Not changing shells

Where we discuss the behavior of our hermit crabs, as in fights, pecking orders, shell swaps, etc. Please post all naked-crab posts in the Emergency forum.
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Hermielover121
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Not changing shells

Post by Hermielover121 » Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:37 am

I got a hermit crab about 2 months ago and it finally came up from his first molt with me he is in a shell that I got him in, that is way too small for him. I have two other shelves that are quite bigger than the one that he is in and I have tried everything to get him in to them like dipping them in salt water or putting them close to him but he won’t change, is this bad I don’t know what to do. Anybody have some suggestions on how to get a stubborn craft a change shellsImage


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jonathon1989
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by jonathon1989 » Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:42 am

Get more shells. You should have five shells for each crab. Give him options and his instics will do the rest. Usually, crabs will stay in a smaller shell when they are about to molt but since he molted two months ago that is not the case. Just keep an eye on him. Sometimes hemrit crabs can be very stubborn when it comes to shells.


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HermitofHermitCrabs
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by HermitofHermitCrabs » Fri Oct 16, 2020 10:07 am

Yep, more shells is what you need. I have 7 crabs with over 40 extra shells.
9 PPs in a 125 G Terrarium since August 2020: Sebastian (F) - 2 Molts, Midnight (F) - 2 Molts, Red (M) - 2 Molts, Jello (F) - 3 Molts, Ninja (M) - 1 Molt, Shelly (M) - 1 Molt, Tiny (?) - 3 Molts, & Dot (?) - 1 Molt

Formerly had ~40 from 2004 to 2010.
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doth
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by doth » Fri Oct 16, 2020 5:20 pm

you can never have too many spare shells! make sure to have options in different sizes & shapes- he may want another similar to what he has, or he may go for a different style that is lighter or heavier depending on his preference. sometimes they can be very picky, so lots of options is key.

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Re: Not changing shells

Post by Hermielover121 » Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:31 pm

He just came up from a molt from two months ago (he came up last week) It’s very hard to find shells his size, but I will try to find more


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jonathon1989
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by jonathon1989 » Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:34 pm

Hermielover121 wrote:He just came up from a molt from two months ago (he came up last week) It’s very hard to find shells his size, but I will try to find more


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Try Naples Sea Shell Company


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doth
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by doth » Fri Oct 16, 2020 9:36 pm

jonathon1989 wrote: Try Naples Sea Shell Company


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I second naples, they have a great selection and have some "variety pack" type options for if you need a bunch of shells of a similar size

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HermitofHermitCrabs
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by HermitofHermitCrabs » Fri Oct 16, 2020 10:08 pm

Yep, the assorted turbo packs from Naples are the way to go for PPs.
9 PPs in a 125 G Terrarium since August 2020: Sebastian (F) - 2 Molts, Midnight (F) - 2 Molts, Red (M) - 2 Molts, Jello (F) - 3 Molts, Ninja (M) - 1 Molt, Shelly (M) - 1 Molt, Tiny (?) - 3 Molts, & Dot (?) - 1 Molt

Formerly had ~40 from 2004 to 2010.
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Hermielover121
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Re: Not changing shells

Post by Hermielover121 » Sat Oct 17, 2020 1:21 am

Thanks big help I will be ordering some soon.


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