Fighting unwanted growth: deep clean

     I was ready for bed last night at about two o'clock in the morning when I took a quick peek inside the crabitat to make sure the levels were perfect when I noticed Chloe was still sitting in the same spot. Freaking out I threw the top off and made sure she absolutely fine before placing her back on the sand to which she ran away from me. As she moved with the speed of light I felt completely disgusted with myself for putting her back in that nastiness! Little "cotton clouds" were everywhere in the sand! 

     I grabbed Chloe again, much to her dislike, and placed her inside of a bowl (the ISO tank was nasty too) then began pulling out all the items I was going to need. Noting this would take awhile I sprayed the  bowl to give her some much needed air and covered it with the lid so she couldn't escape - that's all I needed, to be running around my room at two in the morning looking for a crab. 

      Once Chloe was safely contained and out of my way on my bed I removed everything; yes, everything. I have no idea what the hell was in that sand but it needed to go. It took a while and it was pretty messy, I'm not going to lie, but at least it was done. Now the substrate is completely fresh with added calcium sand just to give her a little boost. I washed all the dishes, the toys, the coconut hut and even wiped down the tank with saltwater as I couldn't use disinfectants. I removed the tree and replaced it with the bridge I once had in the tank that Chloe enjoyed. She actually took a short nap on it after everything was settled. 

     I also added new items she can climb on such as a doilie (Which she took to right away), the shredded coconut wall (I forgot what it's actually called, sorry), and I also put the soap dish "second level" back inside and she loved it all over again. Chloe loves to climb and that's something I can't forget, but I also keep it safe to make sure she can't climb right out of the tank. 

     Hopefully the growth stays away and Chloe enjoys her clean new living space. I also threw away the ISO tank I had because it was absolutely overrun with a disgusting mold or fungus and I didn't have the stomach to clean it. With only one hermit crab I won't have to worry about molting as she can do it right in the main tank. 

     Last night was crazy but at least I didn't have work today and could sleep in. I really am fighting the growth though, I have seen it before but it was only a little and in the powder foods so I discontinued them, only giving my hermies pellets and fresh food. After searching it up on the web I believe my humidity might be too high along with the heat. These are the ideal levels for Chloe though and I am lost on those facts. For the time being I will keep my eyes open and continue fighting anything that doesn't belong. 

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Climbing higher & higher

     I hate waking up five minutes before my alarm clock let alone two hours but this morning I had a surprise. There was Chloe, active as always, hanging upside down on the grate lid of the tank. She looked so happy and her antennas were just moving all around the place with each little careful step she took but I was the complete opposite. I was looking around the crabitat for what in the hell gave her the boost to get up there in the first place. Those fake plants, I realized after two minutes of trying to get my brain moving. All I could think of was how happy I was that I had taken out the towels. Now I'm on the hunt for clamps to secure the lid and keep my babies inside their tank, where I know its safe for them. I've heard so many stories of Hermit Crabs escaping from their crabitat - sure they were found alive later (most of the time) but my house stays cool until the summer time really hits. My crabs will freeze without the lamp and suffocate without the humidity.  

     Later in the day, while I was at work, I was still thinking about it because this will be the second night I've seen her hanging around above the "ground".

(Chloe) The first night

(Chloe) The second night

 Does this new behavior have something to do with the switched sand? I hope not but if so I'll add some more of the calcium sand into the play sand as I still have some. Perhaps I'm over thinking it and my new tank setup is better and allows her to act more like a hermit crab? I'm not sure...

     Prada was active last night as well, on a different note, however she stayed closer to the sand if not on it. I spotted her staring at me and grabbed my phone (I'm still on the hunt for a good picture of her) snapped a couple and left her be as she ran away from me. She is still shy but at least she's coming out of her hut - even though its mostly when the lights are off.

Prada hiding in her shell

There she is~! :3

Until next time,

Pearl Popping~

Tank setup

     Here is my tank setup, although I have changed it around since this picture. I am still on the lookout for more items they can climb on such as sticks, driftwood and leafy plants. I know they sell it at the pet store I frequent but the prices are high for wood...come on, $30?

old tank setup

Also, I use calcium sand but am going to switch over to play sand if only because the calcium sand isn't very helpful with keeping the humidity inside my crabitat. 

Should I add more sand into the ten gallon tank as well? I have come across pictures where the tank is  practically filled with substrate but at the same time many have stated that this is unnecessary and a waste of bedding. My crabs are small, not tiny but small, compared to the medium hermies I have seen on the web and inside the pet store. I don't want to over do it. 

Why I don't use coconut fiber substrate? Easy, its made of coconut and that will attract all the nasty bugs I don't want around my babies.

     Here is my new tank setup, I like to change it around at least once every week - week and a half. It gives me the chance to clean up really good and remove food Prada likes to hide under the sand. 

New tank setup

Why are their towels on top of the tank? As I have stated before, I'm having extreme difficulty with the humidity thanks to the mixture of calcium sand and maybe placement of the crabitat in my bedroom. As you can see the sun does hit the tank which I was fine with on the cooler days but now that its getting hotter I have been using moist towels and it's been making a huge difference. I do plan to move them soon though.

Inside tank on the left

You'll notice I placed the burlap net going towards the upper level I made. That is just a soap dish connected to the glass with suction cups and some more shells up there. I used a little bit of fabric to cover the opening at the bottom of of the soap dish and covered that with the calcium sand. How I got the net to stay in place? Easy, I used these little Command hooks ( see them here ), you can actually see one in the picture above in the top left corner. You can also see their food (both fresh and commercial) as well of the water. 

Inside tank on the right

I placed small rocks inside the salt water bowel as well as a sea sponge because I think it might have been a little too deep. Should I have a sponge in both the fresh water and salt water? I wonder if it'll help with humidity...

until next time,

Pearl Popping~