How long can a hermit crab survive out of its shell?
We just noticed our son’s HC completely out of its shell. He’s not home at the moment. We don’t want to endanger the poor thing, but it is his pet, and I’m sure he’d love to give it the bigger shell himself. Can we wait the few hours? Or had we better do this immediately? Should we put it in water until the new shell is ready? Is it drying out?
I haven’t kept hermit crabs myself, but what I’ve read about them says that moisture is extremely important for them and shells are important to reduce moisture loss. Also, apparently, shells to change into should be kept in the area with them. So it kind of sounds as though the crab should be the one making the decision about when to get into the new shell.
Apparently, a crab that comes out of its shell should be put back into it as expeditiously as possible. Running around naked is potentially bad for them.
I totally sympathize with your wishing that your son could see his pet changing shells, but surely he wouldn’t want the crab to suffer just for that. A pet is not a toy.
Thanks, Kimstu, that page you linked to is exactly what we needed. Crabby is now back in its shell.