HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I planted a micro garden of moss, chia, and micro greens. Jasper loves to mow through it a little every day!




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Jasper hasn’t changed his ugly painted shell yet, but he loves to explore his new home. He’s really active and seems to be happy with everything. Flint has been de-stressing since he was introduced a few days ago, so he hasn’t had a chance to explore yet. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20240924/97...

That would be helpful to have. Especially since there’s a forum here where we could all share our observations and environmental factors in a scientific manner. I’m not much for animal experimentation, so that’s as far as I think such a study should be done. Just marking condition factors and observ...

Good, I’m glad it won’t harm them. I guess I don’t mind a little hard work every now and then.


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And the humidity being that high without water will be ok? Thank you so much! It’s currently at 93% and 79 degrees.


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I’m trying to get my main tank stabilized, but I’m having difficulties with heat and humidity. I’m concerned about mold growing before I even get the hermies in there. (Purple Pinchers) The environment: 20 gal tank 7-8 inches 5:1 play sand/EE substrate with sandcastle consistency. (I’ve actually bui...

Ok, gotcha! See, I was under the impression that crabs couldn’t molt successfully until they had their nutrition and water stabilized, and that they are more likely to hide when they are stressed rather than eat. I know they are prey animals and will terrified of me. That’s why my plan is to put the...

Thank you so much for all that! I honestly didn’t mean to bring up controversy; I didn’t know it was controversial! I guess I’m really anxious about starting all of this and I was expecting more of a “keep this/ditch that, this is good/that is pointless” kind of discussion when I first posted. I do ...

Is there anyone available that can help me understand the controversy? I should mention that I don’t plan on subscribing to the PPDS method whole cloth; I don’t quite understand how putting the crabs into a low heat/humidity level is helpful. I do understand that encouraging them to eat better and n...

Could you point me in the direction of that information? I’ve not run across any of the cons in my research, and I’m trying to find the best information for these little crabs. Thanks, again!


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There’s conflicting evidence of the effectiveness of PPDS tanks, with numerous anecdotal accounts arguing for or against their use. We don’t talk about them much here and usually encourage crabbers to add new crabs directly to the main tank. It’s the stress of not being able to molt that does the m...

Hi! I’m new, and I need advice. I’m adopting 2 small crabs from “not great” conditions. I’m nervous about taking them on, but I want to help them. This is the PPDS tank I’ve put together. It contains: a moss pit; cuttlebone; 2nd level hammock; small dishes of greensand, worm castings, and Spirulina;...