Feeling Crabby

I think it's a sign of spring that our hermit crabs have been a bit more active than usual lately. The other night, all four of them were accessible, so I took the opportunity to do some cleaning and remodeling of their tank.

I took all of them out of the tank and put them on a piece of newspaper. Lil' Kay was responsible for making sure that none of them escaped. I figured they'd be too afraid to even move, but sure enough, a couple of them got adventurous! They were even pretty curious about our cat Cheeto. They charged him fearlessly!

Pinchy seemed to be the most brave, so after everything was cleaned up and put away, I decided to see if I could get him to walk on my hand. None of them have ever done this for me. Usually, they just pull up into their shell, and I'm left holding a boring old seashell! This time, he immediately came out of his shell and started climbing on my hand and right up my arm! It's amazing what a strong grip these guys have!

Lil' Kay was very excited to see his pets actually DOING something. He's always been a little convinced that given the chance, the hermies would immediately clamp down on him with their claws, but after spending some time with them, I think we've dispelled that fear. He even let Pinchy sit on his leg and stomach. He was giggling nervously the whole time, but he loved it!