How to keep them alive in a live car?

[SHELLFISH]

As everyone knows by my posts there are aren't many crabs in my area of CT.
A friend of mine has tried to keep some in a live car until he has enough to steam for a dinner.
The crabs will kill each other off in no time until there is only one left...the victor!
He has tried to nip the tips of their claws but he said they will still stab each other with the claw nubs.
He asked me how they keep the crabs alive in the shedding tanks. I didn't know.
Does anyone here here have knowledge in this area?  Thanks

[R D]

As everyone knows by my posts there are aren't many crabs in my area of CT.
A friend of mine has tried to keep some in a live car until he has enough to steam for a dinner.
The crabs will kill each other off in no time until there is only one left...the victor!
He has tried to nip the tips of their claws but he said they will still stab each other with the claw nubs.
He asked me how they keep the crabs alive in the shedding tanks. I didn't know.
Does anyone here here have knowledge in this area?  Thanks

Shedders are different than hard crabs but i keep hard crabs at times to and don't have a lot of problems there are a few that die or get killed and ate hmmmmm  is he sure that no conks or other critters are doing it?

[CRABGUY]

ICE!!
2 LITER BOTTLES FROZEN 1/2 WAY

[SHELLFISH]

RD, His live car contains only Blue Crabs when they are here. No other critters share the space.

CRABGUY, His live car is under the dock at the boat club, ice is not practical.

The adult male Blue Crab is an aggressive, antagonistic critter and maybe there is no answer!
Give them as much room as you can or keep them separate!
There must be a lot of combat under water. I'd like to see that some time!

Thanks for your suggestions.

[R D]

RD, His live car contains only Blue Crabs when they are here. No other critters share the space.

CRABGUY, His live car is under the dock at the boat club, ice is not practical.

The adult male Blue Crab is an aggressive, antagonistic critter and maybe there is no answer!
Give them as much room as you can or keep them separate!
There must be a lot of combat under water. I'd like to see that some time!

Thanks for your suggestions.

Whats his live car made out of.........I have a couple that are made of small mesh pot baitwell wire and thats why I was asking this mesh is 1/2 by 1/2 and conks still get to the crabs

[SHELLFISH]

It is a mesh about 1.5 inches square and the car measures two feet square. Perhaps critters could get in and leave but it is suspended and not lying on the bottom.  I think, as he does, that it's combat from the crabs themselves. He lobsters also and uses a car for his banded lobsters with no mortality.

I was thinking about this last night and what do you think about using rubberbands to hold the claws close to the body? It would act like a crab straightjacket! I will have to suggest that to him. My livecar is empty right now and maybe I'll give it a try. Might be a little trying to get rubber bands on a live crab!

[masspi]

My local supplier has a two compartment live car available (see photo), but I have been reluctant to use one because I would hate to put in 20 and come back to find 1.

I wonder if the banding thing would work ?  A lobster band and applicator might work OK.  Would like to hear anyone's thoughts on this.

[CRABGUY]

AHHHHHHH ITS A CRAB FLOAT \
I GET IT
ADD BAIT KEEP THEM FED
SO LONG AS THERES SOMTHING TO EAT THEY USUALY WILL NOT EAT EACHOTHER

[cw4340]

it might be that big mesh i agree with rd i keep hard crabs in my shed tanks and sell em some will get eaten but not that many with wire that big you could have tog blow fish otters ect eatin them crabs are they gone totaly when he lifts car out of water

[coastman]

Here on the Georgia coast when I want to keep crabs several days or longer I put them in a rubber maid trash can. This trash can has a top and I drill holes through out the body of the trash can. I have kept dozens of crabs alive for a week or more. The secret is having something for the crabs to eat other than themselves. Drop several fish in the container several days a week. The trash container is tied to my dock and as the tide comes and goes it keeps oxgenated water flowing through the trash can. This set up works for me. It should work for you.

[SHELLFISH]

I don't know if he feeds them or not, I will ask and reply back.
I also don't know if they are eaten or not. He told me that, he thinks,  the crabs spear the back of the other crabs with whats left of their nipped off claws.
 Interesting replies! Thanks, I'll keep all informed.

