How to Care for a Molting Hermit Crab

Provide your hermit crab with a variety of shells.

The hermit crab (Coenobita Clypeatus) is a member of the Paguroidea family. This non-aggressive crustacean lives on land and in water, carries very few diseases and harbors no odors. Also hypoallergenic, the hermit crab makes a great pet for families with allergies. Molting is a part of life for the growing hermit crab. During this growth spurt, the hermit crab sheds its shell and searches for a bigger one to call home. During the search, the hermit crab is under a great amount stress. Therefore, if you have a pet hermit crab, he will require special care during the molting phase.

Things You'll Need

• Damp substrate
• Different sized shells
• Reptile heater or warming bulb
• Hermit crab food
• Clear water
• Saltwater

Instructions

1. Provide the hermit crab with plenty of damp substrate for molting when you set up his habitat. Use play sand, eco earth or forest bedding for substrate. Make sure that the substrate is deep enough for your hermit crab to bury himself comfortably; 6 inches of substrate is usually sufficient.

2. Provide your hermit crab with a variety of different sized shells in his habitat. Make sure that all of the shells are larger than the shell he presently uses. You can purchase colorful shells from pet shops that carry hermit crab supplies.

3. Maintain a temperature between 65 and 85 degrees F, and a relative humidity between 60 and 80 percent for your hermit crab while he is molting. Place a reptile heater under the tank's bottom glass or use an overhead warming bulb. Either will help provide warmth and humidity during the molting process.

4. Leave the molted exoskeleton in your hermit crabs habitat. When your hermit crab outgrows his shell, he will also outgrow his own skin. Fortunately, you do not have to remove it. Hermit crabs will usually eat their molted skin, which contains calcium necessary for their future health.

5. Supply your hermit crab with plenty of food, including fresh fruits and vegetables, during the molting process. He should also have adequate moisture. Fill two hermit crab bowls with water. One should contain clear water for drinking, the other should contain saltwater for bathing and softening his skin during molting.

Tips & Warnings

• You will know that your pet hermit crab is ready to molt when you notice him becoming inactive, digging, eating in excess, exhibiting cloudy eyes or losing his color.

• While most hermit crabs molt once a year, others molt several times. Smaller hermit crabs tend to molt more than larger hermit crabs.

• The molting process usually takes between 4 and 8 weeks from start to finish.

• You can purchase marine salt from a pet shop to prepare saltwater for your hermit crab. Follow the instructions on the packaging for allocation amounts.

• Boil the shells before placing them in your hermit crab's habitat. If you do not sanitize the shells before placing them into the habitat, you can introduce unwanted disease.

• Do not disturb or try to handle the hermit crab while he is molting. During molting the hermit crabs body has no protection. Handling him can cause him injury.

References

• Hermit Crabs: Basic Info
• The Hermit Crab Patch: Keys to Survival
• Hermit-Crabs: Basic Crab Care

Resources

• Hermit Crab Association: How to Mix Saltwater