Gallon Per Crab

[JeffCrab]

I think that we should compose a new rule on this gallon per crab or whatever. I mean if you think about it, a 40 gallon breeder has more space then a 40 gallon. We should make a square foot or square inch rule or something? What does everybody think? I'm going to put a poll on here. You can be annomonous.(Spelling way off lol)

[Hermit_of_Hermit_Crabs]

I disagree. 1 gallon for a medium, large, or jumbo is simply not enough room.

[starmaiden]

There's already a good article from Crab Street Journal about this delimma. I vote to keep the gallon standard as a guideline, but with a few caveats. You should err on the side of caution and use common sense.

My 30 breeder tank is supposedly 30 gallons, but it is tall and narrow, so has limited floor space for a crab. That's why I want to create a true second level that can be used for molting and take advantage of the empty top parts of the tank.

Anyhow, here's the article:
http://www.crabstreetjournal.com/articl ... wmany.html

[Guest]

I think an inch per gallon rule would be good, just like they have with fish: 1 inch of fish per gallon of water! I have 6 crabs ranging from teeny/small to medium/large in a 35 gallon tank and honestly by the time they all turn into medium/large (fingers crossed they live that long!) I don't think there'll be enough room for them!

[Guest]

I have a hard time following a gallon/crab rule in that crabs aren't always out and about. I almost always have at least 1 or 2 crabs molting, and I don't ISO, so that's two less crabs taking up surface area. I just kind of follow the "do they look comfortable" rule. They are very social creatures, and I haven't noticed any problems with overcrowding, even though my tat would be considered overcrowded.

[Guest]

I have a 60 gallon (a long tank) and about 17 crabs. I however feel that it is crowded. All of my crabs started out as about nickel to quarter size with a few exceptions, and all have grown very quickly. So I definitely disagree with the one crab per gallon rule. I could not imagine 60 crabs crawling around in my tank. That would just cause unnecessary stress to everyone, not having enough room to move.

You have to consider, it's not just a 60 gallon tank–it contains a large food dish and two large water pools as well as other things too. Those all take up space.

[Willow]

Definitely NOT 1 crab per gallon!!! That's a terrible rule. It will only work with really small crabbies, and that won't last for long, because the little guys grow pretty fast. I have a 75 gallon tank, and it would be crule to keep 75 crabs in it! I currently have 23 hermies in a 55 gallon tank (the 75g is out of commision for cleaning), and I really think it's starting to be overcrowded.

[Gorthaur]

hermit_of_hermit_crabs, jsrtist, and Willow - JeffCrab is not suggesting that we make a new rule that says each crab (regardless of size) requires only one gallon of space. The suggestion is that we eliminate the old rule of each size needing a certain number of gallons and create a new rule based on floor space. I think everyone will agree that 10 jumbos in a 10 gallon tank is ridiculous.

I am personally undecided on the issue. I don't think there should be a set amount of space for any size tank, since everyone decorates differently, and everyone's crabs have different places they like to hang out.

[Guest]

Exactly, there is no way you could have a set rule for everyone's tanks, which is why there should be no hard and fast rule. You basically kind of just have to approach it with common sense, but not forgetting that the crabs definitely do not stay the same size.

My first tank was a 20L and I got a lot of crabs, figuring I would have plenty of space. Even though I knew they would grow, I didnt realize just how much space they would eventually need!

So I really dont think there should be any particular "rule" for this.