FYI Black spots do go away after molting

Hey everyone...I just wanted to update on an E that I had with a black "decaying" spot on the dactyl section of his BP. I was treating it (sporadically) with a special herbal anti-sceptic. He just came up from a molt and the spot is gone...incidentally, he did not eat the BP portion of his exo either. I found it (with the mysterious black spot) in the substrate.

If you are interested in the recipe, it is available in the All-Natural Hermit Crab Sourcebook which is available at http://www.thehermitshack.com and http://www.petdiscounters.com

Treatment was sporadic because the little bugger would run and hide whenever I would approach the tank. If I were they type to ISO, I probably would have been able to find him and treat him more often.

 

Hm, I wonder how much that is like shell rot that crayfish get. For crayfish, shell rot is generally treated with Melafix, and then the exo needs to be removed when they molt so that they don't eat it. Much harder to do that with land hermit crabs, so it's good your crab seemed to know that he shouldn't eat it!

 

Moire,
Actually, in addition to the herbal remedy, I did use Melafix as well. I have a syringe with a long plastic tip on it that allowed me to directly apply it (diluted with water) to the affected area only-so I guess it is a good thing he didn't eat it!

 

Wow, I'm glad to hear that they went away. I just hope that my crabs don't get anything like that.

 

I found pictures I had taken of the spot!

 

Guess what? HNS did molt and did get rid of those spots...but I saw him the other day in the tank and the entire dactyl section of his BP is now almost completely decayed He must have some sort of something inside his body that keeps coming back. He doesn't act sluggish or sick at all. He just changed shells so perhaps he will drop the limb and try to molt again (I hope). I'll keep updating with his results.

This time I am ISO'ing him and making sure I treat him at least 1-2 times a day. Cross your claws he can beat this thing.

 

Though I imagine this will be hard if he buries to molt, maybe you should try taking away his entire exoskeleton this time and offer him supplements instead. I'm basing this on crayfish-keeping wisdom again, and who knows if that's even relevant. It's all I can think of, though!

 

Awww, I'm sorry to hear that! I'll keep my fingers crossed for him.
Lol of course its relevant Moire, they are both crustateans even though one lives in water much more than the other. But they both have exo's.

 

Moire_eel
Do you think this is something in his system? I don't know anything at all about crayfish, but I would think it would have to be pretty similar. At this point, since no one really knows all that much about hermit crab afflictions, why not base some of the knowledge on crayfish.

Can crayfish get rid of shell disease?

 

Generally, shell rot can be completely eliminated, but only through a molt, and only if the crayfish doesn't eat the afflicted exo. Until the molt occurs, the rot is controlled with melafix, but that won't make it go away once it's there. If it's bad enough, the crayfish can die, but generally the prognosis is good. My guess is that the rot inhabits the exoskeleton, perhaps even to some extent the parts that look healthy, since removing the exo seems to be the cure. With crayfish, not getting to eat the exo isn't as big a deal since they can regain the nutrients eventually from the water if tank conditions are right. That's probably wny nobody would think of removing only the unhealthy parts of the exo for a crayfish -- it's all or nothing.

 

Thanks a bunch! I have HNS in ISO now and will keep a good eye on him in the event he decides to molt. I'm trying to figure out how to go about getting his exo without disturbing him too much if he does decide to molt. He always buries and sometimes not all the way to the bottom. I suppose in this instance I will have to dig him up if I see he has shed his exo...I'll post updates (if there are any )

 

Sending good thoughts your way, Wendy!

cj