A hermit crab building it's molting burrow. Photo Credit Matt Steele

In: Biology, FAQ
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Originally written by Vanessa Pike-Russell and Lisa Loseke Arthropods (e.g., insects and crustaceans) must molt their exoskeletons periodically in order to grow; in this process the inner layers of the old cuticle are digested by a molting fluid secreted by the epidermal cells, the animal emerges from the old covering, and the new cuticle hardens. The molting process is a central, and nearly continuous, part of a crab’s life. A crab may spend 90% of its time getting ready to molt, molting, or recovering from a molt. There are many dangers to molting including predation, difficulty in movement as muscles have no ridged points of attachment,Read More →

In: FAQ, Food and Nutrition
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This is a compilation of forum posts from our old site. Rachelrmf posted: I really was not all that big on the meat thing untill i came here and read that so many of you feed alot of meets. So i have alway put a little crab or shrimp or tuna in for them, but just every once in a while. So I was wondering is it on a daily basis that you should feed the meat. I have been changeing out fresh every day but can’t really tell about how much of it they are eating because they like to party at night soRead More →

In: FAQ, Food and Nutrition
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This is a compilation of forum posts from our old site. To date we have not confirmed whether diseases fish may have can be passed onto hermit crabs. Sat Mar 05, 2005 Ladycrab wrote: Bought some gold fish for the hermies. Froze them last night just need to know if they need to be prepared any special way before serving them??? Julia_Crab wrote: There’s a bit of controversy afoot about the goldfish method right now. Freezing is a great way to kill any bacteria that might have affected the crabs, if any, though. I’m still not convinced that crabs can be affected by bacteria inRead More →

In: FAQ
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This is a compilation of forum posts from our old site. Troppo Dec 13, 2006 Today I read an interesting article in a Queensland newspaper that crabbers(particularly Australian crabbers) who feed their crabs prawns, may like to read. Below is an excerpt. Prawns posing disease threat. The increased volume and decreased price of imported green prawns has further escalated the risk of spreading the diseases, white spot syndrome and taura syndrome to the state’s prawn stocks. The Department of Fisheries and Primary Industries has initiated it’s own testing and sampling program as a measure to protect prawn stocks with traces of both the diseases beingRead More →

In: FAQ
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Originally written by Vanessa Pike-Russell Sometimes it takes a while to bond with your crab. they might not feed from your hand from the first time you try but if you persevere and are patient, it will happen. Gently hold the back of their shell with thumb and forefinger, and hold a piece of fruit (fresh or dried), nut (especially almond) bread, popcorn or cracker near the crab’s cheliped, or grasping claw, perhaps even brushing the food against it until your crab starts to become interested in the food and and they will responsively clutch at it and then want to taste it. You shouldRead More →

In: FAQ
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I hear a lot of discussion about salt and fresh water. How do I safely get my salty water salty? How necessecary is salty water to hermit crabs? Also, I was hoping to get a sloping, deep reptile dish with good traction to let the hermit crabs bathe themselves instead of me misting them or taking them out of their cage to be bathed. Should that dish have salt or fresh water? Salt water Originally written by CrabbyJo To get your salt water salty, the safest way is with an ocean salt mix you can purchase at your pet store. NEVER use table salt meantRead More →

In: FAQ
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Written by Stacy Griffith Well the answer to that depends on who you ask! This could be one of the most hotly debated topics in the crabbing community. I’m not going to give you a answer, but I will try to offer both sides of the argument and you can decide for yourself. Camp One: Actively bathing their crabs by the flip and dunk method. This entails preparing a bowl of stress coat treated water and placing the crab upside down under water. The crab will, hopefully, pop out and right itself. Thus flushing out the shell of any matter. This is done on aRead More →

In: FAQ
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Originally written by Vanessa Pike-Russell-Updated by Stacy Griffith Common Name/Scientific Name Dust Mites-House Dust Mite Dermatophagoides sp. Grain Mites-Grain Mite Acarus siro L House Mouse Mite-Liponyssoides sanuineus (Hirst) Follicle Mite-Demodex folliculorum (Simon) Itch or Scabies Mite-Sarcoptes scabiei hominis (Hering) Mold Mite-Tyrophagus putrescentiae (Schrank) Dust Mites – House Dust Mite Dermatophagoides sp. “Dust mites are microscopic, small enough to live inside the weave and fibers of your clothing, bedding carpet and such. They don’t actually bite they are waaay to small .. they actually live on the skins flakes we shed. When people have problems with dust mites it is because they are actually allergic toRead More →

C. brevimanus mating - Photo by Brian Hampson

In: FAQ
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Originally written by Vanessa Pike-Russell Thu, Oct. 12th, 2006, 10:40 pm  Keeping and breeding land hermit crabs Foreword: Hello. My name is Vanessa Pike-Russell. Stu Wools-Cobb visited my website on land hermit crab care and emailed me after reading my caresheet on gender and reproduction. At the time it had been unheard of for land hermit crabs to have successfully reproduced in captivity and the resulting eggs raised to juvenile (air-breathing) stage of development.  A few emails, phone calls later, and Stu sent me a copy of his booklet that was created in part for his local aquarist society. Through his extensive background in breedingRead More →

In: FAQ
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Source: http://www.prestigepetproducts.com/WhatIsIt.htm Alfalfa meal: is the aerial portion of the alfalfa plant, reasonably free of other crop plants, weeds and mold, which has been finely ground and dried by thermal means under controlled conditions other than sun curing. Alfalfa is an excellent source of phytochemicals and phytoestrogens and their antioxidant effect stimulates the immune system. Amaranth: is a seed plant which is a good alternative source of carbohydrate energy. Amaranth is a valuable carbohydrate ingredient with a unique flavor that compliments the flavor of barley, oats and rye. It is also high in linoleic acids, which are good for skin and coat. Chicken byproducts: consistRead More →