Crab Great Grandma needs advice

[CrabKate]

Hi, my 6 year old granddaughter who lives with me was gifted 2 hermits 36 hours ago. They arrived in an everything wrong habitat, but I’ve been researching and modifying. They are PP and came directly from petsmart to us. I’m having trouble wrapping my head around a solid tank cover. I Read they have modified gills, but do I really want to cover them completely without any openings? Do they not get any oxygen from the air it’s all from the moisture in the air? Thanks for any help.
Kate

[asiankanye]

Yes, a solid cover will work fine. When you open the lid for food changes and stuff they get enough air flow.


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[HappyHermit0916]

What substrate do you use ?????

[CrabKate]

This is our setup.
Rocky - PP 1/2” claw with 5/8 in shell opening in a natural snail style shell - very active almost to the point of friendly.
Pinchy - PP 3/8” claw with 1/2” shell opening in a natural longer pointy shell with a spike on 1 front side, Maybe a little crowded - quite cautious little guy.
Tank 16”x7.5” I’m working on getting a larger one from Craigslist
Substrate came from Petsmart seems to be sand and something organic maybe coir or peat (not sure) also one side is Fine blue Sand.
I removed all the VERY stinky cute fake things but left the substrate until I get something bigger.
All water I’m using is chlorine free from Petsmart and Distilled I had on hand. All fresh water.
Everything I’ve added has been boiled 15 minutes in distilled water.
Heater for back, hygrometer, Instant Ocean and dechlorinator (Tetra safe for Bettas) arriving today.
Food Thirve HC Medley - dry pellets shrimp mealworms
I’ve tried adding almond sliver, cantaloupe, tomato, I’m going to try boiled egg today.
Dishes are china saucer and tiny baking ramikin. Scallop shell I collected myself
I’ve add boiled driftwood and small snail like and more elongated small shells. They are both interested everytime I add something new.
This morning I’m boiling some small turbo shells I collected that are very light weight.
I’m going to order more shells today.
I put foil over the top of there mesh top for now.
The hide is a small coffee cup on its side.
Best I can do for now because the items they came with have a horrible chemical smell.
Keeping the house at 76 for now and spraying inside with distilled water.

Open to any advice. Thanks

[HappyHermit0916]

The substrate that you are using may be harmful to your crabbies! You can also look for used tanks on Offer up, Letgo, Facebook market. Are you using both freshwater and saltwater? How deep are your water dishes? The food that you are feeding your crabs is harmful to your crabbies! You could feed the crabs fruits and veggies until you can buy some good food! A good place to get food is the crab street journals food market. Happy crabbing!!!

[asiankanye]

a lot of etsy shops are also a really great option for food and decorations.


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[HappyHermit0916]

Yep

[HappyHermit0916]

I would try and upgrade as soon as possible!!!! I recommend playsand and eco earth for the substrate!!!

[CrabKate]

Thanks for all the advice I just came home with a used 22x12 tank. Next I need to go get play sand, after an appointment I have. Heater et al is out for delivery. Btw they dig in the sand to half way down their shells, they sleep, but are also pretty active.

[HappyHermit0916]

That's great I'm so happy for you!!!! Happy Crabbing!!!

[CrabKate]

The current sand is Thrive Natural Calcium Sand Soil Mix. The blue sand is Zoo Med Hermit Crab Sand,
Ingredients: Calcium carbonate, magnesium carbonate and natural pigment. Should I mix some into the play sand?

[asiankanye]

Remove all the sand. Both of those are harmful. EE and play sand should be the only things you have in your substrate.


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[CrabKate]

TY

[aussieJJDude]

Welcome! Wheb first stsrting out, it can all get a little complex and confusing. Thankfully after the initial hurdle, it gets a lot easier!

To answer you're original question; they require a solid lid to trap in moisture (humidity) in order to breathe. A screen or mesh lid would allow that moisture to escape. This doesn't mean that you have to have it 100% sealed - some do - but I am in the school of having some holes/vents for ventilation. CO2 is naturally heavier than oxygen, and in a glass box CO2 levels can build up - plus air circulation helps reduce chance of mould.

Some for this reason add airstones (air pump, used to make bubbles in aquariums) into their water dishes. Not only does it help increase humidity, but also help with air circulation. So its a strongly reccomended item by many.


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As some pointed out, calcium sand are considered dangerous to crabs due to its tendencies to clump and harden once wet, behaving very similar to concrete. Burrowing within this substrate could lead to further issues down the track. Hence why inert substrates like playsand (silica sand) and EE (coconut fibre, or eco earth) is used, at 3x the height of your largest crab (but the more the merrier). Many reccomend a ratio of 5:1 (sand to EE) as they find it helps with water retention and digging, but any ratio (or usibg straight sand or EE) is fine.

Some do like to mix leaf litter, moss and crushed coral (or shell grit) into their substrate, but it is not required and simply additional foraging items.

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