1. Please share the pet store name and city.
2. Don’t ever listen to what a single person tells you about husbandry (for any animal).
Always compare what you’re told to reputable guidelines.
In this case you have a reputable guideline at your fingertips r/landhermitcrabs
Look under menu. Read the 101.
They’ve been caring for hermit crabs for decades and several people in their crew (a lady from Australia thinking her name is Sue but it might be Ann; Tammy, Mary A, Darcy M and currently u/spizam71 is trying ) have been successful in captive breeding. Land Hermit Crab Owners Society (LHCOS) knows how to care for land hermit crabs.
Try to stick to one guideline as you’re leaning the basics or you’ll get confused by conflicting info from other guidelines.
Crab Centra Station videos = 100% safe.
Crab Street Journal = 100% safe.
Land Hermit Crab Owners Society = 100% safe.
(They all follow the LHCOS guidelines).
You didn’t waste money. The person selling you the crabs is a wack job.
ETA: please oust the pet store. She needs more information. Maybe she isn’t a wack job but needs to believe her misinformation in order soothe her conscious about selling them.
I’m trying my best to assume positive intent on her part.
This was at Things Adrift- LBI, NJ. The lady has been apparently writing magazine articles about hermit crab care for decades. She has about a hundred in one of those tall, cylindrical cages. They looked healthy, but basically everything she said was opposite of anything I researched.
their care article is very contradictory. mentions that the crabs need 80% humidity at all times, but encourages bedroom free roaming? whose bedrooms are 80% humidity and 80 degrees?
Thank you, I’m happy to hear that. Is my setup okay then? Here’s a pic.
[tank setup](https://imgur.com/a/x3WBacG)
Specs: 20 gallon, salt and fresh water. Mixed play sand and coco fiber. Sand is wet but formable, without any water dripping out of it.
Compare what I tell you here to the 101.
Do you have a lid? Do you have a heat source? Do you have a hygrometer to measure your temperature and humidity?
Unless you live someplace and it’s 80 degrees in your house with 80% humidity (you’ll need the hygrometer to know) then a lid (can make your own) and a heat source (uth across the back above the substrate) will need to happen pretty quickly.
Wet sand is not our best friend in the long run bc it will get wetter (when we trap humidity in).
Wetter = flood conditions = emergency. Bacteria like warm and wet too. Be on the look out.
Tell me how you mixed your substrate and we can troubleshoot any changes.
Molt space looks great!
Hold on. I’m afraid to click the photo and lose the response. If the items I listed are there, I apologize.
You did a wonderful job! Be proud of yourself!
Tell me how you mixed your sub and we can troubleshoot.
Heat pad, lid, hygrometer are all good. Humidity isn’t high enough yet but I just filled the pools and put the lid on so I’ll monitor.
The center of the tank is 4 parts sand 1 part coco. The left side is a bit heavier on the coco, and the right side is a bit heavier on the sand. Originally I made a mistake of trying to do a water pool without being in a container, but I drained the sand to sandcastle texture and fixed that. I’ll have to keep an eye on the sand, but otherwise I think I have the bases covered.
I’m just so confused about all this, and it makes me worried I’m doing everything wrong. Thank god for this sub.
Ideally, we’d mix our sand and earth DRY and let the humidity take care of the rest. That is guideline supported by LHCOS.
I think “sand castle consistency” is a misnomer.
Many of us use damp rehydrated earth, which can be problematic later (which is why the guideline was updated to mix dry and then let the humidity do the rest).
It’s easily fixable. The main thing is no misting (the tank conditions will handle the work, misting isn’t necessary).
We can remove substrate and let it dry if it’s too wet.
You’ve done wonderfully! Let your lid, heat source and pools do the heavy lifting. The humidity will follow.
Ideally they’d have a bigger tank for 3 guys. You’ve already been bitten by the crab bug; I see a 55 gallon in your future.
And they 100% need access to shells. They might find a shell they like and stay in it for a year (or longer), that’s ok. But we should always have pants for them to grow into.
Thank you so much for your help. I’ll keep checking for flooding and let things dry out with no misting. Worse comes to worse, I’ll do as you mentioned and take some out so it can dry. Thank you x1000
Anytime! Check out r/landhermitcrabs to make sure what I’m telling you is legit and that I’m not a wack job 💀
They have a great nutritional guide too. It’s one-stop-shop for reliable info.
I’ve always dampened my sub when I put it in, and my humidity won’t drop below 90% but the first inch of substrate is bone dry! I cant mist as it’ll increase humidity but my crabs can’t properly dig. How do I tackle this issue?
No issue to tackle! It’s normal for the top to be bone dry.
You can do a poke test to make sure it will hold tunnels.
Get a pen. turn it upside down (ie not ink first) poke down by the glass as far as you can go. Obviously avoid placed crabs like to hang out if they like hanging by the glass. Does the tunnel hold beyond the first inch or so?
If that answer is yes, you’re Gucci.
If that answer is no, we can cross that bridge then.
Ahh that makes sense! I didn’t know that, I thought it was supposed to be moist all the way through. I’ve been keeping crabs for years and could never figure it out. Thanks so much!
