My hermit crab has come competely out of it's shell and has been in the same spot for 3 days. Is it molting?

Question

Or is it dead?

Answer 1

If it has been very un-active, eating and drinking alot, and digging alot, its probably molting, surface molting to be correct. Just leave him alone

If he's dead he will TOTALLY NOT MOVE and it will smell like dead fish.

sorry for the loss if he died...

good luck  

Answer 2

I'm not sure, but I do know that hermit crabs do not make their own shells, rather, they acquire them from snails that have left them behind.  It is possible that it has simply outgrown its shell, in which case I'm not sure what you should do but I recommend contacting the place where you got it from.

To check if its dead or not, gently tap it or do something that should agitate it and see if you can get it to move.

Answer 3

It COULD be molting, stressed or dead.

Gently pick it up, but be very cautious-they are extremely delicate without their shell.  I usually get a piece of card stock or something to slide under them if they are out of their shell.  If it is dead, discard of it.  If it is alive, move it to a separate tank with a variety of shells to choose from.  You can "help it" move into a new shell by dipping the hermit crab in warm water and then gently nudge him into the shell, abdomen first.  However, ours checked out shells and moved into one of his choosing and then returned to his colony.

Hermit crabs generally only leave their shells to move into a new one, or because they are stressed.  Is the environment warm enough, humid enough?  Does he have both salt and fresh water?  Does he have crab friends?  We recently came home to find one of ours "naked"-he had been kicked out by another crab who had moved in.  We put him in the isolation tank and he chose a new shell.  He was obviously alive, though-still moving and such.

If there is not an obvious sign of life, it still might not be dead.  Look for discoloration, etc.  If you do not see it, move it to isolation and see what happens.

I wish you the best!

Answer 4

I think it is dead.  Touch it with something and see if it moves.

Answer 5

Sorry, it is dead.  I used to have hermit crabs.  They come out of their shells in order to find a bigger shell.  If one isn't available that suits them, they just die.  This is why you need to have a whole bunch of different sizes and shapes of shells in the tank.  Hermit crabs are very picky about their shells and need a large variety to choose from.