[masspi]

After a long day on the road for business...............it dawned on me 

Who the [Sam Hill] is going to band them for me..........the crabs are so darn aggressive, especallt this time of year that even with chain mail gloves I don't want to handle them.  I just can't see how you could band them while holding them with tongs.  Been nipped too many times trying to deal with them...........the whole family has been nipped (most times drawing blood)...........we learned.........we stopped bleeding......we put the most vicious crab in the pot first 

[SHELLFISH]

I talked with my buddy tonight and he said he was feeding them but it didn't matter; they still attacked each other! Maybe just the males are aggressive to each other?

[tattoo]

I went crabbing on Saturday and caught 1/3 bushel in the evening with my daughter, only a third, so I just used my orange plastic basket. Didn't bother with a lid since there wern't that many in there. I keep them inside my truck always, with the air on.... We got home around 8:45 and cooked em up! Sunday around noon, I went to take my boat back to my marina which is right outside of Baltimore. The daughter asked to come and I said sure. She opened the door to the truck to get in the back seat and low and behold a 7"jimmy was there waiting to give her one [Sam Hill] of a suprise! He must have crawled out of the basket the night before and sat chilly in the truck until the next day! We put him in the a basket and my daughter cut him loose at the marina. So the wye country crab, is now a city slicker! I wrote wye crab on his shell. Moral of the story.... store them in your truck/car!

now that is funny.

[canoetrot]

bogman - i think the straitjacket idea is the way to go.  If you go to NYC china town you'll see they truss up crabs with poly twine.   I think they twine behing the legs then back over the claws to hold the claws tight to the crab...don't see why proper size rubber bands wouldn't work.

[masspi]

I want to renew this thread in case more members have had experience last season.  When the season for me starts out, the crabs are far and few in between.  Also the prime reason is my Wife is sick and tired of me stinking up the house every night cooking crabs.  My thoughts are to get a live car from Bob Ketcham at Ketcham Traps (see photo above) and hold my crabs in the car tied to my boat mooring.  Once the car is filled, I could be steaming outside once or twice a week.  Alas their would be peace in the house.  I also could store my caught Lobster if and when I get a glut of them boys because it has two compartments.  Any ideas on how many Crabs should be put in the car at one time

I am willing to try the car method of storage and plan to keep the boys well fed..........I guess that I will loose some, but it might solve all my problems.

I am willing to try any members suggestions...

[bnorthup]

I have very good luck with keeping the crabs alive in a 2'x2'x2' holding pen for sometimes a month at a time while I postpone the boiling for one reason or another. The trick is to keep them well fed. Once they are full, they are not nearly as aggressive towards each other....  I feed them mullet heads or table scraps (meat and chicken parts etc.)....   Just find something they like to eat and keep them well supplied with all that they care to eat. Then check them everyday. Often, you will get a softshell out of the deal......   And the others won't even eat the softshell crab if they are quite full.   As a metter of fact, I have a dozen of them out there under the dock right now........   I need to have a boil soon.

[jrccrab]

ICE!!
2 LITER BOTTLES FROZEN 1/2 WAY

That works for me, but i fill the 2-liter bottles 2/3 thirds of the way up before freezing and put them in cooler. Even if i catch my first crab 6-8 hrs. after my last crab, they are always alive when i get home , the ice slows down there motabolism.  Luck? (don't know) but i may have lost 1- CRAB  doing it that way over the last 4 + years. Hopes this helps you out.

[jeff l]

I think the title confuses people, and me. A live car is nothing more then a cage; right? a way to keep them alive if you live close to the water.

[masspi]

Yes.......scroll up and see a photo of a Live Car.  How it got that name ?  It is what it is

[masspi]

To renew the thread..............

I got a live car and tied it off to my mooring in the River.  Popped in 20 crabs and two lobsters (they were banded) in the two separate compartments. Tossed in some Scup in both sides and after a week had no kills.  I did refresh the bait and did the crabs rip it up.

I just sink it to the bottom and pull it up when I want to get them.  For those of you in Massachusetts who want to try this, don't forget that you have to have your distinctive colored marked buoy attached to the rope.  My reading of the abstract says that you can't even use a live car unless you are a commercial or recreational licensed person.   I think you could modify a lobster trap as well with some tie wrap, pot wire sheeting and hog rings.there are tons of used lobster traps for sale.

I will report how it is going as I use it more.