HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I have six hermies which I love to death, however, I am deathly afraid to be touched by one. I usually have my significant other bathe them, move them, etc. When I do get the guts to move them, I do it quickly, and sometimes wearing gloves. I am not afraid of being pinched, as I am sure it doesn't hurt that much. I am just afraid of being touched. I want to hold one in my hand and crawl on it, but I am soo afraid to.So, has anyone had this fear? And how did you overcome it?

They are perfectly safe to touch, just like any other pets. Pinching hurts a lot for a second, then it doesn't hurt at all, I have been pinched by my medium pp after SOMEONE forgot to feed them when I was on vacation! They do not pinch much. I was kinda afraid when I first got them. Start by holding the shell when they are not out, if you are ok with that, lay them on your hand when they are not out. Then try holding the shell when they are out, then hold them in you hand. Think of it like touching a dog, rabbit, or even a turtles shell. I hope you overcome your fear. Hermies are gentle little guys.

Well, you don't even really have to touch them, if you don't want to. They really do manage pretty well with just the company of their own kind. However, if you want to get past your fear, there's a couple thing you can do. What do you expect them to feel like? Is it like the snake thing where people expect them to be slimy or cold? Snakes aren't like that, and neither are hermies. Their exo is smooth, slightly cool, but definitely not cold since their environment is tropical, and they aren't exactly soft. The nails can be REALLY sharp when they've just molted, but since they're used to climb trees and such, it's not that surprising. Their antenna are really light and sometimes they'll pat your hand with them. If you can feel it at all, it sort of tickles. As for pinching, I've bought crabs who've pinched me in the store. LOL! 'course I'm someone who's always got cat scratches or some sort of animal related mark, so the crab pinches don't faze me that much. Um, sometimes the hermies will "leak" a little shell water on you, but it's really just that-water. If you hold a more active crab, they'll most likely just try to walk off your hand. To start, you could just set them down (or have someone else set them down) on a sheet on the floor and touch a leg or something like that. Then slowly get closer to letting them sit in an outstretched hand. Just take it slow and easy. You might like it better than you think. If not, that's okay. They'll probably appreciate the hands off technique just as much.

I have had my crabs for over a year and still get the heebies about touching them, especially the biggest one. I usually have my husband move them for me if he is around, and my brother took them out when he was visiting and held them. My little girls will hold them (let them crawl over their hands while they, the girls, are laying on the floor). But, I still get squirmy when I have to touch them. They feel like fingernails, hard and scratchy. It seems as though they are always molting and have the sharp points on their legs. They don't seem to wear down very quickly, and then they are molting again anyway! Plus, all of mine, except one, are NOT shy. They come waaaay out when I pick them up and try to touch my hand. I pick them up by the shell if I have to move them and I am always afraid they are going to fall out of their shells. If I have to move them very far out of the tank (rare instances), I bring a shoe box over to the tank and put them in there to move them. I really like them, and I don't want to freak out and drop one, so I am taking it really slow with the touching thing. Take your time and enjoy them. You don't have to touch them and hold them, they probably don't even care anyway. If you enjoy them and take good care of them, that is all that matters. They aren't snuggly pets like cats or dogs, you know? You are doing just fine.

The crabs will not fall out, if you are still afraid, then hold them from the side of the shell that does not have the hole and point their head up in the air.

Haha, I was a bit afraid of holding the crabs when I first got them, too. Actually, one of my sisters started the whole hermie thing but I got pinched by one of hers a few hours after bringing them home from a mall kiosk. I think it was starving. She freaked out and I immediately went from having two hermies to four! I was nervous too, but these guys have given great advice, I started out slow!The only think I would add: start out with your smallest hermie! It will get you used to the feel of them and might not freak you out as bad!

My sister can't stand spiders and thinks the crabs look like spiders, so she doesn't like them very much either. I myself really do like spiders, and pondered getting a tarantula once, but I think I decided it's not the right pet for me. But now I think this topic's been pretty well covered. Ya don't have to touch the crabbies if you don't want to, since they certainly don't mind. If, however, you want to for whatever reason, you can start with something as small as someone putting it on a sheet on the floor for you and just letting crawl around until you get brave enough to touch it or let a shy, sweet one sit in your hand for a bit.

I've had crabs since I was a kid and they pinched me one or two times so I was weary of them but loved playing with them still. The largest I had gave me a BIG pinch on the first day I got him and wouldn't let me go and even started to dig his sharp legs into my hand and I only got him off when I put water over him. I had a purple spot on my hand where it had bruised to match my crabs purple claw It was actually my fault since I was so excited when I saw he changed shells and wanted to show him off and I had grabbed him and ran around with him. I guess he thought I was going to take his new shell But since then I was weary to hold him. I started slow by letting him roam around on the floor and put my hand flat in front of him and blocking him till he crawled over it and I got use to his large pointy legs crawling on me. You have to get use to the feel of the crabs. I'm also afriad of handling dead crabs or any dead animals for that matter. But I'm normally the type to pick up spiders, snakes and lizards so its easy for me to handle crabs. I'm normally the one chasing snakes through bushes, catching lizards and I even wanted a scorpion/tarantulas or a snake for a pet but I think a hermit crab is the safest choice