HCA: Hermit Crab Association

This may be a silly question, but how do u bake the frozen egg shells and is it necessary?

Kermie16 wrote:This may be a silly question, but how do u bake the frozen egg shells and is it necessary?

Nope. You can throw egg shells straight into the tank after cracking, even. They love the albumin and will eat the shells.

I've fed egg shells raw, microwaved, and baked. Mine seem to like baked the best. In the oven, they get really crispy and toasted. After baking, I grind them up using a molcajete and put them into a dish in the tank.

I bake mine whenever I have the oven on for something else. I leave them in for about 30 minutes.

Not all sea salts are created equally. There is a wide range of quality on things labelled "sea salt." I really like to buy brands that name the source area. And you absolutely HAVE to check the label for anti-caking agents which make it free-flowing for salt shakers. You don't want any additives. Though they can take sodium out of any polluted sea, ultra-refine it to remove contaminants, and give you a glittering white product, ultra-refined products also have the beneficial trace elements removed which strips nutrition away.

Wow!! Good to know! Thanks!

mlakers wrote:I let egg shells dry out on the counter for about a week and then crumble them into small bits with my fingers and store that in a small baggie. Sometimes I mix them with shrimp shells that I have also let dry and then crumbled up.

my egg shells get stinky after a couple days yours don't?


Crabbing for 4 years-still obsessed! 5 total crustacean kids. Gave up trying to tell them apart but I love them all.

Kermie16 wrote:Great! I have plenty of those :)My family and I use powdered PB2 - but looking at the ingredients, it has salt in it :/

Hey Kermie, I found some powdered pb without salt in it, it's even organic! http://www.santacruzorganic.com/products/peanut-powders My chain grocery started carrying it in their "green" aisle. The only ingredient is organic peanuts (there is also a variety with organic chia, which is the one my grocery had so I got it). I got it when I was trying to come up with a dry food mix to leave the petsitter. I'm going to try it in a smoothie--for myself--next!

hprmom wrote:

Kermie16 wrote:Great! I have plenty of those :)My family and I use powdered PB2 - but looking at the ingredients, it has salt in it :/

Hey Kermie, I found some powdered pb without salt in it, it's even organic! http://www.santacruzorganic.com/products/peanut-powders My chain grocery started carrying it in their "green" aisle. The only ingredient is organic peanuts (there is also a variety with organic chia, which is the one my grocery had so I got it). I got it when I was trying to come up with a dry food mix to leave the petsitter. I'm going to try it in a smoothie--for myself--next!

Actually sounds pretty good! I'll have to check my grocery store


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Very cool! Thanks hprmom! I'm gonna check out our green section at the grocery next time
And see if I can find some We eat PB-2 all the time!! Love it!

Ok for food do you just dice it up small and put it in there shell dish ? Dry goods and nuts do you grind them fine or just small bits. I have read over the food list just not sure how to serve it or how much or what types they need each feeding...


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Moorespride wrote:Ok for food do you just dice it up small and put it in there shell dish ? Dry goods and nuts do you grind them fine or just small bits. I have read over the food list just not sure how to serve it or how much or what types they need each feeding...


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I dice up a lot of my fresh foods but nothing too small, just in chunks - my vision is not that great so the bigger chunks really help me find leftovers the crabs have pulled out or hidden much easier. Also, don't underestimate how strong their pinchers are! Our littlest crabs have been able to eat everything our larger ones have been eating I found one of our smallest hermies had dragged a chunk of raw shrimp about half his size up the Mobani wood and sitting there eating it all by herself Mostly depends on your crabs. They each have preferences all of their own and also have favorite foods I put walnut halves in the tank and also fresh plain popcorn and they take chunks out of them without me having to break them or grind them down.


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