Evicting hermit crabs out of their shells at this time of year is very difficult. The best thing to do with them is to keep them warm. Hermit crabs are no different from any other animal when it comes to the cold. If they are too cold for too long they will waste away, go dormant and eventually die. Keeping them warm is key.

Silky Terrier Dog Breed Playing Aro... Silky Terrier Dog Breed Playing Around

We put them in a box with lots of holes and food and water and we keep the temperature at 65F (18C). They don’t need it to be any warmer than this because they won’t generate their own body heat. If you want to go higher up than 70F (21C) although we’ve never needed to go that high. You can also buy little heating pads online if your home isn’t set up for this kind of thing or there are rescue centers that will care for them overwinter as well.

This is an excellent time of year to start a new collection, give some hermit crabs new homes, maybe help others survive our harsh winters. It’s a great community effort.

CRAB HOMES

Where you obtain your hermit crabs is just as important as what you do to keep them warm. There are three basic kinds of homes for your hermit crab: a half coconut shell, a glass “tank,” and a large PVC tube (from the hardware store) with mesh sides. Each crab must have its own home and it must be deep enough that the crab cannot escape or drown itself trying to get out. Half shells will not work because they will try to climb out and fall in between the shell and glass, causing injury or drowning. A glass tank is dangerous because it can reach high temperatures when heated (see below), causing extremely high humidity which results in respiratory infections or sudden death due to low oxygen levels. The most common and safest is PVC tubes, which can also be the most difficult to find depending on where you live.

Both glass tanks and PVC tubes must have plenty of ventilation holes at the top or they will quickly reach lethal temperatures inside. Ventilation holes are not optional, especially during winter months when heaters are in use. If there aren’t any ventilation holes then hermit crabs will bake to death in their own home! The other issue with glass tanks is that because there are no ventilation holes, one side will get extremely cold while the other remain hot if it’s being heated by a lamp.