I had the bright idea to bring my daughter some hermit crabs home from a girls-weekend beach trip.

I did like any Mom and stopped by Wings to pick out some of the little critters.    Oh, you have no idea how much they freaked me out at first.  It was all I could do to pick them up.   At first they looked like spiders to me and I can assure you that I can’t STAND spiders!

My girlfriends helped me pick out some decorative shells, some coral to climb, and some sand.     I was definitely uninformed where little hermit crabs were concerned.

Here is my little one when I presented her with her new pets.

PrincessHappyCrabs

See all of my well intentioned efforts?

Well, from the moment I returned home I began doing research on how to care for hermit crabs.  I had heard these little rascals didn’t live long, but actually that isn’t the truth (or it SHOULDN’T be the truth).   They can actually be great pets for YEARS!

It was obvious the little carrier wasn’t going to be enough room, so off to a local pet store I went.    I purchased something CALLED a Crab Habitat:

CrabHabitat

I thought SURELY this was much better than the last home I had given them.  The little Wings carrier was history and now they had a mansion.   Sigh — so I thought.   After more research I read that hermit crabs don’t live long in cages like this because they SUFFOCATE!   WHAT?  This is called a “crab habitat” and sold at a pet store, but it kills them?  Yep, that is correct.   Hermit crabs need humidity to survive.  They have gills and need the moisture to breathe.   Is there anyway on earth that plastic box with wire walls can hold humidity?  NO.

Another trip to the pet store ensued and we purchased a 10 gallon aquarium.   Now I wish I had gotten at least a 15 or 20 gallon tank, but this has worked out just fine.   Did you know that each small to medium sized crab requires 5 gallons worth of space?

Even though our new aquarium/crabitat looks great, I have done even MORE research and now know that the calcium “hermit crab sand” that the pet stores sell is not the best for our crabs.  Ugh, yet again I wasted money by trusting the products that were recommended by the pet stores.

I need to change out the sand (also referred to as substrate) to replace with part playground sand and Eco Earth.  Unfortunately I can’t do this anytime soon because the moment our crabs discovered their new habitat one of them buried himself and is probably preparing for a molt (where he sheds his exoskeleton).    He could be under there for weeks or months.

Here is the crabitat as it stands today:

ourcrabitata

 

Yep, this Mama has been working hard!  I made the second level so that our little crabbies could exercise.  They walk all over the place at night and get into mischief.

Let me introduce you to our newest pets:

This is Shelly (all crabs were named by our daughter).   Shelly is the shyest of the crew.

ShellytheCrab

 

Next is Mr. Krabs.   He is the one who decided to bury himself in the substrate.  I am praying he will survive his molt and thrive for years to come.

mrkrabs

Those two came from Wings.   The next one was rescued from a local pet store.  He was hanging out of a shell that was WAY too small for him.   We brought him home and he immediately changed his shell.  When we went to bed he put on ANOTHER shell.   He is much happier.   Our daughter named him Big Guy because he is much bigger than our other two.

Big Guy:

BigGuychillin

Before you decide to purchase a hermit crab for you child, just know that they are not disposable pets.   Do your research.  They need tanks that hold humidity.  You have to provide heat for them and regulate the heat and humidity in their tanks.   They needs 5 to 6 inches of substrate to dig and bury themselves when molting.   They also need a salt water bath and a fresh water bath in their tanks.   The list goes on and on …

These poor creatures go through so much during harvest and their lives in the store that they sometimes die from PPS (Post Purchase Stress).   You can read more about this by clicking here.

I have been appalled by the local stores now that I am informed.  I took this photo in a local tank the other day:

petstoreabuse

The humidity level was around DESERT!   Do you see the crab with his legs hanging out?  He was probably dying if not dead.  Crabs don’t lie around like that.   So sad!   Also, the painted shells are bad for the crabs because they can be toxic.

I could go on and on, but I will end with this.   If you would like to own a cute little crab, please do your research first.

Thanks for your time.