Crazy 4 Crabs

Molting is how crabs grow by shedding there exoskeleton.When you think a crab is going to molt you need to put it in your isolation tank so that the other crabs will not bother it and so it can be alone from everything because molt time is very stressful for the little guys. After a molt a crab is defenseless until there new exo hardens up. At this point the crab will eat it's old exo to get some calcium and other nutrients back it may have lost and need. The hermit crab will often bury itself in order to molt to allow there molting hormone to be secreted and molting to begin.

Signs of a molting crab
*excessive digging behavior
*spending more time then usual in both fresh and saltwater dishes
*changing into a smaller shell
*crab starts to become lethargic(less active)
*some visual signs are that they will often have chalky look to exo, dull eyes, and crabs that have lost an apendage will form a small white limb bud which usually after 2-3 molts will be back to normal size

Premolt is where the crab shows his/her signs.
The molt is the actual sheding of the exo.
And the postmolt is where the crabs exo is hardening up.
After the crab exo is all hardned up you can move it back to the main tank.

Remember not to mess with a crab you think is molting or it's molting process may stop and the hormone will build up if unable to molt after to long the hermit crab will pass on.