Hermit Crab Foods

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Sun Dec 21, 2014 10:31 pm

Does anyone know anything about the new commercial hermit crab food: All Living Things Variety Diet? I have seen it all over the shelves of Petsmart (I have been feeding my crabs FMR pelleted food, but after reading more on it I want to try and ease that away from them).

The ingredients to the ALT are:

Dried River Shrimp, Rice Bran, Wheat Middlings, Fish Meal, Alfalfa, Soybean Meal, Cane Molasses, calcium Carbonate, Corn Meal, Whey Protein, Chicken Meal, Dicalcium Phosphate, Salt, DL-Menthione, Vitamin A Acetate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Riboflavin Supplement, Niacin Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Choline Chloride, Mendione Sodium Bisulfate Complex, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Sodium Selenite, Biotin, Manganese Sulfate, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Colbalt Sulfate

I have tried natural foods and my crabs don't seem to take interest in them too much. I want my crabs healthy and happy, Any suggestions? What about the ATL ingredients? Are they harmful to their health like FMR seems to be? (One crab as lived off of FMR products and dried shrimp for 4+ years. Other crab, I just got today, was living off ATL Variety Diet at Petsmart). Crabs have everything they need as far as water, salt water, substrate, substrate thinkness, huts, climbing objects, shells, calcium and interaction goes..just stuck on food.

happycrabbymama · Post by **happycrabbymama** » Sun Dec 21, 2014 11:05 pm

These are the ingredients you will need to be on the look out for. If these are listed in ANY of the foods that you purchase DO NOT use them.

⁃ EQ or Ethoxyquin an antioxidant
⁃ Copper Sulfate
⁃ BHT, also known as butylhydroxytoluene

I would STRONGLY recommend against using commercial foods. Your crabs will NOT starve if you are feeding them a more "natural" diet. It might take them a while to come around to eating it, but they will be better off in the long run.

I am not completely against using some commercial foods... but check the list for the ones that members on her have deemed "acceptable".

Check out this link.

viewtopic.php?f=25&t=92555

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Sun Dec 21, 2014 11:16 pm

Thank you, I have taken away FMR tonight all except the treat, which is said not to contain horrible ingredients and I did check, and gave them natural food. I'm just worried I will not be giving them all that they need. If you know of some absolute foods they need as far as having proteins, and certain vitamins, and calcium goes please name them. I'm all about having my animals healthy! I have two crabs, a mouse, two dogs, a horse, and brine's shrimp so you can imagine how much I want them all healthy. My crab that I've had for 4+ years is kind of set in his ways (strange as it may seem) I'm hoping the other crab will take the initiative and eat the food.

Drakezilla · Post by **Drakezilla** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:50 am

My eldest, Draco has lived a lot of his life on store bought food as well and making the transition wasn't easy, he loved his powdered food. What I did before I knew better was I just offered both. That way the food gets used up and mixed together. Eventually he made the switch and now he prefers the fresh stuff. Have you tried protein? A lot of crabs on here can't seem to resist 'meat'!

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 12:56 am

They are offered shrimp and eggs.

Drakezilla · Post by **Drakezilla** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 5:40 am

I read on another forum, I'm not sure if it's true or not but, that hermit crabs only seek the food out that contains whatever nutrients they need for whatever stage of life they're in. That or it's personal preference, perhaps. It's hard for us to know for sure given the startling lack of information we have on them.

Have you tried reading up on their nutritional needs?
There's a post around here that Kilimanjaro did that gave me a starting point on how/what to feed my crabs.

Here's the link!
viewtopic.php?t=92554

hermieluv1 · Post by **hermieluv1** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 5:46 am

Mine eat pretty much what I eat , and I'm still here! I also think most animals know what they need most and will focus on that so I offer a bit of each type. Fruits, veges, protein, carbs, and sugar.

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 10:24 am

Thank you for all the help! But another question, thinks like rice and noodles, would they be cooked or uncooked or does it matter?

hermieluv1 · Post by **hermieluv1** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 11:00 am

I don't think it matters, like with meat, you can offer it raw or cooked, but I would think it would be hard to eat it uncooked, as it so hard. Me personally, I would cook it.

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 11:14 am

Okay, thank you. I think the crab I just bought yesterday is showing signs of wanting to molt. He had very dull points when I got him and not enought depth of substrate in the pet store. He has since burrowed himself under the water bowl (the moistest place where my crabs normally molt), which is a good sign that he's nice and comfortable. Their food will be changing, I'm looking at the Crabby Patch foods for busy days.

dinky · Post by **dinky** » Mon Dec 22, 2014 5:50 pm

gcarly09 wrote:Thank you for all the help! But another question, thinks like rice and noodles, would they be cooked or uncooked or does it matter?

I questioned this when I first got crabs 4 years ago, I got a new coffee grinder and use it to grind rice, beans and my crabs love it. I even found a pasta veggie mix at the health food store they love and I gr8 d for them.

gcarly09 · Post by **gcarly09** » Thu Dec 25, 2014 12:48 am

Thanks for all the help! They have a very colorful diet now. I feed my mouse dehydrated fruits and I thought it would be a good idea to throw those in the tank along with real fruit. My hermi, Sharky loves it, but new hermi still has not surfaced since I got him. Trying to give him some space just in case he is molting. Really want to know the gender so I can name it already.

Sharky is eating his shrimp as we speak..as soon as I set it out.

HCA: Hermit Crab Association