How to Care for Hermit Crab

Choose a glass tank of the right size to make “crabitat”. “Crabitat” is the term used to refer to the artificial captivity of parasitic crabs. Tanks with a capacity of 40 or 80 liters are suitable for two to four small crabs. The hermit crab is a social species, so there must be at least one more to interact with it. A suitable home is one that can both retain moisture and circulate air. Aquarium, reptile tank or you can use the old broken water tank on the terrace. In addition, mica lakes or clear plastic containers are also suitable because they retain moisture and heat very well.

Ensure the necessary humidity for the aquarium. It is recommended to equip hygrometer and thermometer for the tank. They will help you monitor and maintain the best temperature (24-28°C and relative humidity 75-85%). Hermit crabs have scales and breathe through these scales when moistened, if the scales dry out, they will not be able to breathe so the habitat must have a certain humidity of at least 75%. If the humidity is too low, below 70% snails will suffocate and die over weeks and months.

• Adding more algae to the tank is a way to increase natural humidity. Moss both helps to retain moisture and serves as food for crabs. You can buy foam sponges because they help retain moisture quite well. But sponges get dirty very quickly, so you should change them every two or three weeks.

Make sure the temperature is right for the aquarium. Hermit crabs are tropical animals, so they adapt very well in warm environments. Their standard thermal limit is 24-29°C. Heat damage to pets is irreversible, too low a temperature will slow down their metabolism. You should install a heater at the back of the tank to maintain temperature and humidity. If the tank is not designed properly, it can cause the crabs to become lethargic and passive, lose their legs, lose their claws and eventually die.

Prepare the substrate. Substrate is the layer of material you spread on the tank floor. You should only use sugar pellet size sand because finer sand can get inside the shells as they move and cause unpredictable consequences. Use dechlorinated brine to wet the substrate and form a consistent “sand castle”. You can also use compressed coir (available at aquatic stores). Coir is tilled until it is loose and then sprinkled with salt water to both provide moisture and prevent fungus and mold. Do not use decorative gravel for the aquarium (crabs can’t burrow) and calcium sand (can form hard blocks and cause bad odors). The base layer of the tank should be 3-5 times thicker than the height of the hermit crab and must be an appropriate material so that the crabs can easily burrow and build caves to reduce stress, hide and molt.

• Many hermit crabs like to get into the wet moss, even molting in it. ( not Spanish moss or plastic moss – decorative ones!)

Keep the base layer clean. Dirty substrates can breed harmful molds. You should change the tank floor every 6 months. However, every month we need to check to see if the substrate is infested with mold, ants or mites. If you find something abnormal, you must change the background immediately. You can do “spot cleaning”, that is, simply remove the droppings or leftovers the crab has left on the floor of the tank. The tank should not be cleaned when hermit crabs are in the process of molting (at this time they will burrow into the sand and emerge after completing the “house”). When hermit crabs molt, they become very weak, so do not move them during this stage.

• If you want even more perfection, you can sterilize the base sand in the oven. Place the sand in a large skillet (use separate from the cooking pan for hygiene!) and bake in the oven at 120°C for about 2 hours.
• Every two to three weeks, boil all shells and shells in the tank with dechlorinated brine to ensure that bacteria and mold do not breed and harm the crabs. Let them cool down before placing them back in the aquarium.

Buy toys for the crabs. Hermit crabs are “professional mountain climbers”. In fact, in the wild, they often have to climb large rocks that rise up at low tide to find food. Hermit crabs are sometimes called “tree crabs” because on land they can climb trees to eat insects and plants. Do not buy toys that are painted to avoid the case of peeling paint and accidental ingestion by crabs, which will cause damage to the intestines. Some toys you can buy:

• Climbing toys are indispensable. Things like apricot logs and stumps are popular, as the apricot wood is non-toxic and has plenty of holes for hermit crabs to cling to. You can place it in the base of the tank, just make sure the crabs can’t climb out that way. In addition to apricot wood there are lego blocks and hemp nets, all of which are available at pet stores.
• Natural toys: Rocks and shells. Spreading these easily found things off the beach around the tank will help make your crabitat extremely lively. In addition, hermit crabs can also eat shells. Don’t forget to boil them all to disinfect them before placing them in the crab tank.
• Plastic toys: Reptile plants are also suitable for crabs to climb or hide in, but do not forget to close the lid or the crabs will run away and die. Make sure they don’t ingest plastic, if any, remove it as soon as possible.
• Never use “split pine” – the kind intended for reptiles because pine contains stimulants that can poison crabs.

Prepare your crabs for shelter. Hermit crabs, like other animals, will hide when they feel threatened. You can take coconut shells, old flower pots, large seashells, etc. to estimate how to prevent the crab from getting stuck and or easily dig it up.

Add some live plants to your tank. Bonsai is an indispensable element. Specifically, bamboo (except for lucky bamboo or “lucky bamboo”), insect-catching (air plant) and spider plant are safe plants. However, crabs can eat them at any time, so you should plant them until they are strong enough to put them in the tank.

Provide water for hermit crabs. All hermit crabs need clean water and salt water. You should prepare two dishes of this water because the crabs need to balance the salinity in the shell; The water dish must be deep enough for the crabs to soak the shells (C.Perlatus crabs love to soak in water). Design a sloping area of water, from shallow to deep, surrounded by rocks or something for the crabs to cling to. Do not use plastic as it is quite slippery and crabs will have a hard time climbing uphill.

• If you have a large hermit crab and the other is smaller, you can place small stones or a natural sponge in the water dish so that the dish is deep enough for the big crab to soak in while the crab is submerged. Small children also do not get stuck and drown.
• You can buy aquarium salt water made for marine fish (not freshwater fish). Salt should not be used because the antifreeze in it will harm the crabs. Some brands of salt for hermit crabs are table salt, so when you mix the salt water, it won’t have the right salinity. Please use specialized reputable brands such as Instant Ocean, Oceanic, etc.

Make sure the water is dechlorinated. In tap water, there are certain substances such as chlorine, chloramine and heavy metals that can cause the hermit crab’s body to swell (leading to sudden death due to abnormal suffocation). Distilling water will remove chlorine but still have chloramine, so if you use tap water you need to combine it with a water treatment machine.

• You can use spring water to replace tap water if there is no treatment condition. However, make sure it’s nothing but spring water. For example, Dasani water contains magnesium sulfate (also known as Epsom salt) “to enhance flavor”, and this is not good for crabs.