HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hello,

I am looking to buy some new cholla wood. Any suggestions on somewhere that sells larger pieces of cholla wood. I used to be able to buy them at my local craft store and they no longer sell them.
Thanks!

I'm pretty sure THP (www.hermitcrabpatch.com) sells a couple of different sizes including huge ones, I got some little ones on Amazon for cheap recently, and of course you could check the major pet stores, though I expect ridiculous prices from them. Also consider local reptile stores. Mine has lots of stuff and the owner isn't /entirely/ clueless about hermits, which is nice. I hope that helps! Also, that order is the order I would check in, by preference!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I ordered a couple decent sized pieces from eBay for a good price, and he has shipped to Canada without issues, though not an issue for you lol

Thanks, I will check both of those out! I order my food from Hermit crab patch, I did not realize they had cholla!

Rpksports is the seller I ordered through. Can't link since I use the app.

Is cholla wood from craft stores safe for hermit crabs?

StarWarsHermitCrab wrote:Is cholla wood from craft stores safe for hermit crabs?

That would depend on how (if) it's treated. Is there any packaging?

There is no packaging.

All of mine is from Michaels, untreated. Not sure if it was the smartest choice, but I had no ill effects. Haven't purchased any in around five years though....

Is that Brock guy still selling? People were really happy with his service and product!

Hobby Lobby in my area sells 6" pieces for about $3. I never even considered that they might be treated, but I've used several pieces for months with no problems. The crabs don't really climb on them; I mostly use them to prop up the shell shop and moss pit since they like to fall. I always had a grand plan of zip tying smaller sections together to make interesting climbing pieces, but then I got lazy and bought big cork rounds instead.

I've seen quite a few pieces of cholla for sale on eBay, but unfortunately the bigger pieces have pretty high shipping costs.

megmaholm wrote:Hobby Lobby in my area sells 6" pieces for about $3. I never even considered that they might be treated, but I've used several pieces for months with no problems.

That's where I've gotten my cholla, too. I did, however, rinse the cholla in very hot water and then baked it dry in a 225 degree oven. My crabs love climbing on it and picking at it...so far, so good.

Crabinski wrote: That's where I've gotten my cholla, too. I did, however, rinse the cholla in very hot water and then baked it dry in a 225 degree oven. My crabs love climbing on it and picking at it...so far, so good.

I'm getting some and while it's sold for pet use, I'd still like to rinse and bake. How long did you bake it for at that temp?

My two pieces shipped yesterday (I keep forgetting the USA postal service runs 7 days a week heh), so I'll be sure to share once it gets her. Looks like a couple weeks.

Asheka wrote: I'm getting some and while it's sold for pet use, I'd still like to rinse and bake. How long did you bake it for at that temp?

I think it was around 45 minutes. After rinsing the cholla, I rolled it in a towel to remove as much moisture as possible before putting it in the oven (just sat it on the bare rack). The baking was more to kill off any possible "intruders" than to dry it completely -- you could just let it air-dry after the super-hot rinse.

wodesorel wrote:All of mine is from Michaels, untreated. Not sure if it was the smartest choice, but I had no ill effects. Haven't purchased any in around five years though....

Is that Brock guy still selling? People were really happy with his service and product!

I tried to get in touch with him back in Feb. No response. We'd been in communication and he said they had heavy rains and were waiting for the wood to dry out. I hope he is okay! I got my two 18" long pieces from Hermit Crab Addiction and they were less than $10 a piece, maybe like $7 or $8 but I forget.

Just don't boil it - it'll release all the sticky sap and it makes an utter mess! Takes days to dry out enough to where it won't mold if you put in the tank.