of her real home she sat on top of it and watched me as if silently trying to will me into putting her back. As all parents (yes, even of pets) know those sad eyes always win. 

     Now Chloe is back in her tank with Prada, whom she sought out right away, and loving the second level. On top of that, after coming home from work and checking on the hydrometer (etc.) I see she has been digging again. All the levels are fine inside the crabitat so it can't be she finds it too cold or hot, not enough humidity or too much. Molting is all I can think of. Also, Chloe has been a little less active. Usually she's really all over the place, investigating everything and now sometimes I'm waking her up from a nap accidentally.

     Bottom line is I'll keep my eye on her and if I start seeing lethargic behaviors or cloudy eyes I will then place her into the ISO tank straight away. I don't need any cannibalistic crabs...

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Molting?

     I'm noticing Chloe is doing a lot of digging tonight, can this be a sign of molting? Well, yes. I already know that much thanks to Hermes (my first hermit crab) but this came out of no where. She isn't really a digger... actually I have never seen her dig before and she has been eating a lot. Her coloring isn't as bright as Prada's but she hasn't walked as if she lethargic. Either way I'm going to clean out the ISO tank I have and get it prepared.
     It'll be exciting if she does molt :3 I just wish Prada would as well so she can grow back her largest claw. It's okay, she will one of these day. I'll leave a link at the bottom that helped me understand the signs :) Alright, enough writing and more cleaning.

The Molting Miracle*

Until next time,
Pearl Popping~

Poor Baby

     Prada came out of her hut for a couple of minutes to grab some food and water only to flip over multiple times before she gave up and returned "home". I feel so bad for her and keep the food/water close so she doesn't have to move that far. Chloe seems like she's giving Prada her space and enters the hut once a day to check up on her - or so I'd like to believe. Maybe she just wants to see if she's alone fully?

     As I've said in other posts, Prada is missing her large claw (possibly from a fight at the pet store) and I can tell how much hermit crabs truly rely on it. I can't wait till she molts and grows it back, I'm sure we'll both be happy.

     I wasn't able to take a picture, she seems like she stressed enough without my cameras in her little face, but I do plan to try and get some great shots of the two of them over the weekend :3 Wish me luck~

Until next time,

Pearl popping~