HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I am going to get strawberry crabs for my mom on her birthday and have some questions about them.

1.How big of a tank do i need for 3 small strawberries?

2.How big of a pool for of water do they need?

3.How much salt do they need in their salt water?

4.How tall should the tank be?

5.About how much will the whole setup cost?

Also any other advice would be appreciated!

Strawberries are an exotic species and the most delicate of all of the crab species. They are not for beginners. Is she already keeping crabs?

1. I have 2 straws and a ~38 gallon tank. There are also a couple of small PPs in there. I used to have the straws and 1 Tiny PP in a 20 gallon and it was way too small. They love to climb and dig. I actually had it so that they were running into each other in the 20 gallon. I don't think that I'd have my guys in anything smaller than what they are in now. It really depends on their size, but I'd say go as big as you can, or aim for 30 gallons minimum?

2. It needs to be deep enough for them to fully submerge! They love their salt water.

3. The instructions for the amount of salt that is needed will be on the package!

4. I'm not sure about this one. The height of a standard tank should be good. Tall enough for 8-10 inches of substrate and climbing space above that

5. It really depends! If you find a good tank on Craigslist or somewhere else online, then not much. I found my tank + wooden stand for 30$ online. I spent about 18-25$ on substrate (playsand + Ecoearth). You can buy containers from the dollar store for the waterdishes, you can also buy a lot of fake plants from there too for cheaper than petstores. The most expensive part will be the heating of the tank, since straws need such specific heating/humidity levels.


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KellyCrabbieLove wrote:Strawberries are an exotic species and the most delicate of all of the crab species. They are not for beginners. Is she already keeping crabs?

She already has had crabs for 5 years and only 2 have died of her 20. So I would say she is expirenced.

DaTrininator wrote: She already has had crabs for 5 years and only 2 have died of her 20. So I would say she is expirenced.

Lol just checking. A lot of people fall in love with straws or blues without experience so I just wanted to be sure. are you aware of the short lifespan of straws?

jaelynn wrote:1. I have 2 straws and a ~38 gallon tank. There are also a couple of small PPs in there. I used to have the straws and 1 Tiny PP in a 20 gallon and it was way too small. They love to climb and dig. I actually had it so that they were running into each other in the 20 gallon. I don't think that I'd have my guys in anything smaller than what they are in now. It really depends on their size, but I'd say go as big as you can, or aim for 30 gallons minimum?

2. It needs to be deep enough for them to fully submerge! They love their salt water.

3. The instructions for the amount of salt that is needed will be on the package!

4. I'm not sure about this one. The height of a standard tank should be good. Tall enough for 8-10 inches of substrate and climbing space above that

5. It really depends! If you find a good tank on Craigslist or somewhere else online, then not much. I found my tank + wooden stand for 30$ online. I spent about 18-25$ on substrate (playsand + Ecoearth). You can buy containers from the dollar store for the waterdishes, you can also buy a lot of fake plants from there too for cheaper than petstores. The most expensive part will be the heating of the tank, since straws need such specific heating/humidity levels.


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Thanks for the advice my mother has always wanted Strawberries.

KellyCrabbieLove wrote: Lol just checking. A lot of people fall in love with straws or blues without experience so I just wanted to be sure. are you aware of the short lifespan of straws?

Yes, my mom also knows they are very delicate.

Does she know they typically live 1-3 years in captivity? That is the only that has kept me from them.

KellyCrabbieLove wrote:Does she know they typically live 1-3 years in captivity? That is the only that has kept me from them.

Yes, she has done a lot of research on them.

Awesome. I just wanted to help in case any of that info wasn't known. I hope you aren't taking it in a bad way. It sounds like she is ready. Where are you planning to get them? Reptile city?

KellyCrabbieLove wrote:Awesome. I just wanted to help in case any of that info wasn't known. I hope you aren't taking it in a bad way. It sounds like she is ready. Where are you planning to get them? Reptile city?

I do not know yet, I am trying a store to buy them from, but haven't had any luck. I know they are very rare in pet shops. Now I am trying to find a website that I can order them from that is good. (I don't want them dead when I get them.)

Reptile city is amazing. I got a few of my big PPs there. They came out of the box social, healthy and gentle.

KellyCrabbieLove wrote:Reptile city is amazing. I got a few of my big PPs there. They came out of the box social, healthy and gentle.

Ok I have not seen the Reptile city website before I will probably order them from Reptile city.

Crap. They are out of stock. They are really great so if you give them a call they could probably tell you if/when they have more coming in.

KellyCrabbieLove wrote:Crap. They are out of stock. They are really great so if you give them a call they could probably tell you if/when they have more coming in.

Ok her birthday isn't till June but I just wanted to plan early and get every thing now and get the crabs later. I will call and see if they will have them by then, I may order them a bit earlier though.