Selecting the Perfect Painted Hermit Crab Shells
We tend to take pride in our homes, making sure our furniture is positioned just right, hanging paintings on the walls, and keeping everything neat and orderly. Now imagine you lived in a motor home, you would treat that as your home too! Well this is how hermit crabs survive. They live inside their shells and carry their “home” wherever they go.
Where Do Hermit Crabs Get Their Shells?
Hermit crabs are known to use the shells of dead animals, in particular the sea snail, to help protect their soft bodies and also to maintain moisture levels inside their shells.
Some hermit crabs will change shells quite frequently and others tend to stay content with their current shell regardless if they are uncomfortable with their current shell. They received the name “hermit crab” because they live alone in a single shell, although they are quite social animals living in large colonies.
How Hermit Crabs Select Their Shell
An interesting fact is that hermit crabs won’t change their shell right before, during, or after they molt. When you bring home a new hermit crab pet, it’s important to select a variety of painted hermit crab shells, allowing them to change out of their current shell and into another whenever they desire.
It’s also important to have a large selection of painted hermit crab shells so that your crabs (you should have more than one crab!) won’t quarrel to what they consider the best quality shells in their habitat. This gives them all selection.
Be sure to purchase good quality painted hermit crab shells which aren’t chipped or damaged. Remember this is their home we’re purchasing here!
How to Select the Perfect Painted Hermit Crab Shell
It’s exciting to go to the pet store and find new decorated and painted hermit crab shells for your little crab family at home. When you’re in search for new shells, there is usually a good assortment in the pet store, but always a much larger selection of painted hermit crab shells on the Internet.
Having different sizes of painted hermit crab shells is critical so your crabs can select the best fit for themselves. You’ll want to take into consideration the following when selecting painted hermit crab shells:
It’s best to consider the size of the hermit crab shell first. Since your hermit crabs will be growing up over time, it’s best to have a variety of painted hermit crab shells, some of which are the same as their current shell and some which are larger than their current shell. Sometimes your hermit crab is not comfortable in its shell if it is too large, where a smaller shell would be needed.
You also need to provide shells with various shaped openings until your hermit crab finds the type of shell its most comfortable with. Painted hermit crab shells come in a variety of shapes and openings, including D-shape, oval, round, or even slit shaped.
Remember to purchase good quality painted hermit crab shells which are in good condition. Remember this is your hermit crab’s home, and they don’t like shells with holes or cracks, which tend to release water from inside their shell. Be sure to select vibrant colors of painted hermit crab shells to make your terrarium an exciting environment.
Preparation of the Painted Hermit Crab Shells
When purchasing new painted hermit crab shells and bringing them home to add to your hermit crab’s cage, it is recommended to boil the shells for around five minutes before adding them to the terrarium. After they have been boiled, remove them from the water and let them cool.
