What You Must Look For In A Hermit Crab Shell
Author: Preston Blackmore
If you wish for a pet that is not high in maintenance, it is recommended that you should consider acquiring hermit crabs as your pet. Hermit crabs are extremely low in maintenance which includes their food as well. Their food is available on nearly every pet store at a reasonable price. Hermit crabs are not picky about their food which means that no additional pet food is required by them unless you want to feed them.
A unique characteristic of hermit crabs is that they will utilize shells of the dead animals, mainly sea snail so
that they can protect their supple bodies and keep the moisture level inside shell controlled. Reason behind getting this name is because of their habit of borrowing shell and living in them alone. As time goes by, hermit crab shells changes with it. They look for bigger shells during their growth but how many times they will do, it varies from one another. There are some hermit crabs who frequently changes their shells while others are not that eager to change shells, whether they are uncomfortable or not in their current shell.
It has been discovered that the hermit crab shells never change their shells during, before and after molt. Now the question arises that what is molting? It is when the hard outer layer or exoskeleton of the hermit crabs sheds which covers their claws/legs and body for new creation.
When thinking to purchase hermit crabs and make them pets, it is necessary for the owner to provide them various sizes of hermit crab shells. It will allow your pets to choose on their own and changes whenever they want to. Make sure you provide them several sizes of hermit crab shells so that hermit crabs can select according to their liking and don’t fight over the shell with each other in their habitat.
When looking for shells, you will notice that there is a large assortment available whether you are shopping locally or online pet store. With some effort and time, you will be able to find perfect shells for hermit crabs. The size of the hermit crabs should be considered before providing them. Get hermit crabs shells which have same sized opening with the one having larger opening as well. If you observe that your hermit crab is not comfortable in its current shell, you would require choosing smaller sized shell.
Also provide them shells which have different shaped openings as it will help you understand which sort of shell your hermit crab prefers. There are several opening shaped shells available like oval, D-shape, slit shape or round shape. Provide them several kinds of shell as well as the current shell they are using.
Ensure that the shell provided to your hermit crab is of good quality and in fine shape as well. You wouldn’t want to give your hermit crab a shell having holes or crack in it as it tends to let water go. Whenever buying new hermit crab shells, it is recommended to boil those for around five minutes before placing them into the aquarium. After boiling, do let shells drain out water and obtain normal temperature.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/pets-articles/what-you-must-look-for-in-a-hermit-crab-shell-1802913.html
About the Author
Preston Blackmore is a hermit crab enthusiast. For more information on hermit crab shells, visit www.hermitcrabclub.com.