HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I've only had these crabs about 2 months and they haven't changed shells yet. I have 3 crabbies. But last night it looked like one was checking out a new shell. He seemed to be "sitting" in the opening for a long time. And this morning he was doing that again and now is next to it holding onto it. Is it possible he's having a problem getting out of his current shell? Can he be stuck?

I doubt that your hermit is stuck Did you boil the new shells before you put them in? I recommend boiling them in dechlorinated fw, and then dipping them in dechlorinated msw.

Do you have the right kind of shells for them to change into? Here is the shell guide: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=92552

GotButterflies wrote:I doubt that your hermit is stuck Did you boil the new shells before you put them in? I recommend boiling them in dechlorinated fw, and then dipping them in dechlorinated msw.

Do you have the right kind of shells for them to change into? Here is the shell guide: viewtopic.php?f=24&t=92552

Thank you. Yes, I boiled them. And dipped them. I just bought a bag of shells at Michaels. The shell guide I've read before is a bit confusing. But I know they prefer round holes, right?

If you have pp crabs, then yes. But...that doesn’t mean they like all of the shells with round openings


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He's prob just talking his time deciding if he wants to try it on or not and doesn't want any other crabs to steal it while he makes up his mind. My guys some times drag shells off and bury them if I leave them on the sub lol.

GotButterflies wrote:If you have pp crabs, then yes. But...that doesn’t mean they like all of the shells with round openings


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There are different openings since I got that bag from Michaels. I put them in a plastic container and he was in there last night. He was in looking at a couple. But it seemed like it was difficult to climb over these shells. Round and not sturdy.