Any Land Hermit Crab Owners

[Million]

What size tank do you keep them in? They're really cool little guys

 

[Gill]

You obviously know your stuff, so I'll ask you.

Is it true that you need to bathe/wash them?

Yeah I bathe mine every few days, they tend to get bits of greenery on themselves.
I just dunk them in the tank and rub it off thill clean. They give you such a look of. #### you doing to me dunking me in there.

What size tank do you keep them in? They're really cool little guys

The smallest size i have them in is a 1gallon bowl. as the tiny gets picked on sometimes.

 

[TylerFerretLord]

They give you such a look of. #### you doing to me dunking me in there.

 

[fergalthefish]

they look so cute......i think i want some now!!!! oh dear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[marg]

You obviously know your stuff, so I'll ask you.

Is it true that you need to bathe/wash them?

I gave them a bath when we first had them, just to make sure they didn't have mites, if mite free, then i don't bath them again, they have a fresh water and a sea water bath in the tank, there quite deep and they bath if and when they like, its less stressful for them and more like it is in the wild, but i know quite a few folk like to bath them.

All new hermits should be bathed.

All mine bath themselves every few days, they fill their shells up with both fresh and salt water, if they bath themselves they can regulate their own salinity in their shells.

 

[marg]

My land hermit forum has made a deal with livefoodsbypost, for all posting members a 10% discount on all Land Hermit Crabs ordered from them.
So if you want or need any hermits thats the place to be.[URL="http/www.baywood-pets.co.uk/absolutely-crabulous/portal.php"]http/www.baywood-pets.co.uk/absolutely-c...lous/portal.php[/URL]

 

[marg]

 

[korn16ftl]

im also a hermit carb kinda person i find if un setting up the crabitat my tank is heated by 2 black light fixtures one has a black light in it and the other has a repti glo 5.0 tropical terrarium light i also planed real grass in the crabitat to add a more unique look i need to figure out a way to set up a sprinkler type watering system for the plants and am also debating on some ferns and some kind of climbing vine style plant

 

[Corleone]

Seeing as this thread is still around, I wanted to ask if there's a good resource that'll tell me everything I'd need or want to keep hermit crabs. I've turned up a few sites, which give quite simple instructions for setting up a crab tank, but then go on to mention all sorts of crap that I know nothing about which wasn't covered in the initial instructions.

Tried the pet store, just to see how bad their advice was, and they told me I could keep one in a bucket with a sponge and it would be "as happy as could be."

 

[bymauldin]

What kind of questions do you have? There are several people on this forum that could probably be of some help.

 

[Corleone]

Well, I have a 32x12x12 tank sitting empty with a burned out filter, and my niece said she likes hermit crabs. Her parents buy them for her as a "disposable pet" in those tiny $5 boxes they sell at the pet stores, but if I got them, I'd want a more suitable habitat.

Anyway... my specific question is basically for a shopping list of what I'd want to get to prepare the tank (or if it's just too small and I should try to find my old turtle tank from middle school, lol).

 

[Gill]

i have found thatthe hamster and gerbil section tank are great for them. i use al the wooden limbing frmes and they love climbing around in them al day.

i am changing mine over to a taller tank i the morning to give them more room.

you will eed somrhing for them toclimb up the different levels as the live to move to diferent heat zones throughoutthe day.
sme rope will do
something wooden,.
you can use alot of the reptil supplies aswell like the plastic ivy's
and the little tercotta bowls.

 

[marg]

Hiya Corleone my hermie site might give you an idea.

Ab-Crab uk

Like Gill i use 2 gerbil tanks, because they have shelves and a mesh lid to stop the hermits escaping.
Your tank size is fine.

cholla /choya wood is loved by hermits and they love to eat it too.

Hiding huts reptile ones work a treat.

A substrate, i use play sand at sandcastle consistency.
food dishes
2 water dishes, 1 for drinking water the other for salt water.
temperature gauge
humidity gauge
heat mat or some means of keeping them around (70-79 oF or 21-27oC)
dechlorinizer
marine salt mix

If you need any more help try here

Ab-Crab Support

 

[TylerFerretLord]

Wooo!

I'm getting a hermit tomorrow.

 

[Corleone]

Thanks for the links and info. I was mostly looking for the hardware end - none of the sites I read mentioned heating pads, among other things, and I haven't seen any at the pet stores around here. I'll be near Lansing tomorrow, and there's a huge pet store there that might have them.

Decoration wise I was going to use some old aquarium decorations (driftwood, fake caves, some rigid fake plants) and some rock shelves for climbing space.

Would a glass aquarium hood work in place of screen or mesh (was thinking to hold humidity in)? If not, I have a roll of window screen in the basement I could cut to fit.