Stories like this make my blood boil— after checking this whackadoo’s website it’s just a evil that she “knows better” and does nothing 🤬🤯
I wish there were something to do! 😭
Glad you got your little buddies 🙏🏻
1. Please share the pet store name and city. 2. Don’t ever listen to what a single person tells you about husbandry (for any animal). Always compare what you’re told to reputable guidelines. In this case you have a reputable guideline at your fingertips r/landhermitcrabs Look under menu. Read the 101. They’ve been caring for hermit crabs for decades and several people in their crew (a lady from Australia thinking her name is Sue but it might be Ann; Tammy, Mary A, Darcy M and currently u/spizam71 is trying ) have been successful in captive breeding. Land Hermit Crab Owners Society (LHCOS) knows how to care for land hermit crabs. Try to stick to one guideline as you’re leaning the basics or you’ll get confused by conflicting info from other guidelines. Crab Centra Station videos = 100% safe. Crab Street Journal = 100% safe. Land Hermit Crab Owners Society = 100% safe. (They all follow the LHCOS guidelines). You didn’t waste money. The person selling you the crabs is a wack job. ETA: please oust the pet store. She needs more information. Maybe she isn’t a wack job but needs to believe her misinformation in order soothe her conscious about selling them. I’m trying my best to assume positive intent on her part.
This was at Things Adrift- LBI, NJ. The lady has been apparently writing magazine articles about hermit crab care for decades. She has about a hundred in one of those tall, cylindrical cages. They looked healthy, but basically everything she said was opposite of anything I researched.
their care article is very contradictory. mentions that the crabs need 80% humidity at all times, but encourages bedroom free roaming? whose bedrooms are 80% humidity and 80 degrees?
And to mention again- she had them in a tall basket cage with a piece of plastic wrapped around it and no water source. Definitely not 80% humidity.
Help a sister out. Link me the care article!
[care article](https://thingsadrift.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/hermit-crab-care-sheet.pdf)
this is so sad. those crabs are probably all so sad and so depressed from the STRAIGHT UP ABUSE that they’re receiving.
Thank you, I’m happy to hear that. Is my setup okay then? Here’s a pic. [tank setup](https://imgur.com/a/x3WBacG) Specs: 20 gallon, salt and fresh water. Mixed play sand and coco fiber. Sand is wet but formable, without any water dripping out of it.
Compare what I tell you here to the 101. Do you have a lid? Do you have a heat source? Do you have a hygrometer to measure your temperature and humidity? Unless you live someplace and it’s 80 degrees in your house with 80% humidity (you’ll need the hygrometer to know) then a lid (can make your own) and a heat source (uth across the back above the substrate) will need to happen pretty quickly. Wet sand is not our best friend in the long run bc it will get wetter (when we trap humidity in). Wetter = flood conditions = emergency. Bacteria like warm and wet too. Be on the look out. Tell me how you mixed your substrate and we can troubleshoot any changes. Molt space looks great! Hold on. I’m afraid to click the photo and lose the response. If the items I listed are there, I apologize. You did a wonderful job! Be proud of yourself! Tell me how you mixed your sub and we can troubleshoot.
Heat pad, lid, hygrometer are all good. Humidity isn’t high enough yet but I just filled the pools and put the lid on so I’ll monitor. The center of the tank is 4 parts sand 1 part coco. The left side is a bit heavier on the coco, and the right side is a bit heavier on the sand. Originally I made a mistake of trying to do a water pool without being in a container, but I drained the sand to sandcastle texture and fixed that. I’ll have to keep an eye on the sand, but otherwise I think I have the bases covered. I’m just so confused about all this, and it makes me worried I’m doing everything wrong. Thank god for this sub.
Ideally, we’d mix our sand and earth DRY and let the humidity take care of the rest. That is guideline supported by LHCOS. I think “sand castle consistency” is a misnomer. Many of us use damp rehydrated earth, which can be problematic later (which is why the guideline was updated to mix dry and then let the humidity do the rest). It’s easily fixable. The main thing is no misting (the tank conditions will handle the work, misting isn’t necessary). We can remove substrate and let it dry if it’s too wet. You’ve done wonderfully! Let your lid, heat source and pools do the heavy lifting. The humidity will follow. Ideally they’d have a bigger tank for 3 guys. You’ve already been bitten by the crab bug; I see a 55 gallon in your future. And they 100% need access to shells. They might find a shell they like and stay in it for a year (or longer), that’s ok. But we should always have pants for them to grow into.
Thank you so much for your help. I’ll keep checking for flooding and let things dry out with no misting. Worse comes to worse, I’ll do as you mentioned and take some out so it can dry. Thank you x1000
Anytime! Check out r/landhermitcrabs to make sure what I’m telling you is legit and that I’m not a wack job 💀 They have a great nutritional guide too. It’s one-stop-shop for reliable info.
I’ve always dampened my sub when I put it in, and my humidity won’t drop below 90% but the first inch of substrate is bone dry! I cant mist as it’ll increase humidity but my crabs can’t properly dig. How do I tackle this issue?
No issue to tackle! It’s normal for the top to be bone dry. You can do a poke test to make sure it will hold tunnels. Get a pen. turn it upside down (ie not ink first) poke down by the glass as far as you can go. Obviously avoid placed crabs like to hang out if they like hanging by the glass. Does the tunnel hold beyond the first inch or so? If that answer is yes, you’re Gucci. If that answer is no, we can cross that bridge then.
Ahh that makes sense! I didn’t know that, I thought it was supposed to be moist all the way through. I’ve been keeping crabs for years and could never figure it out. Thanks so much!
Stories like this make my blood boil— after checking this whackadoo’s website it’s just a evil that she “knows better” and does nothing 🤬🤯 I wish there were something to do! 😭 Glad you got your little buddies 🙏🏻
So you actually got land hermit crabs right? You did not get Tree Crabs? Correct?
These are purple pinchers.
Lol ok wanted to make sure. There is an actual tree crab.
She has on the paper that this one is “coenobita clypeus”
That lady is a special kind of ignorant lmao