Post by Sach-Crabministrator on Jul 3, 2010 23:55:19 GMT -5
Quick Extras For New Crabs and/Or Crabbers
{You can print this for reference, but no reproductions without permission}
YOU DON'T NEED TO BATHE YOUR CRABS; provide waters that are deep enough for them to do it themselves. Over-bathing can actually stress them out, so let Crabby handle it for himself. However, new crabs should be bathed before going into your tank. This helps them smell more welcome to your other crabs, washes out anything they may have gotten inside their shells at the store, hydrates them before going into the tank & allows you to check for parasites, etc.
NEW CRABS OFTEN HIDE; so give 'em space. The process most crabs go through before getting to us can be very traumatic for our crabs, so give them time to hide out for a while, for some crabs this means a few days to weeks; others may take longer.
Don't mist your crabs directly Having good conditions is healthier for the crabs than squirting water in their faces, less stressful on the crabs & easier.
Crabs are scavengers & get a lot of variety in their diet in the wild. Coenobita eat different foods they encounter in the wild;eating things with whatever nutrients/minerals/etc they need at that point in their molting/life cycle, so provide lots of variety.
Crabs often travel miles a night in the wild. Exercise is important to keeping your crabs healthy & they love to climb, dig, explore,hide, etc.
Crabs usually only pinch when frightened. Put your hand gently down in their crabitat, so they can climb away. Using water often results in painful results, don't do it.
Hermit Crabs can live a very long time. Bob of Exotic Land Hermit Crabs has Titan Indos in their 70s, & Carol of Crabworx had her pair of PPs over 30 years!!
Not all hermie species get along. Research before combining species; for the health & safety of your crabbies.
Hermies are diggers. They make tunnels and "nests" under the substrate, so don't change it out or disturb it too often. Assuming there is no dramatic (ie:mites or flooding) issues, you shouldn't have to clean out or replace your substrate at all if you are using the 5:1 mix with natural leaf litter. You should only need to add more over time as you lose depth to compacting, getting in food/water dishes & deco but also as your crabs grow bigger & you need deeper sub.
Hermies do not need "conditioners" or "stress coats". So don't use them.
Painted shells are bad. The process by which the crabs are removed from their original shells and forced into the painted ones is horrific and cruel. This also, obviously increases your chances of losing a new crab. This is reason enough not to buy them. Crabs often chip, eat & modify their shells so you don't want paint involved.
Hermit crabs & people can not pass any germs or diseases between each other; a great pet for people with allergies!
www.sachscrabpage.proboards.com
{You can print this for reference, but no reproductions without permission}
YOU DON'T NEED TO BATHE YOUR CRABS; provide waters that are deep enough for them to do it themselves. Over-bathing can actually stress them out, so let Crabby handle it for himself. However, new crabs should be bathed before going into your tank. This helps them smell more welcome to your other crabs, washes out anything they may have gotten inside their shells at the store, hydrates them before going into the tank & allows you to check for parasites, etc.
NEW CRABS OFTEN HIDE; so give 'em space. The process most crabs go through before getting to us can be very traumatic for our crabs, so give them time to hide out for a while, for some crabs this means a few days to weeks; others may take longer.
Don't mist your crabs directly Having good conditions is healthier for the crabs than squirting water in their faces, less stressful on the crabs & easier.
Crabs are scavengers & get a lot of variety in their diet in the wild. Coenobita eat different foods they encounter in the wild;eating things with whatever nutrients/minerals/etc they need at that point in their molting/life cycle, so provide lots of variety.
Crabs often travel miles a night in the wild. Exercise is important to keeping your crabs healthy & they love to climb, dig, explore,hide, etc.
Crabs usually only pinch when frightened. Put your hand gently down in their crabitat, so they can climb away. Using water often results in painful results, don't do it.
Hermit Crabs can live a very long time. Bob of Exotic Land Hermit Crabs has Titan Indos in their 70s, & Carol of Crabworx had her pair of PPs over 30 years!!
Not all hermie species get along. Research before combining species; for the health & safety of your crabbies.
Hermies are diggers. They make tunnels and "nests" under the substrate, so don't change it out or disturb it too often. Assuming there is no dramatic (ie:mites or flooding) issues, you shouldn't have to clean out or replace your substrate at all if you are using the 5:1 mix with natural leaf litter. You should only need to add more over time as you lose depth to compacting, getting in food/water dishes & deco but also as your crabs grow bigger & you need deeper sub.
Hermies do not need "conditioners" or "stress coats". So don't use them.
Painted shells are bad. The process by which the crabs are removed from their original shells and forced into the painted ones is horrific and cruel. This also, obviously increases your chances of losing a new crab. This is reason enough not to buy them. Crabs often chip, eat & modify their shells so you don't want paint involved.
Hermit crabs & people can not pass any germs or diseases between each other; a great pet for people with allergies!
www.sachscrabpage.proboards.com
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