Skip to content

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Email: ad***********@***os.org

Land Hermit Crab Owners Society
Land Hermit Crab Owners Society

Good Friends in a Pinch

Primary Navigation Menu
Menu
  • Shop
    • Return Policy
    • Shipping Policy
    • Shop hermit crab safe products on Amazon
  • Hermit Crab Captive Breeding
  • Basic Hermit Crab Care Sheet
  • Donate to help Hermit Crabs
  • Hermit Crab Shell Restoration Projects
  • Society
    • Society Blog
    • LHCOS Team Members
    • Events
    • About Us
      • Member Code of Ethics
      • 501c(3) Documents
      • Board of Directors
        • By-Laws
        • Board Meeting Minutes
    • Mission Statement
  • Our Programs
    • Approved Seller Directory
    • Approved Seller Program
    • Meet LHCOS Local Representatives
    • Local Representatives Program
    • Hermit Crab Adoption Program
    • Claws in the Classroom
  • Newsletter
    • Subscribe to Our Newsletter
  • Disclaimer
  • Contact Us

End of Summer ‘Rescues’

By: lhcos
On: September 29, 2021
In: Activism, Conservation
Tagged: are hermit crabs nocturnal, crabitat, dead hermit crab, hermit crab food, hermit crab lifespan, hermit crab molting, hermit crab out of shell, hermit crab pet, hermit crab supplies, hermit crab tank, hermit crab without shell, hermit crabs, hermit crabs as pets, hermit crabs changing shells, hermit crabs for sale, hermit crabs near me, how big do hermit crabs get, how do hermit crabs mate, how long do hermit crabs live, how to care for hermit crabs, how to take care of hermit crabs, purple pincher hermit crabs, strawberry hermit crabs, what do hermit crabs eat, where do hermit crabs live

At the end of each tourist season, we see at least one person who has taken on far more hermit crabs than they can handle because a vendor, shop, or carnival told them they were going to put the crabs in the trash or turn them loose. While that individual’s heart is in the right place, we (as a group) are being taken advantage of and overloading our adoption program.

LHCOS aims to end the wild capture of hermit crabs for the pet trade. Our approach has always been to educate the public so they don’t buy a hermit crab in the first place. Decades of imploring stores to change or improve their practices has proven fruitless, there is a demand and stores want the money from meeting that demand. However, if no one is buying hermit crabs, and they sit in the shop for months, the store will not order more. Stores don’t stock products that don’t sell well and stores don’t restock products that are still on the shelves. These stores see animals as a product just like food or bowls. When they can’t move a product any longer they stop carrying it. It doesn’t happen overnight but it does happen. They don’t care HOW the hermit crab leaves the store, only that it moves off the shelf and now there is room for more.

Boardwalk shops, vendors, and carnivals are now engaging in what I see as destructive and predatory behavior. When they encounter someone who clearly cares about hermit crabs they use that to their advantage. They know you are a kindhearted person and they tell you they are going to put their unsold crabs in the trash or set them free, knowing full well you won’t stand by and let this animal that you so clearly love die. Now they’ve solved their problem this year, you have taken on the burden for them. Next year will they order fewer crabs? Nope. Why would they? You happily took the unwanted crabs off their hands this year and you or someone else will do the same next year. Problem solved―for them anyway. They are using our caring natures against us, causing us to bear the burden of dealing with dozens of hermit crabs. Hermit crabs that were taken from the wild but cannot be returned there. Hermit crabs they will have forgotten all about when next summer arrives and it is time to order more crabs for the season.

If you are told by a seller that they plan to release or dump hermit crabs you should calmly gather some information. Their name, business name, contact information etc. If you can get video footage or audio of them threatening to dispose of the hermit crabs that would be helpful. Don’t engage them or tip them off to your intentions, simply feign interest and collect the information you would need to get back in touch with them.

Now, contact your local Game Warden or Dept of Natural Resources and report this vendor.

Putting live animals in the trash is illegal. 

Releasing non native animals is illegal.

Releasing an animal in a habitat in which it can’t survive is illegal in many places.

Encourage them to please go and speak to the person about the fate of these hermit crabs.Your local police department may not want to deal with this but the Dept of Game and Fish or Natural Resources WILL care. A visit from the local authorities or local news will be far more effective than you taking home 40 hermit crabs. Now they will be under scrutiny. Now they may think twice about ordering so many hermit crabs next year if they are forced to ethically deal with dozens of leftovers from this year.

No one person in our community has the ability to rescue large numbers of hermit crabs year after year. Our adoption program is not equipped to process that many crabs, nor will we devote our time and resources to aiding distributors and wholesalers of wild-caught hermit crabs. I cannot tell you what YOU should or should not do, but if you bring home dozens of hermit crabs, please do not do so with the impression that our adoption program will take on the burden of rehoming them all. Our program exists to help hermit crab owners, not wholesalers and distributors. 

We must stand fast and be resolute in our convictions and our mission. We must stay focused on the larger mission.

I know it is SO HARD. SO VERY HARD to say no, I will not ‘rescue’ these crabs to help you. I will not feed the cycle of abuse. 

LHCOS will not—and logistically cannot—serve as a dumping ground for masses of unwanted seasonal, carnival, or kiosk hermit crabs. That undermines all of our hard work spent educating the public and reducing sales. Why bother reducing sales of hermit crabs if we are just going to swoop in at the final hour and take all the crabs anyway? That just makes us an accessory to abuse and neglect and gives these irresponsible vendors an easy way out.

Share this:

  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr

Related

2021-09-29
Previous Post: Is Mold Safe For Land Hermit Crabs
Next Post: Calendar Crab

Categories

  • Activism
  • Approved Seller Index
  • Approved Sellers
  • Blog
  • Board of Directors
  • Caresheets
  • Conservation
  • Contest
  • History
  • Local Representatives
  • Say NO to painted shells
  • Society

Pages

  • 501c(3) Documents
  • About Us
  • Annual Hermit Crab Calendar Fundraiser
  • Approved Seller Program
    • Approved Seller Directory
  • Board Meeting Minutes
  • Board of Directors
  • By-Laws
  • Cart
  • Checkout
  • Claws in the Classroom
  • Contact Us
  • Corporate Matching Donations
  • Crustacean C.A.R.E Coalition
  • Disclaimer
  • Donate to help Hermit Crabs
  • Hermit Crab Adoption Program
  • Hermit Crab Captive Breeding
  • Hermit Crab Shell Restoration Projects
  • LHCOS Team Members
  • Local Rep Shop
  • Local Representatives Program
  • Log In
  • Meet LHCOS Local Representatives
  • Mission Statement
  • My account
  • Newsletter
  • Our Programs
  • Register
    • Edit Your Profile
    • Update Billing Card
    • Welcome
    • Your Membership
  • Resources
    • Basic Hermit Crab Care Sheet
  • Return Policy
  • Shipping Policy
  • Shop
  • Society Blog
  • Subscribe to Our Newsletter
  • The Importance of Returning Seashells to Beaches for Wild Hermit Crab Conservation
  • Welcome

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Donate to LHCOS

Proud Member

© 1999-2025 Land Hermit Crab Owners Society - All Rights Reserved. All content on this website, including but not limited to text, images, graphics, logos, videos, and digital downloads, is the property of Crab Street Journal or its respective content creators and is protected by copyright and intellectual property laws. Unauthorized reproduction, distribution, modification, or commercial use of any material without prior written permission is strictly prohibited. Certain trademarks, logos, and intellectual property featured on this site may belong to third parties and are used with permission. Any such materials remain the property of their respective owners. For permission requests or inquiries regarding content usage, please see our Acceptable Use Policy.