A Crabby Roommate

For the last several months, Little b has been asking for a pet. These requests ranged from snake, to tarantula, guinea pig, lizard, hermit crab, and fish. While Drew vetoed the creepy crawliest of the requests, I found myself in the pet store two days before his seventh birthday, weighing our options. I was looking for low-maintenance, fun to watch, and something that could live in his room. I selected a hermit crab. I remember getting a hermit crab as a kid, at a beach store. They’d come with a few shells, some sand and a little cage. I bought a single crab with a tank and accessories, and hid it under my bed to keep it a surprise for Little b’s birthday. Then, I did a little more research to make sure I had what we needed, and I quickly learned that while hermit crabs are fun to watch, they’re not low-maintenance.

I found out despite the name, hermit crabs are social. So, I sent Drew back to the store to buy another crab. From the same tank of course, so they wouldn’t be strangers. I bought a coconut hut for them to take shelter. I bought a fogger to increase humidity in their tank, since they breathe through modified gills instead of lungs. (fun fact!) Two days taking care of the crabs under our bed and it was finally time for the big reveal! b loved them! We set them up in his room and I joined a hermit crab group on Facebook to learn more.

Now, anyone familiar with parenting groups on Facebook knows they can be harsh, judgmental, and filled with self-righteous comments pointing out everything you’re doing wrong. I’ve seen many mommy groups go sideways in my ten years as a parent, but this hermit crab group was worse. I posted an introduction of our crabs, Shelly and Pinch (b chose the names) and was immediately informed that our sand was wrong, they needed more extra shells, climbing material, and more. Back to the store I went.

In the last month, I’ve updated our crabitat several times. (That’s what it’s called, a “crabitat”.) I got rid of the fogger because it caused too much humidity. I bought a wire lid, then made my own acrylic lid because wire lids let out too much heat. I’m still scouring stores for tank upgrades, chopping up fruits and vegetables for them to try, modifying their climbing material, and worrying every time they build a tunnel that perhaps they’re about to molt- something I learned they do for months at a time underneath the sand.

Hermit crab ownership is definitely not what it was during the wire cage, handful of sand days of my childhood. I learned that if cared for properly, they can live up to 30 years. So, if all goes well, Shelly and Pinch will someday follow little b to college. So far they’ve been pretty good roommates, even if they’re a little crabby.