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[CrabMommaChara]

Today I am getting hermit crabs! What should I do on the way home from the store? I assume they will be jumpy? I do not drive so I will be holding them in their carrier. Should I bring snacks for them? What should I feed them? Should I hold them?
Help???

[Hermiesguardian]

Today I am getting hermit crabs! What should I do on the way home from the store? I assume they will be jumpy? I do not drive so I will be holding them in their carrier. Should I bring snacks for them? What should I feed them? Should I hold them?
Help???

They'll be fine in the container the store puts them in until you get home. You don't want to hold them. Is their tank at home set up already with the proper temperature and humidity? The pet store will try to sell you food and water and sand for them. Most things marketed for hermit crabs aren't good for them at all. They need a minimum of 80% humidity to breath. A digital thermometer/hygrometer is much more acurate than the "dial" ones at the store.

[Hermiesguardian]

It does sound like you are a beginner. The heat mat you need for them goes on the outside of the back of the tank. It should be placed at the top of the substrate so it covers the back to the top of the tank. The lid needs to be sealed well. A glass lid or plexiglass. If you have a mesh lid, seal that with saran wrap and tape it down. You don't need to leave a spot open for air. They will get enough air when you open it to feed them.

[Motörcrab]

A short trip from the store they will be fine in any type of carrier the store provides as long as they aren't shaken up.

When I pick up crabs from an adoption where they will be in the car for several hours I bring a 10 gallon tank with a moist shallow substrate of eco earth and wet moss to keep a high humidity. I'll also bring some food and water for them.

[CrabMommaChara]

Thank you, this is very helpful!

[elly_bananas]

You should definitely read up on their care here. They need a lot more than you see in the pet store holding tanks.

-80° heat 80% humidity

-Hides to sneak off to

-2 pools of water deep enough to submerge fully in, but be able to climb in and out effectively. 1 is a dechlorinated fresh water and the other should be dechlorinated salt water. Most of us use an aquarium brand called Instant Ocean.

-crab safe foods, like freeze dried crickets, fruits, vegetation and calcium, as was said above, the products marketed for crabs at the store are junk and horrible for your little friends. There are stores on etsy you can find that sell prepared and dried food and other things

-their substrate should be 5 parts play sand to 1 part coconut fiber and at minimum depth of 3x the height of your largest crab. You should stay clear of the colored calcium sand, its not safe for them.

If all of these requirements are met, your guys should live happily and healthy. Remember that they will mosy likely run, hide and dig pretty quick once you get them settled in, its quite normal, and you may not see them for quite some time. They "destress" from the pet store environment and hide. Keep food out at all times. They eat small bites, you probably wont notice, but they will eat.

Good luck, have fun, and we are all here if you need anything at all.

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[CrabMommaChara]

Thank you!
Last question, I read somewhere that hermit crabs really enjoy apples. In your experience, can you guys confirm this?

[elly_bananas]

They eat just about everything. For instance, i have granny smith apples, walnuts, Himalayan sea salt, popcorn (their absolute favorite), a beef bone with marrow, 1 sardine, celery leaves and 3 acai berries in their food bowl right now lol. If you look around you can find the safe food list, which is helpful stocking up. But most food i buy is online and they are mostly organic, dehydrated or freeze dried fresh foods. Organic is important whenever possible fyi. You want to give them things they could find naturally as best as u could. Things without pesticides or gmo produced.

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[Motörcrab]

Mine love apples and pears. I always buy organic. When I am done eating one I'll throw the core in the tank for a day or two and them pick away at it!

[elly_bananas]

Mine love apples and pears. I always buy organic. When I am done eating one I'll throw the core in the tank for a day or two and them pick away at it!

Absolutely. Lil garbage cans lol

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[Eggster]

Coconut fiber on it's own works perfectly as tank substrate and helps maintain humidity.

Pet stores are a treasure trove of cheap supplies and great tank items everywhere but the hermit crab section lol.
Fish section generally has the cheapest prices on dried shrimp and dried blood worms. In this section you'll also find your water conditioners and marine salt; a small bottle of prime and a small box of instant Ocean will last years. Lots of fun tank decor here.

Reptile/Turtle sections will have dehydrated vegetable mixes and meal worms. All Living Things reptile vegetable blend is really good; it's a mix of dried veggies, dried crickets, and dried meal worms. My crabs in particular always gobble it town. You can also find dry fruit blends sometimes in this section.

Bird section has some more dried fruit blends but mainly some bird toys make for excellent tank decor. For example, I came across a hanging hollowed out coconut with attached rope ladder for bird cages. I placed it about an inch from the top of my tank, flipped the top rope over the edge of the tank, duck taped the rope in place, put the tank lid back on, and put something heavy on top so my jumbo couldn't lift the lid.
My crabs loved it so much that they eventually wore through the attaching rope and I had to to buy a new one. The rope ladder can be strung along the tank or draped in many fun ways. Lots of fun climbing toys can be found here.

Getting a proper setup requires a lot of initial effort but is completely worth it. A properly set up tank will have your crabs active and maintenance is super easy.
Water when it runs low, about every 2 weeks for me. Food when it's low or gets moldy, every few days to a week or more depending on how much you're adding at a time. Complete tank change like every 6 months to a year.

Pretty much once your initial set up is done, care is simple and infrequent enough to be a perfect start for teaching children pet responsibilities.

[CrabMommaChara]

Thank you all so much! This has been incredibly helpful to me, and I am now proud owner of two happy hermit crabs in a (more or less) stable environment!