Question from Giovanny

Hi Giovanny! First off, I would just like to say Thankyou for getting your hermit crabs the proper care!

I am glad you are getting a bigger cage, you will need it to hold the hermit crab water pools. You can purchase more hermit crabs, and hermit crabs supplies at your local PetCo, Pet Supplies Plus, and (usually) PetSmart!

Regarding Activity Level - New hermit crabs may be a little wary of their new surroundings, and may be a little stressed from the transition. However, in less than a week your hermit crabs should be more active. When your hermit crabs molt, they will stay under their substrate (ex: sand, hermit soil, etc). This means their activity level with you is pretty much 0. However, I find that (most) hermit crabs are VERY friendly when not molting and are very happy to climb around and explore!

Regarding Friends- There is no way to "make your hermit crabs friends" but they will naturally grow fond of each other. They are social creatures, and will enjoy each others' company.

As you requested, here is a cost estimate for everything you will need (excluding the cage):

• A Reptile Thermometer -3 (the Temp. should be around 72-80 degrees - if it is not, you will have to raise the tempature by either moving it to a warmer place or buying lighting)
• A Reptile Humidity Gauge - 7 (the humidity should be around 65 to 80%. To raise the humidity in your tank, you can add a sponge, mist the sides of your tanks, and make sure your tank has a lid)
• Sand/Hermit soil - (this depends on how big your tank its, but this is enough for a ten gallon tank) 2pds of sand - 4
• 2 "hermit soils" - 3 (I find that my hermit crabs like a mix of both, so you can put one half of the tank hermit soil, the other sand)
• Hermit Crab Climbing Toy (choya wood, bridge, etc) - 3
• 2 Hemit Crab Dishes - 5
• Hermit Crab Coconut - 3
• Plant (any fake aquarium one would work) - 2
• Hermit Crab Salt Water Conditioner - 3 (follow the instructions, and put this in one pool)
• Hermit Crab Drinking Conditioner - 3 (follow the instructions, and put this in the second pool with the sponge)
• 3 natural hermit crab shells (you will need to get some slightly bigger than they have now. I suggest "green turbos") - 2
• Hermit Crab Feeder Dish - 1
• Hermit Crab Food - in your house! (see my other blog posts to see natural hermit crab foods

The total is: about 40$

You can buy these items at your local pet store or at:

http://www.petdiscounters.com/Featured-Unusual-Products-c284.html

I hope this helps! If you have any other questions, or concerns please don't hesitate to ask!

Anna :)

splishsplashstyle@gmail.com

Molting

Hermit Crabs shed their exoskeletons or "molt" about every 6 months or so. The number of times hermit crabs molt in a year (or more) depends on their size. Molting Hermit Crabs will bury themselves underneath the sand or hermit soil given to them, for days or weeks.

Do NOT handle, touch, or bathe your hermit crab while it is molting. Do not remove the exoskeleton of your hermit crab, because your crab needs to eat its' exoskeleton after its' molt to regain lost calcium. Once your hermit crab is done molting (usually you can tell a hermit crab is done molting by it's activity), you may remove the small leftover bits of its' exoskeleton.

Molting hermit crabs are often mistaken for dead hermit crabs. If you are unsure whether your hermit crab is molting or dead, smell it! If it has an offensive odor, it is most likely dead.

I hope this helped you on the care of your molting crab! If you have any questions, concerns, or comments, comment below or email me at splishsplashstyle@gmail.com

Anna :)

How to: Pick out a healthy hermit crab!

When choosing your new pet hermit crab, you want to be sure it is healthy. Pet stores don't always have the best environment for their crabs, so its best to know the signs of a healthy hermit crabs before you buy one.

1. Make sure your local pet store does not have mites in it's hermit crab tank. If it does, go to a different pet store. (Unless, of course, you are able to/ready to isolate the hermit crab and get rid of he or she's mites).
2. Try to look for an active hermit crab, one that is scurrying around the tank. This almost always indicates that he or she is healthy.
3. When you hold the hermit crab, does he come out? Can you feel movement in his shell? This also indicates he or she is healthy.
4. If the hermit crab smells do not purchase it.

I hope this helps you, when picking out your hermit crab!

If you have any questions, or comments feel free to comments below - or email me at splishsplashstyle@gmail.com