Christa's
Favorite Crab-Related Links!
This is where I find the good stuff!
Groups
and Clubs
The Hermit Crab Association
This is *the* place for you to learn about how you can do your bit to
promote the humane care of hermit crabs. The HCA is a group of crabbers
who both want to 'talk crabs' and take a pro-active stance
regarding proper crab care. The HCA is moderated by a group of
Administrators who have been on the site for a long time. People are
treated fairly, even the "greenest teen crabber"
is welcomed with open claws! The only requirement for registration is
that you enter your city and state (or country if you are not in the
United States). HCA is the only online hermit crab
community run by a group of people elected to their posts, not by a
clique of friends. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then
the HCA is very flattered. Often imitated, but never equaled! Visit us today!
Landhermitcrabs.com!
Landhermitcrabs.com is the best kept secret in the crab care community!
Members have been coming to this site for years and have established
fast friendships. They love to meet new people and they love to talk
about their pet hermit crabs! There are many forums and a wealth of
archives dating waaaay back when! Landhermitcrabs.com stands on its own
as the web's oldest hermit crab message board. It was set up by my good
friends Asa and Roland who live in Sweden. They came to visit me in
July 2000 when we had the first hermit crab convention! Asa and Roland
ran landhermitcrabs.com for about three years, before turning it over
to me in 2002.
The Administrators of landhermitcrabs.com are incredible and do a
wonderful job promoting the community feel of the site. If you have
ever been picked on unfairly in another crab-care forum,
landhermitcrabs.com will treat you right!
Crab Care Information
Like any good webmaster, I must extend
kudos to my 'web peers' in disseminating hermit crab information! So
let's roll out the red carpet to:
The
Hermit Crab Patch!
The Hermit Crab Patch is one of the WOW! sites of the online crabbing
world. There is so much incredible information and photos that you're
just left with your mouth hanging open, saying "WOW!". It is run by my
dear friend Tammy. I met Tammy in Sarasota Florida at the 2002 HCA
Convention. Tammy is TOTALLY devoted to hermit crabs, she even had a
"best crab" at her wedding. The Hermit Crab Patch is a great mix of
everything that the best crab care sites need -- basic information for
new crabbers, and real meaty science for those experienced crabbers
hungering for more information. This site is a MUST READ for anyone who
wants to go beyond the basic info and wants to get to know what makes
our little guys tick. If you write her, please let her know that
Christa says "Great job!" and ask her about her Sphinx cats. They are
so sweet!
Crabotanicals
This site is the web's answer to everyone's question: Where can I find
good quality hermit crab food? Every single ingredient in
Crabotanicals' line of food is thoroughly screened for quality and
wholesomeness and crab-tested for taste. The owner is a long-time
member of the HCA: Hermit Crab Association and held in high regard by
many online crabbers.
SHOPPING!!
Woo-hoo! Nearly every crab owner loves
to go shopping for new crab toys! Here is where I buy most of my hermit
crab food, toys and other crab maintenance supplies.
The
Hermit Crab Patch! Believe it or not, but one of the best sites for
crab care info also sells hermit crabs and crab supplies! Tammy sells
really neat items, things you cannot get anywhere else -- don't
miss her Exclusives page! She also sells hermies when the weather
is right for shipping. Tammy carefully screens each prospective hermie
owner to make sure each crab goes to a loving home. She will not sell
to just anyone, only to those who genuinely care about the welfare of
hermit crabs. Tammy is proof that retailers CAN have a business where
the crabs' welfare comes FIRST!
The Hermit Crab
Association's CafePress Store The HCA: Hermit Crab Association has
its own CafePress store. Here you can buy one-of-a-kind items that only
a true crab lover would appreciate. Who else would wear a shirt that
says "Don't stress me out or I'll go naked!" You can find humorous
items or very serious items that drive home the point that "There are
no throwaway animals." The HCA does not charge a very large mark-up on
our CafePress items, so they are very reasonable compared to many other
CafePress sites. The money from the site goes towards hosting the HCA's
website.
Sea Shell City
Sea Shell City is one of the wonders of the hermit crab owners' world.
I have visited their store, and their crabs are treated well by the
staff. They get their crabs through numerous friends in the Caribbean,
their crabs do not go through the "middleman" part of shipping, so
receive much less stress than most commercially available hermit crabs.
Sea Shell City is dedicated to their crab's health: they do not ship
crabs during the freezing winter months and expressshipping is
mandatory. Sea Shell City has a shell collection to die for! Some of
crabbies' all-time favorites are here, especially those tapestry turbos
that our little friends can't get enough of! They sell brain-size
sponges, repti-type dishes, and crab food and treat. A one-stop site
for outfitting your entire crabitat!
Petdiscounters!
Petdiscounters.com is the one of the best sites on the web for buying
hermit crab supplies. Here is the story behind this: About two years
ago, I thought that perhaps if I compiled a list of everybody's hermit
crab supply needs, and sent it to an online pet shop, maybe they would
make a 'hermit crab' section. So I posted an email on Hermies Egroups,
and on the Landhermitcrabs.com bulletin board, saying "If you could
make your own perfect hermit crab supply store, what would it carry?" I
got a LOT of responses! I put everything together into a neat email and
sent it to Petdiscounters.com. The manager, Steve, wrote me back and
said that yes they have most of these supplies available and will set
up a hermit crab supply section online. So that's the story, in a
nutshell. Petdiscounters.com is the 'custom-made' hermit crab supply
shop of the online crabbing community. They sell a lot of FMR products
that you can't get anywhere else.
The
Naples Sea Shell Company
The Naples Sea Shell Company ROCKS! The owner, Frank, actually joined
up at landhermitcrabs.com (that was his first stop) and asked what we,
as hermit crab owners, needed the most in the way of crab shells. Then
he went on to design a hermit crab lovers' DREAM STORE. When Frank says
"We are here to help you," he IS NOT KIDDING!
Shell
Horizons!
Shell Horizons has one of the most fascinating sites I've seen. They
have TONS of things here: coral, sea fans, sand dollars, all types of
shells and more. The great thing about Shell Horizons is you buy your
shells in bulk. So if you have some small hermies needing some tapestry
turbos, you can order a gallon of them for $15! That's less than $1 per
shell! Their coral selection of fabulous, and very reasonably priced --
you can get an elegant large piece of coral for $4 or $15. That's a
steal compared to the price you'd pay in a pet store. Check out their
'Gems of the Sea" collection for beautifully polished large shells for
your treasured jumbo crabs.
Seashells.com
The place for shells for your Ecuadorian crabs! Look in the "medium
shells" category. The moon shells are Ecuadorian favorites. The sweet
violet shells are very small and only fit Ecuadorians about the size of
a dime or smaller
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