How Did Selling Hermit Crabs For Pets Get Started?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Aug 18, 2008 4:16 pm

Not sure if anyone can answer this question, but here it goes....How and when did selling Land Hermit Crabs get started?I remember getting Hermit Crabs, when I was a kid, and that was back in the 70'sI was just curious as to when it all started and why.

Nicole · Post by **Nicole** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 1:50 pm

This doesn't exactly answer your question but this article states that crabkeeping became popular in the 1970s, though my husband swears he had hermit crabs growing up in the 60s as well. OT, I didn't care for the info in the article, either, though in all fairness it was published 8 years ago.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 2:17 pm

Hi Nicole! Thanks for responding to my post and also for looking up the article.I remember the painted turtles! It does make sense that since the turtles were banned from being sold in the 70's that Hermit crabs would become popular.Out of curiosity, I looked up Shell Shanty and they do have a website.http://www.shellshanty.com/I will be nice and hold off on my comment of it though Thanks JMT! We were posting at the same time!It does all make sense now.

Post by **JediMasterThrash** » Wed Aug 20, 2008 2:17 pm

That article kind of already says what I was going to say. They used to sell baby turtles at all the fairs and beaches, but in the 70's there was a salmonella scare, and the government passed a bill banning the sale and interstate transportation of baby turtles.So the hermit crab, a pet that has no known human-communicable diseases, became the replacement pet for all the fairs and boardwalks.All references I can find basically say the sales started in the 70's. Of course I'm sure there were some exotic pet stores that would have imported them as far back as people owned lizards and fish. But not at a widespread popular level.