Hermit crabs are one of the less popular invertebrates to be kept as pets. A recent surge in their popularity is owed to the fact that pet sellers are selling them with radically designed shells. I’m pretty sure the hermit crabs don’t really mind living in a shell with Spongebob Squarepant’s face painted on it as long as the proper measures are taken to make sure it’s healthy and happy.
They are so called because they’re the only known shelled invertebrates without the ability to make their own shell. They simply live, or at times, hijack an unused shell live in it. Due to pollution as well as the scarcity of quality used homes, they have been known to use other types of materials for shelter such as empty soda cans. If you plan to take care of these extremely interesting, and not remotely dangerous (as opposed to spiders and scorpions) creatures, the following tips should help.
Unbeknownst to all, hermit crabs are actually social creatures. They like to congregate at mealtimes and are often observed to bully some of the smaller ones. Its best, and infinitely more interesting, to keep two or three hermit crabs together, but you can also keep a hermit crab by itself. Hermit crabs come from the tropics and will not do well in cold climate. Proper heating for your hermit crab is a primary consideration if you happen to live in cool climates. A single light bulb over your hermit crab aquarium should take care of both the lighting and the heating requirements. You can use the ones they sell in fish stores that give off as much light as heat. Ordinary ones are fine too.
A single hermit crab will do well in a ten to twenty gallon aquarium. You can have one custom made to allow for the fact that hermit crabs don’t really need tall aquariums, rather, they need wider and longer ones. Sand is the perfect substrate for your hermit crab tank. The sand should be sloping towards a small pool of water, preferably brackish, and should ideally be more than two inches at its higher end. Corals and rocks should also be placed inside your hermit crab tank, not only for aesthetic reasons but also to provide hiding places for smaller hermit crabs. Your hermit crab will amuse itself by playing with pebbles and other things in its tank. You can even buy specially made toys for it in some pet shops. A bored hermit crab is more likely to bully others so investing in a few toys is a good idea.
Hermit crabs are scavengers by nature. In the wild, they eat mostly algae, seaweed, rotting fish, and other edible things they can find on the beach. They’ll mostly do well on protein-rich fish food but you can also supplement their diet with a variety of vegetables and even some meat. Hermit crabs grow bigger and change their shell once a year. They should be separated from their fellows during this time and given a diet high in calcium to assist in their growth. A smaller tank could be utilized during this time.
