Not really sure if this is

[Chermo]

bullying or not but I got my 3 new adoptees on Friday and they were the only ones on the surface till yesterday when Kermi decided to make an appearance out of the sand. I don't know why but all my 3 originals went down I think just Orangy is molting but I have not seen Soupy for a while either but she went down the same day as Kermi and Kermi came up (not molted). Well Kermi must have known there were new crabs and went looking for them. She first found Ellie who just finished molting and the original owner dug her up and she was still pretty pink but only had 2 1/2 legs left to eat of her exo so she was almost finished. Well Ellie was in Kermi's favorite hiding spot the HUGE shell and Kermi started to climb on her and tried to pull her out of the shell so she could go in there but I didn't want her to harm Ellie so I moved Kermi somewhere else away from Ellie so then Kermi found Froggy and Puppy. Puppy is much bigger than Kermi but Kermi still climbed and started pushing Froggy around and Puppy just didn't budge he just stayed in his shell I am guessing sleeping. He was probably thinking get the heck away from me you small moron. Well so I finally took the rock house off those 3 and kinda watched what Kermi was doing to Froggy and she had Froggy tipped on his back and they were having pushing fights. So finally I moved Kermi away again. I then saw Froggy come out of where she was and found Kermi and went up to Kermi and started pushing Kermi well Kermi pushed Froggy into the salt water dish where Froggy just climbed out and pushed Kermi till Kermi gave up and went to hide behind the big shell that Ellie was in till Ellie moved to a different hiding spot and Froggy went on to the food dish and ate till she finished a dried apple chunk. Kermi stayed hiding behind the big shell and I am not sure when she finally came out while I was sleeping. Everything seems to be ok for now but when the other 2 come up I am scared I will have this happen all over again. Kermi has always been the one to push the other 2 out of where she wanted to be and the others just learned to stay out of those places incase Kermi wanted to go there. Would this be considered bullying and should I watch them closly? I never bathed the new ones because Ellie was still pretty pink when I got her so I was not sure if she was still soft or not but now she seems to be less pink. If it happens with Kermi and Froggy again should I dump them both in the salt water dish to cool down? I am guessing that Froggy was the same as Kermi in the old owners tank where she was the dominate one in that tank like Kermi is in mine so now I have to trying to fight for being the dominate crab. Help please with suggestions on what I can do.
Thanks

[emmac350]

Whether you try to watch the crabs 24/7 or not, they're eventually going to establish a dominance structure...it's kind of necessary for them. So ensure no real violence occurs but my advice is to leave them to sort it out themselves.

[ladybug15057]

I agree with Emma as long as there is not large pincher action. As well as here:

http://crabstreetjournal.com/xoops/modu ... 76&forum=6

[Chermo]

Well to my surprise it was not even Kermi that was pushing the new guys around it was Soupy. My daughter was very insistant that it was Kermi till I saw who she thought was Kermi upside down pulled back all the way in the shell, Kermi can close the shell opening in the orange shell she is in, but Soupy is so small for the shell she choose that when pulled back into it you can hardly see her. I knew my daughter was wrong but I didn't really check. So now it was Soupy trying to be all pushy with the new crabs and Soupy is my shy crab so that is totally why she gave up when she was pushing Froggy around and went in the corner to hide. Kermi would have never done that, she would have never given up like that.

[Chermo]

So after posting this mornings post about it not being Kermi it was Soupy I found that Puppy, Froggy and Soupy are all in the cocohut sleeping together. Ellie is in the big shell that she climbed up into all by herself. I don't know how Puppy got his big shell into the small opening of the cocohut either. He must have lifted it up and put it over the top of him since that is really the only way he could have fit in it.