Guest Author - Denise Lacazette

Hermit crabs are one of the most interesting and inexpensive exotic pets available today. Using some careful thought and creativity, you can turn their new home into a miniature replica of their natural habitat and create a great learning tool for children. The ecology of hermit crab keeping is extremely important in keeping them healthy and stimulated and increases their chances of living their natural life span.

Hermit crabs in the wild can be found near the ocean or in tropical areas. The common denominator here is humidity. This is the single most important aspect to consider when setting up the habitat. You will need to set up a nice humid environment, but one that does not promote fungus or bacteria. Monitoring their environment through the use of a humidity and temperature gauge is highly recommended. No matter which species of hermit crab you own a proper setup should satisfy the needs of all.

With hermit crab habitats bigger is better. Always select the largest size covered aquarium you can afford. The minimum size should be 20 gallons. Because hermit crabs are normally social creatures, the size of your habitat should be big enough to allow everyone their own hiding place as well as accommodate the communal swimming, drinking, exercise and feeding areas. Ideally you will have things they can climb on, hide behind, and play with.

To set up the habitat you start with the aquarium. Place it on a reptile heating pad for aquariums (it should measure ½ the length of the tank so there is a choice of temperature for the crabs). Add wetted substrate (play sand is recommended) to the aquarium (about 4-5 inches depth). Dig out 4 spaces. The swimming bowl will have a cut natural sponge simulating a ramp, several sponge “stepping stones”, and salt water. (It is imperative that the crab be able to easily get out of the water.) The second bowl will be very shallow and contain salt water for drinking. The third very shallow bowl should contain fresh water and the final bowl will be for food.

The next step is creating entertainment and hiding places. This is where your imagination plays a large part. Tree branches, margarine containers, plastic blocks, and other things can be used to create hiding places. Add salt water, wetted, natural moss to your hiding places to increase humidity and create additional camouflage. Make sure you leave a large enough exercise area bare so they can run or sit around together being social. Add differing size shells so they are readily available when the crabs start new home shopping.

Dos & Don’ts of hermit crab care

• Do - Maintain a temperature and humidity of 75-84 degrees/percent
• Do – De-chlorinate all water used in the habitat
• Do – Rearrange the habitat monthly to break up the monotony
• Do – Monitor interactions between hermit crabs when adding new members. Remember they are individuals and not everyone will necessarily get along.
• Don’t – Deep clean the habitat when a crab is in molt
• Don’t - Offer painted shells. Many contain harmful toxins.
• Do – Clean habitat regularly to prevent bacterial and fungal problems.
• Don’t – Bathe your hermit crab. Proper humidity, swimming, and water bowls should provide enough moisture for your hermit crab’s exoskeleton.
• Don’t – Bother your hermit crab during a molt. They are extremely fragile during this time and will likely die if disturbed.
• Don’t – Remove the exoskeleton after a molt. The hermit crab will eat the exoskeleton to regain lost calcium during the molt.

At first glance keeping hermit crabs seems a more daunting task than you may have been led to believe when you were handed the crab in a little plastic box at the beach, but the pros outweigh the cons quite quickly. Hermit crabs are highly entertaining and can live up to 20 years in captivity.