Hermit Crabs are Pets - a Getting Started Guide

My youngest son came home today and insisted that we get a new pet. - A pet HERMIT CRAB, he said.

An intriguing thought. A hermit crab makes a wonderful pet, I told him - but there are a few things to learn first:

First and foremost is your hermit crab habitat. The goal when setting up a home for your crab is to mimic a native tropical climate. Temperature and humidity regulation are key to a land hermit crabs survival.

Temperature & Humidity Guidelines for Hermit Crabs

Temperature: 70-80 degrees F (78 degrees F is ideal)

Humidity: 70-80%

Having a saturated sea sponge in your crabs home can help keep the proper humidity level. Buy a thermometer and hygrometer (measures humidity) so that you can monitor these two important environmental conditions daily.

Land hermit crabs breathe with modified gills and if temperature and/or humidity fluctuate too severely, it can be fatal.

Choose a spot in your home for your crabhome where you will see your crabs often, making it easier to remember to feed, water and look after them. Remember .. a dog will bark when he is hungry, but a crab is completely dependant on your feeding him.

Remember that Hermit Crabs are nocturnal, and will be livelier at night so a bedroom is usually a horrible place to keep the crabitat.

Hermit crabs need enough space for the essentials:

• two water dishes (one filled with dechlorinated water and the other with sea water),
• one food dish,
• a few things to climb on,
• an area to live in
• a healthy depth of sand for burying themselves

Well, after a thorough explanation of the above, my son convinced. We are about to become Crabineers! Stay tuned for our exciting story!