picking them up

Question
how long should you wait until you can start picking them up?

Answer
Dear Stephanie,
thank you for your question.
I would give the crabs a few weeks to get used to their new home and to destress. they may choose to molt or bury themselves to destress during that time and it's important that you don't dig them up. It can be frustrating to see nothing of your new crabs for weeks, but they need to be left alone during a molt.
Some crabs never like to be handled while others are okay with it form the beginning. Shy crabs usually get more relaxed after a while.

To find out what sex your crab has, hold it by the shell at a short distance over the floor or over a table. Wait until the crab comes out of its shell, stretching to reach the ground. Then take a look at the legs nearest to the shell: if you see an opening on the first segment of each leg, the crab is female. Here are good pictures of a male and a female crab:
http://www.thecrabbagepatch.com/crabanatomy.html
I hope I was of some help to you
Jennifer