Does anyone have pet Hermit Crabs??

[Jaimee]

I bought DS5 two Hermit Crabs about a year ago...they've been doing fine. There's a web site we look at if we have questions about anything. On the one website (this woman is a crab fanatic, she has pictures of herself kissing her crabs etc...) yuck! She states that when you bathe the crabs and give them water you should "treat" it first with a stress coat treatment used for fish tanks. I haven't ever done this, we just use tap water and I've asked at 3 different pet stores and they have told me tap water is fine. Now we came home today to a "naked" crab (he crawled out of his shell) and he was dead I'm wondering if it could be the water??? I feel terrible for DS. I actually found a message board for hermit crab people but every time I try to register it shuts down. Does anyone here have any info??


TIA
Jaimee

 

[my3kids]

About a year seems to be the life expectancy of all our hermit crabs. They did just as you describe, we find them dead out of the shell. One lived longer, but never a huge life span.

I've never used stress coat. Just plain water. We always kept a wet sponge in the tank for them to crawl on.

 

[Aprille]

I doubt it was the tap water. If they've been fine for a year why would it be the water all of a sudden? I don't know anything about Hermit crabs but maybe a year is old for one and he just died of old age.

 

[Melora]

My husband used to own his own aquarium business and even though he didn't specifically have a temendous experience with land crabs he does say that the things in tap water can be very toxic and while the water might be fine in some areas, in others it might have more of the heavy minerals/toxins that can be very harmful, especially to hard shell creatures.

I doubt that just the tap water baths killed him (or her), but it might contribute to poorer health overall. You could use bottled water or buy the the water treatment.

Over the years I have had lots of animals and often scoff at the ways the "zeolots" suggest that you take care of them, most of the time they do tend to have healthier, longer lived animals.

Just a quick story.... Several years ago when we moved I went to put my goldfish in the aquarium and forgot to buy water treatment. I figured it wouldn't matter until the next day when I coudl get some, so I just dumped them in (after floating them in their bag) and by the next day they were both dead. Don't underestimate how bad the water can be. (How many "I told so"s did I have to hear from my hubby on THAT one).

 

[always quiet]

In the summer of 02, I bought my 2 girls each a hermit crab. My youngest DD's crab lasted 2 days when we got home. The other one, named Barney, is doing quite well. He is huge but has never changed shells! We have given him an assortment of shells to choose from too. I guess he is just finicky!! We only used tap water for them. My girls went to the website that came with the crabs and I don't remember them suggesting anything special.

So sorry this happened.