New hermit crab owner?

Question

a few questions.
1. How do you bathe a hermit crab. The sites I've looked at just say to put him in a tub of room temperature water, but I don't know how deep it should be. (I think they can drown?)
2. How big do they get?

Answer 1

First and foremost, make sure you have at least 2 hermit crabs... they will not thrive alone and live in colonies of 100 and more.

Also you must provide at least 4 extra shells per crab of the correct size and type, looking especially at the opening size and shape.

You must provide natural oceanic/marine salt water as well.

You must maintain the proper tank conditions at 76-82 degrees F sustained and 75%-85% relative humidity sustained.

You must provide a selection of fresh fruits, veggies, meats, fish and whole grains never offering the same things 2 times in a row. Dairy is perfectly fine as a treat once or twice a week that is a long dispelled myth.

Do not use any metal in their tank or to bathe them is, metal is toxic.

Bathing IS STRESSFUL I have studied researched and observed many hermit crabs not just our own for over 16 years and that is what we have determined by very obvious and across the board facts of outcomes and differences between bathed and non-bathed hermit crabs.

You must not over handle them and learn all of the pre-molting signs and make sure you do not touch them at all throughout that entire process.

Do not mist or spritz inside of their tank, it causes mold, mildew and infections. It is just a temporary fix to an obvious uneducated owner, that can not control the temp and humidity of the tank.. If one keeps the tank within the proper ranges there is no need for misting.



1.) Bathing is stressful and un-necessary for your hermit crabs.. why would you do that?? It is becoming a myth more and more everyday. The ill effects far outweigh any supposvie benefit.

Hermit crabs carry no harmful bacteria, no diseases or infections and nothing communicable... they do not get dirty, except for the sand and or coco-fiber bedding in their tank.

Bathing is a known cause of extreme stress, they are being forced by their owner to do something so unnatural to them, it is a cruel thing to put them through.

They are in fact wild exotic tropical terrestrial crustaceans and since they are wild and always will be.. this is so unnatural... in their wild habitat they do not have large hands picking them up and dunking them into big dishes of water!!!

If you provide both fresh and natural marine/oceanic de-chlorinated water pools that are big enough for them to fully submerse in then they can clean themselves at their timing and their leisure and when they feel they need to. So they must be able to get down into the water and it must be deep enough that they can be fully covered with water.. just provide ways in and out of the water, they do not drown that easily. And actually love deep pools of water accessible 24/7 in their tanks.

So, please allow them to be as natural as possible, that is responsible pet ownership when it comes to caring for this type of creature. They are not a typical pet and definatly not a toy.

People claim their hermit crabs enjoy a bath, but how do they know?? Sure the crab may get more active and climb about, but it has no choice, and very well may be in a panic trying to escape. Then people wonder why their hermit crabs die within a year or less.

We have studied and observed the effects of bathing and not bathing and have found the fact remains, bathing, forceful bathing causes in many cases deadly stress, dropped limbs, disturbed molting cycles etc etc.

People who regularly bathe their hermit crabs do not allow them to properly or fully de-stress and if in pre-molt and handled they can die. One must know all of the pre-molt signs to determine if the crab should be handled or not.

De-stilled water is fine, bottled spring water is fine.... for drinking and water pools. Never put a wet crab back into it's tank!

2.) They grow very large if you can keep them alive that long, most people can not.. they can grow the size of a coconut and larger in the wild and about the size of a softball and somewhat larger in captivity. Our largest is the size of a softball.

Answer 2

YES- Hermit crabs CAN drown. They have gills, but they are not the same type of gills a fish has. They breath moist air, but submerged for too long, and they WILL drown.

Bathing is not neccessary, though I don't think it's as stressfull as some people seem to think, either. I get out a cake pan- something long and not deep, and fill it about halfway. Make sure you dechlorinate the water, or it will burn their gills. Make sure it's not deep enough to fully submerge your crabs. From there, just set them in it. If the crab won't leave his shell, pick him up out of it, and lay him in upside down, so that water will flow into the shell. If he still won't leave the shell, just gently shake the water out, and put him back in his crabitat.

A crab will grow regardles of the size of their shell. This is one reason why they move onto new shells- because they are growing. With each molt, they grow. In early years, they molt much more often, sometimes as often as once a month.

The older they get, the less often they molt. In captivity, a crab can live up to 20 years in perfectly ideal conditions. This isn't usually the case, but if they DO live that long, you can see crabs as big as a softball, easily.

Provide your crab with 3 alternative "houses" or more. At least 1 that is slightly smaller (after a molt, they are smaller at first than they were before the molt due to the new exo not being hard yet), 1 the same size, and 1 slightly larger. But I recommend giving them more options than just that. Buying them at the pet store can be expensive, with shells costing $5 for just 2. I found a woman on ebay from Florida who sells them in sets of 30-80 shells, each set for under $10. Look around and see if you can find them there. Not all will be ideal- avoid long narrow openings, and shells that are long and pointing like a unicorn horn. They won't use those. Any shells with holes in them should be avoided, as well. Basically, any rounded or oval openings, and shells that are free of cracks, chips, or holes.

Shells can be reused by other crabs, just rinse them out good when you clean your crabitat to get excess sand out from inside them.

I'd recommend making a shallow "pool" of water for them to use. I bought some rubbermaid "take along" divided containers for about $2 at Wal-mart. In the larger side, I put dechlorinated water, and in the smaller side, dechlorinated salt water. I added aquarium rocks to the bottom of it for traction, and to make it more shallow. This allows them to drink and bath on their own.

You can also add an aquarium air stone to one of the pools of water. It will help aid you in keeping the tank humid. Just run the tubing down a corner, or behind something like a climbing mat, and drop a small stone in the water.

Good luck with your crabs! Also- make sure you have at least 2!!!

Answer 3

I guess money the little guy replaced into ill and under pressure out while you bought him. i'm getting so indignant at various the circumstances those creatures stay in on the puppy keep. possibly provide him a bath in some heat water with somewhat stress coat in it....then enable him run around interior the bathtub to dry off. determine his house is heat with loads of humidity (as you comprehend hermit crabs breathe by gills) so they want loads of moisture. The sand ought to be damp, damp sufficient to make a sand fort out of. do no longer difficulty his leg will strengthen back. If his house is great sufficient and basically precise he will bury down and molt. interesting stuff :) sounds such as you're precisely what he needs! right here's a link on giving hermie a bath. stable luck!

Answer 4

1: No they won't drown. Just enough to dip your hand, and turn the crab so that the water gets in his shell.
2: They get pretty darn big, but slowly.

make sure you spritz him with water each morning for humidity. Give him a bowl of sea salt water to bath in himself. Don.t bath him yourself to often. And never feed him any dairy products.

Answer 5

They will get as big as their "home" or shell. Leave a easy accessible bowl half full of room temp water for it. They do not drown!

Answer 6

1. Just bathe it in your hand.
2. If you keep good care of them they can grow REALLY big