Today, we made a stop at the pet shop because my son's most recent Betta fish passed onto the big fishbowl in the sky on Saturday. So, he picks out a new one...and both he and his sister are begging to buy a shell to put in their tanks. (My daughter has a Betta in her room as well.) So, I said ok - and told them to each pick one out. Sofia picks out a painted black shell -- and Tyler picks out a painted green shell -- and they're both happy and can't wait to give them as "gifts" to their fish.
Before heading home, we stop for ice cream. As we're sitting on a picnic bench eating, Sofia hands the shell to me and says she thinks there's crab inside of hers. Of course, I insist there isn't...I shake it, I blow into it, I stick my fingernail in there -- and show her that there is no crab in that shell.
When we get home, my daughter (being the impatient one that she is) doesn't wait for me to put the shell in the tank for her....oh, no she drops the shell into the tank herself before I even get into the room. So it sinks to the bottom (the light should've gone off at that point....I must confess.), and she says "Mommy, the shell is moving". And I chide her and say "oh no, that's just the way it looks because you're looking at it from an angle". No sooner were the words out of my mouth when this crab literally jumps out of the shell!! And then....chaos ensues.
Sofia is crying because she's convinced the crab will eat her Princess Marshmellow. So she's screaming "get it out! get it out!" and I'm afraid the little guy is going to drown, so I grab him. Unflipping believable! I call the pet store - who was nice enough to stay open for me so I could come down and buy a hermit crab tank so this lucky little guy will have warm sand, fresh water and yummy food.
I brought him down to the store with me, and the clerks were amazed that they didn't know he was in there. He lived in that box with all the shells for three weeks in their store -- who knows how long before he got there. And, he's incredibly friendly! He loves to be held and handled, and if you talk to him - he comes right out of his shell; if you talk to him while he's in your hand, he looks right at you and climbs up to your face. Love him.
So, two pets for the price of one.
And "Lucky", the lucky hermit crab is probably going to be very spoiled now. 
4 comments:
What a GREAT story! Wow!
http://www.crabbytalk.com
and there are alot of other websites on the internet. Also, they molt their exoskeleton. If you find a hollow version of your crab in front of his shell, that is what happened. That's important to know. Grats on your new crab.
He looks like a good one.
That's amazing! Three weeks without food and water??? Survival of the fittest, I guess!
What a GREAT story! You must have terrified the poor thing when you were shaking and blowing. We don't own a single pet here... maybe a hermit crab is the way to go. Sounds like very low maintenance! :)
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