Hermit Crabs

[Gecko]

Anyone here have hermit crabs? I just got one a couple of days ago. I was just wondering if anyone here had any advice for caring for them.

[capnsweets]

I don't have any, but welcome to PT!

[rudegirlonthebu]

What species of hermit crab do you have?

[rudegirlonthebu]

I have 4 land hermit crabs, Crabby, Bitey, Pinchyand George.
I have them on ReptiBark which is about 2 inches deep because they love to burrow. I also have some climbing sticks in there for them becuase they also like to climb.

They like it humid so i mist them with hot water every day.
They will eat pretty much anything, and i feed mine dry and wet hermit crab food, as well as romaine lettuce, carrots and dandilion.

Are your Hermit Crabs Land or Aquatic?

[hermitman64]

I used to keep these (I assume you are talking about land hermit crabs?), but but most of them died after a few years. I pretty much agree with what rudegirl said, except I would use sand or a sand-like substrate. Bake or microwave (perhaps) the sand before you use it, though. Actually, the baking may not be as necessary as others might have you believe. They are very fun to watch and study, but beware of the claws. I've had my fair share of pinches from these guys. They are very handleable, but let them come to you for best results.

If you get pinched and he won't let go, submerge the crab and the pinched part of your body in water until he does, or hold hom over running water. They are usually communal, but I had a couple that fought, so be careful. Congrats on the new pet!

[Crabbyduude]

Hey I know this might be an OLD thread but if anyone needs any help, I can help... =)

[trufflemonster]

Hermies are fun pets, but they do pinch pretty hard. If you want a neat little trick to keep your new Hermies from pinching you while you're first trying to get them used to being held, get a thin piece of material like paper and let them pinch it. They'll grip it really tightly and then you can hold them while they amuse themselves with the strange object in their claws. Don't do this forever, though, or they'll learn to always pinch things when being held. This is only for if you're too terrified of being clamped to hold them right away.

If you want to make them extra-happy, put a small, shallow dish of water in your tank. My Hermit Crab used to love just sitting in it for hours on end. I don't really know why, though. Maybe her delicate skin needed the moisture.

[Jess]

Congrats on your pets!
But I really hope you knew what you where getting into when you bought your crabs. They really arent fun little throw-away pets like every one thinks, and they are acually very hard to care for, can be really expensive, and can live 30+ years. Ive been owning crabs for about 3 years and Ive spent over $300 (maybe $400...) on them!

To start out, they need at least 70% humidity, and should be at 70-85 degrees F.They need fresh AND salt water, a veried diet, and shoul dbe kept in large groups. Im too lazy o type everything I know (imagine that! ) so for some awesome info go tto www.crabstreetjournal.com (it might be the crab treet journal, but I dunno) and www.HERMIT-CRABS.com.

Happy crabbing!