HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I've seen ALOT of people using reptile logs as hides for your crabs, they may seem okay, but that wood is most likely cedar which is an irritant and could kill them. A good substitute that's cheap is a cocohut. You can also take tubberware, cover it with something so it isn't see through, and cut a crab sized gap into it for them. Make sure it's safe!!! You can also figure out a way to stick rocks together in order to make a hut. Make sure it's stable! A good hide can also be a clay pot with netting over it to climb up for fun (optional) and a hole made on the side for the crabs to climb in and out of! A great, cheap, wet hide is frog spaghnum moss in which a lot comes. My crabs love it and dig all of the time!!! Happy hiding

I've used the half logs for a few years with zero issues. They're pine.

The toxins the pine releases is very risky and can have some long term damage. Do some research before you risk it.

As I said, I've used them before for a few years. I'm not currently using them now, just because I find wood pieces have to be chucked after spending a while in the crabitat. The pine used in these half logs are kiln dried and are not harmful. There's even some thought out there that pine isn't as harmful to hermit crabs as it's made out to be.
http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... ne#p962483
I would never use fresh cut pine though.

Many people have used the half log hides for years now with their crabs. They're safe.

Just chiming in to say that the half logs have been used by many crabbers for years with no ill effects.

They climb on pine and other evergreens in the wild...

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Many websites say that it's unsafe so I'd be careful, credible websites like the crab street journal say it too. Good luck with your irritated crabs...

So.... Our forum, which has been around for nearly two decades and researches everything it recommends is not credible?

TheCrabLord wrote:Many websites say that it's unsafe so I'd be careful, credible websites like the crab street journal say it too. Good luck with your irritated crabs...

HCA has been around for almost 20 years and we have crabbers who have used these hides for several with no issues.

Some of our founding members have crabs nearly as old or as old as the forum so I would definitely trust the experiences of people who've been researching and managed to keep hermits alive for that long.



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wodesorel wrote:So.... Our forum, which has been around for nearly two decades and researches everything it recommends is not credible?

Right... Funny how some groups started off by piggybacking on our care guides but now we aren't a credible source...

Let me go find my tea though...

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TheCrabLord wrote:Many websites say that it's unsafe so I'd be careful, credible websites like the crab street journal say it too. Good luck with your irritated crabs...

:roll: And many people used to say dairy and citrus were unsafe but now we know better.

Just to throw in on the pine issue. I work with animals and the original poster was correct in what they said about pine being toxic. BUT the effects of pine are eliminated if the wood is able to air out before being offered to the animal. This is even true if the wood has been dried out and they eat or chew it. So assuming everyone using pine treated it properly and even then I'd go so far to say because they aren't sealed sitting at the store in AC over time would do make it safe. Definitely not without some if a small risk. I personally only avoid it because I prefer cork/grapewood and get it at a great price from work.

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Just Jay wrote:Just to throw in on the pine issue. I work with animals and the original poster was correct in what they said about pine being toxic. BUT the effects of pine are eliminated if the wood is able to air out before being offered to the animal. This is even true if the wood has been dried out and they eat or chew it. So assuming everyone using pine treated it properly and even then I'd go so far to say because they aren't sealed sitting at the store in AC over time would do make it safe. Definitely not without some if a small risk. I personally only avoid it because I prefer cork/grapewood and get it at a great price from work.

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Pine itself is not toxic. The phenols in the sap are. Crabs can eat pinecones and routinely climb on different evergreens (including pines) in the wild.

If you put an oozing chunk of fresh cut pine in the tank, yeah, you'll have problems because our tanks are pretty airtight.

But a dried piece of wood isn't going to bother them.



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Honestly I'd still be careful. The fumes from the pine in a non aerated container can build up, while in the wild they can air out. Stay safe!

TheCrabLord wrote:Honestly I'd still be careful. The fumes from the pine in a non aerated container can build up, while in the wild they can air out. Stay safe!

Yes if you chuck a fresh piece in. Otherwise, a log you find in a store for example has had enough time to 'cure' and most of the fumes (phenols) have had a chance to dissipate or break down.

But I will say this, every forum and site has their own particular set of 'standards' used in crabbing care, so you may find with research that you may come up with contradictory information. However, with a bit of google and google scolar for example, you might be surprised what you come up with and form your own logical conclusion.
eg. substrate. Some recommend only the 5.1 ratio, everything else is bad and can kill them, others recommend virtually a 50/50 split, whether separated or mixed. Others recommend straight sand or EE. Some still recommend out of tat play time, others recommend using an ISO for moulting crabs. At one stage (archives) we did too, cause I did the same when first starting out! The crabbing community is small, but over time each group has evolved their own set of guidelines for successful crabbing.