http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unkAvO9v2Nk&fmt=18

Thank you :3

O.o wait what?

Just finding the funny side. XD

But honestly, I've played with hermit crabs, never been pinched. They're pretty docile.

Okay cool ^^

Make him a new house? :D

for the most part you just observe them, but if you wanted to hold, you pick them up by the shell and set them on your hand, so long as you don't have any stray fingers prodding upwards you should be fine XD

so its okay to let them crawl on my hand? Their not going to hurt me?

Well, you can always wear gloves if you want to be careful

Though my friend has been snipped a few times, according to him, they don't pack enough punch to do any real damage

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg3Pr4wWiUc <- info

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWgDGHUvPQ0b <-- weird sounds they make.

the only thing I think they can do is pinch you, it can't hurt that bad if they did.

^^ thank you <3

Most welcome

Can they "hurt you?" no. Can they inflict minor pain "barely" and you'd have to prod at them to cause it. I'm scared of bugs too, but these are harmless.

They're slow, not very bright, and cowardly. Don't put your finger on their pincher and you're fine. If you had to pick one up, just get it by the shell.

It's near impossible to provoke a hermit crab to attack unless you're a hermit crab yourself.

My room mate in college kept one. It only pinched him because he actively turned it over and put the end of his finger directly on it's pincher. Much like the hermit crab he wasn't particularly bright, so I agree with your statement. 8P

T_T They freak me out.. their like little spiders.. and I don't know.. they move pretty fast.. but should I not handle them too much? Will that make them sick or something?

Well it's never advisable to handle a small pet of any kind without washing your hands after, but Ive never heard of anyone getting sick because of them.

I admit they're creepy looking but they're just a simple little pet. They eat, they drag their shell around, and eventually they die.

That's kinda a sad life <.< but they don't really need to be played with right?

No, they get all their exercise and entertainment themselves. They just wander their enclosure looking for things to snack on. All they need is food, gravel or sand, a source of fresh water, and maybe a few shells of varying size. They'll switch shells a few times over their lives.

If you can find a sturdy piece of drift wood they'll climb around on it. Their lives really aren't that sad. They've got it better than most bugs, they've got shelter and a constant source of food and water. They're probably pretty happy.

Okay I think I may clean out the old glass cage I had for my lizard. :3


<< Cause this thing they came in is WAY to small.

They're pretty harmless.
Like regular crabs only smaller and in stolen shells really.

Oh and speaking of which sometimes they pull each other out of their shells and/or kill them.

-.- Thats wonderful... I think we have two females and a male.. the male is the smallest.

You should be fine in that case.
Don't stress it, they're simple harmless creatures.

<.< Their freaky.. like little spiders with armor T_T

Personally I think they're adorable.

why do you have those things in your house!! they are creepy!!

My mate wanted to get some.. and I was cool with it.. and now I'm sitting here freaked out.. I don't know what to do with them.. for a moment I thought they were all dead. -.-

I don't know the first thing about them. what do they eat? how do you... spend time with them? sit there and watch them sit in there shell and waddle around for 5 minutes?

Only pick them up by their shell. Try not to drop them either.
If you wanna hold them, plcae them on your flat hand. They're least likely to pinch that way. They may pinch you with their smaller claw to keep from falling, buut if they pinch you with their big claw and don't let go, run their claw under warm water and they should release.

To stop from being pinched entirely, if you have long sleeves, slip them over your hand.


to take care of them, try to have pet store sand in the bottom of the cage rather than rocks. Rocks can be harmful because they may get stuck in their shell. Always have a small dish of water in there that they can drink from and climb onto. You can also put a piece of sponge in there, you can get one that's meant for them in a pet store cheaply.

What's really important is that you have a shell for them to move into, not too much bigger, but I'd say bigger is better so long as they can fit so it will be okay until you can get the right size.

That's all I can really remember at the moment from when I had mine. so hope it helped :P
If you have any more specific questions, feel free to ask

Yeah that helps a lot thanks. We got a few new shell's after we bought them.. and later that night one of them even moved in after. It was kinda cool to watch. Though the one ( my mate's ) that moved in is pretty aggressive compared to the other two.

How long to these things normally live for? Do you know?

Yeahhh when I saw mine move it was cool, but kinda gross :B
Mine only lived in my possession for a year or two because my mom didn't feed it while I was away on a trip, but I've heard they can live anywhere between 20-30 years if properly cared for

Their usual lifespan varies greatly with how well their are cared for. Aka, having a nice enough tank to exercise and play, having friends to live with, being fed daily as well as changing their sponge water...

We had one and it lived for about 7-8 summers before he died. They're tricky though, what with their molting patterns and if there's sand in the tank they may hide under it!

They came with rocks.. so I should change that right? And its okay to let them crawl around some as long as I watch over them?

T_T I hate touching them..

It's not necessary to do but it's better just in case. And yeah :3 They'd probably like to wander around. I let them do it in the grass, just make sure you watch them

Also, try to have more than one live together, they like having company!

We have three.. but two of them always seem to be pushing the other one over.. are they fighting?

I'm not exactly sure on that, or the wood. If anything, since it came with rocks I'd say keep that if you can't get sand. It's more natural to them :3

Oh you can use rocks or sand, either or is fine. Just make sure to rinse out their sponge daily as well as feed them.

It's fine to let them crawl around, but make sure whatever surface you put them on is relatively clean of course, and avoid things that they can clasp onto lol. Like really shaggy carpet and whatnot. We got ours a little log he liked to crawl on, pet stores usually have lots of cute things for hermit crabs. ~w~

Are large wood chips okay?

Nuuuu no wood chips! X3

So wood chips are bad?

http://crabcolony.homestead.com/Care.html

http://www.hermit-crabs.com/

website for most things u need to know >.>

._. awesome.. thanks :3

of course ^^ I do try to help when I can ^>^

you have alot of people giving you info already but if you want more let me know on IM

i just wanted to comment that its honestly adorable how your scared of them

D: Their like little spiders with armor on! I'm freaked out.. T~T

armored spiders XD

just dont prod at them with your finger and youll be fine for the most part

All I know is to make sure you have plenty of spare shells for them to change between, a variety, because they can be picky and personal about their tastes. Never use painted/fake shells because the paint/gloss/etc is nearly always toxic and it will slowly flake off, and they will eat said flakes.

Shouldn't you guys have asked about proper care and stuff at the store? Google has lots of tips and tricks, and I found about the shells just by idly surfing youtube. :3

EVIL TWIN! BEGONE!

All I know is to make sure you have plenty of spare shells for them to change between, a variety, because they can be picky and personal about their tastes. Never use painted/fake shells because the paint/gloss/etc is nearly always toxic and it will slowly flake off, and they will eat said flakes.

Shouldn't you guys have asked about proper care and stuff at the store? Google has lots of tips and tricks, and I found about the shells just by idly surfing youtube. :3

o.o Thanks ^^ <3

they can pinch you... but its not all that bad ^^ if you handle them enough they get really really tame ^^ and they are soooooooo cute ^^

So the more I handle them the better?

yup... just do it with a flat hand ^^

I used to have them as pets when I was really little... I think I was about 5-6 years old, and they never hurt me

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/2828932/ :3

Thank you so much :3

They've been known to take off fingers, be careful.

._. what?

Yeah they're pretty lethal. They fight them illegally down in Mexico, kinda like dogs and chickens.

they're pretty harmless. i've handled them a lot and haven't been hurt by them