Hermit Crab Salt

[Chilopet]

I was wondering if a salt wheel (like the type used for hamsters) could be placed in a hermit crab cage as a replacement for having salt water avaliable in the tank. Just an idea. Wondering what everyone else thinks

 

[bugmankeith]

I think they drink salt water, just a salt cube alone would not allow them to drink water. That's my opinion, mabye someone who owned hermit crabs would know more.

 

[Gigas]

Im gonna go ahead and assume you have land hermit crabs Coenobita sp. ? if so they don't live near/in salt water and should only be around fresh water for bathing/drinking etc. no salt needed whatsoever.

 

[bugmankeith]

I have heard they need salt water, thats why so many pet hermits die, land hermit crabs live on beaches (or at least certain species in pet stores), where there is salt water or salt in the sand which they find food.

 

[Gigas]

salt water is only really needed for breeding efforts if that, in the wild they would only use fresh water from rivers and puddles

 

[bugmankeith]

But on the beach there is no river. My cousins caught land hermit crabs from the beach, and they observed the crabs on the beach drink the water from the sand when the wave receded.

 

[Wade]

Land hermit crabs are found in coastal regions, and although they may wander from the beach and the ocean, they are usually not far from water that is at least brackish. It is thought that while they use fresh water for most of their hydration needs that they occasionally vist brackish water sources. Whether or not they actually need it in captivity I can't say for certain, but I do offer a second water dish with brackish water. I use the "brackish and livebearer" salt from the aquarium store. I've often wondered if just placing a dish of the salt in the cage would work as well, but have not tried it.

Wade

 

[tyrel]

The equadorian crabs require it, But it will help the purple pinchers too. They dont just use the water for drinking, they keep in thier shells too. Both thier drinking and shell water has to have the right salinity, and with two water dishes, (salt and fresh) they can regulate it themselves.

No, a salt wheel wont work.

 

[~Abyss~]

Tyrel is right i have mine with a small fresh water tray, and a deeper one with saltwater. I buy the salt water because table salt does not work. but i believe its 1 part salt 4 part water.....sumthing like that i cant remember. They like the brackish water to bathe and such

 

[Steven Gielis]

Salt for aquarium use is very good for hermites. You can use half of the needed dosage for the fish.

 

[mrbonzai211]

I'm going to settle this argument.....

I'm what I guess would be called "an expert" crabber. I keep three different species (PP's, ruggies, and Strawberry hermit crabs). Strawberries are the most sought after crab, but almost all of them end up dead in captivity because they are INCREDIBLY sensitive to their surroundings. They require 80 degrees, 80% humidity, 6 inches of cocohusk substrate, and a salt water pool large enough for complete submersion.

ALL hermit crabs need salt water. It is something they NEED to live and molt successfully. My estimate is that 97% of hermit crabs die within the first two months of captivity because people keep them in enclosures that are not suitable to their well being. They are more in tune to an exotic reptile then what the pet stores sell them as--- a gimicky toy/pet.

-I wouldn't ever put a crab in anything less then a 20L tank
-They are social and need to be kept in groups
-They need a source of calcium and protein at all times (freeze dried shrimp and ground cuttle bone work well) without these they cannot molt because they have nothing to produce a new exo from and they will turn cannabalistic against each other if they dont have these things
-they need a UTH heater placed on the inside wall of the tank (burry at least two inches of it below the substrate while leaving the rest exposed) and a glass lid to trap the moisture and heat in. (i use a screen lid lined with tin foil and two sky lights cut in the top) Heat lamps are a bad source of heat because it requires too much exposure on the lid and they dry out the substrate incredibly fast.
-they need both fresh dechlorinated water bowls and salt water (never bath a crab except for a salt water bath to clean them before entering your tank
-all salt used must be SEA SALT water... table salt kills... also, spray the substrate with salt water to prevent bacteria and mold
-the rule with shells is 3-5 extra shells per crab
-crabs burrow in the substrate to molt, NEVER disturb a molting crab... large ones can be down for months.... they also dig down to destress so that is also why you shouldnt disturb them.... just assume they are fine unless you smell dead fish in the tank

For further research check out www.crabstreetjournal.com
or find me on http://hermitcrabassociation.com I post as mrbonzai211

 

[mrbonzai211]

salt water is only really needed for breeding efforts if that, in the wild they would only use fresh water from rivers and puddles

So far breeding in captivity is impossible, however, a woman just recently was the first person ever to hatch eggs and have them survive in a reef aquarium for a couple weeks before the perished. I believe the technique is on the way, but its still a ways off.

All crabs are wild caught