Do Hermit Crabs Bite?
Do hermit crabs bite is one of the most common questions people ask before getting hermit crabs as pets, especially for their kids. If a pet bites, generally it means they are being aggressive.
Hermit crabs are NOT aggressive. They are normally quite calm and peaceful, with each other and with the large hands that come into their habitat each day to feed them.
There are no teeth in their tiny mouths to bite anything, even their food. So biting is not a factor when handling hermit crabs. However…
Hermit Crabs Do Not Bite BUT...
Hermit Crabs DO PINCH!
Hermit crabs climb, hang, and dig daily as normal behavior. Their pinchers are how they accomplish it all. These pinchers are also used for picking, peeling and placing food pieces into their mouths.
Pinchers are crucial to most everything they do.
And their pinchers are sharp at the very tip, and very strong when they clamp them onto something.
In the wild, hermit crabs often climb up trees and branches during the day and take naps. They use their strong pinchers to crawl up, then clamp down and secure themselves to the wood or branch (or wire mesh inside a habitat, etc.).
They will also use these pinchers to defend themselves when they feel threatened.
Does a Hermit Crab PINCH Hurt?
When handling a hermit crab, pinching is inevitable. It isn’t necessarily a reflection of them feeling you might hurt them.
Hermit crabs use pinchers to grab hold, so they don’t fall.
And when a human hand is grabbing or holding them, they lose their stability and control… and they will grab hold to whatever they can. This usually means grabbing hold of a piece of your skin on your finger or hand!
When the hermit crab is small, it doesn’t hurt. But as they get bigger, their pinch will feel much more significant.
Teach Kids It's Not About Aggression
If you have hermit crabs, and your kids enjoy taking care of them, simply explain that the hermit crabs must feel secure.
Large hands moving them around make them feel insecure. Therefore, they grab on to whatever they can!
If kids aren’t aware that they may be pinched, and then get pinched, they can sometimes instinctively drop the hermit crab to avoid feeling any pain from the pinch.
If you drop a hermit crab, this can kill them. So being aware of a possible pinch beforehand can prevent any accidents.
Handling Hermit Crabs to Avoid Pinching
Here are some tips for handling hermit crabs:
1. Approach them slowly and gently: Sudden movements or loud noises can startle hermit crabs and cause them to feel threatened. Always work to help your hermit crabs feel safe with the big hands that come into their habitat to feed (and handle) them. This is a process, but helps eleviate unnecessary stress for them.
2. Pick them up securely by their shell but keep a hand underneath in case you drop them. OR keep them very close to their sand substrate when handling them, so if they fall it won’t be harmful.
3. Handling small hermit crabs with the expectation that they will pinch (but it won’t be painful) means holding the hermit crab shell securely with one hand, the other hand can be placed flat underneath. They will likely pinch the hand they are now sitting on, but if they feel comfortable they may simply try to crawl around and get off the unnatural and huge moving thing (your hand).
3. Never grab their claws.
Got more questions? Here’s the Everything About Hermit Crab Pets page here, easy to find exactly what you’re looking for!
Can the Pinch Make You Bleed?
Hermit crabs can grow quite large, and when taken care of can live well past 20 years old. This means.. strong pinchers! Handling hermit crabs as they get larger means using more care, and avoiding their pinchers altogether.
Just prepare, when you handle them, to get pinched and not let go of them no matter what. Then, if they don’t pinch you, it’s a welcome surprise. Prepare for the pinch, and you’ll avoid catastrophe.
I‘ve never had a hermit crab pinch cause my skin to bleed. I suppose it can happen, but I’ve never experienced it. Most likely this could happen if you try to pull a clamped-down hermit crab off.
NEVER pull a clamped-down hermit crab off! Pulling them off anything… your finger, a wood branch, wire mesh… anything, can cause harm to their pinchers and legs.
Note: I’ve been adopting and rescuing hermit crabs for decades, since I was very young. All of the my hermit crabs live past 20, and they do get big. If a large hermit crab clamps down on your finger, it will hurt. They best way to get them off is simply place them back down on their sand. They want to be there, NOT in your hand.
I choose not to handle my hermit crabs any more than as absolutely necessary. I feel like they are much happier and healthier being left alone and without the big hand messing with them!
However, when my kids were young, they loved to pick them up and “play” with them. It’s okay, just prepare them beforehand. Let them know IF they get pinched, it can hurt a bit but to just simply place the hermit back down on their sand gently. By preparing for a potential pinch ahead of time, it will help avoid potential accidents.
Last update on 2024-04-27 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API