HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I changed my hermies' food yesterday because I thought they were getting tired of shrimp. Reason I thought they were tired of shrimp is because when I got up in the morning and looked in on them the end of the food bowl with the shrimp in it was buried in the sand. So last night I gave them a little dry food crushed up, some carrot shreds and tiny pieces of celery and a little bit of grape cut up. But they didn't eat. I think the celery dried up during the day even though I spritzed it with water before putting it in the crabitat. I gave them a shower last night and let them run around a tray that I put them in when I'm cleaning their home. They seemed to be ok and moving around fine.

Should I worry if they don't eat or if I think they're not eating? I'm going to try a strawberry top, some walnuts and a grape tomato tonight. And do you guys put your crabs on their food after you change it or do you just let them find it themselves?

They eat such small amounts it sometimes can be hard to tell when they have eaten. The most important thing is to keep providing them with a variety of healthy foods. Check out Kilimanjaro's Guide to Hermit Crab Nutrition and the Safe Food List for more info and ideas.

I just place the food dish(es) in the tank and let them find their way to it.

I see you're new here. Please take a look at our Caresheet section, if you haven't yet and welcome to the HCA!

Thank you for the welcome and I'm happy to be here. Thank you also for the tip. I'm cleaning the crabitat right now. I'll just let them find their food. Is it better for them to find it themselves?

I think it is better to let them do their crabby thing and make their way to the dish at their own pace. I know many of mine start waving their antennae around and slowly making their way to the dish just after I place it in the tank. They have no problems finding it.

Thanks a bunch!!!

My crabs never really eat too much fresh fruits and veges, and it always seemed to go bad and attract insects. I started buying dried food from the Hermit Crab Patch, plus their favorite Honey nut cherries, and they eat ALL the time now. I give them a treat once a week or so....a piece of fresh coconut, a bit of meat or something.

Just keep experimenting with the fresh foods. When I notice that the guys haven't been too interested in their fresh food bowl (there's a bowl of dry mix in the crabitat 24/7, along with a small leaf pit), I'll try something new. For example, the egg, strawberry and turkey were untouched overnight so I gave them a small piece of cucumber and it was a huge hit! Today they're having cantaloupe and mango so we'll see how they react to those new choices.

One thing that everyone's crabs seem to enjoy is raw egg white so, the next time you're scrambling, frying or poaching eggs, save the half-shell that has the extra albumin (there's always one half-shell like that ) and just pop it into the crabitat. They'll be right over to start to scoop it up and nibble on the shell, too.

What Crabinski said! Changing the food up often can really make a difference. Mine love goopy eggshells too.

hermieluv1 wrote:My crabs never really eat too much fresh fruits and veggies, and it always seemed to go bad and attract insects. I started buying dried food from the Hermit Crab Patch, plus their favorite Honey nut cherries, and they eat ALL the time now. I give them a treat once a week or so....a piece of fresh coconut, a bit of meat or something.

I have gone as far as to photograph the fresh food and have found the only things they even touch of the fruits and veggies is the occasional nibble on some apple. When I switched to all hpc stuff aside from random add in food they eat like crazy. My husband laughs at night if he can hear me looking in the tank around midnight. He hears alot of "fat hermits! I just filled that! Really? Another hole? Really?" It amuses him. Lol we both know I'm crazy anyway. As long as the crabs don't start talking back I'm ok right?

Wow...what great suggestions! I put a food bowl with a bit of strawberry, potato, celery, carrot and grape tomato and then a bowl of dry and a bowl of walnuts and pecans. They seem to be more attracted to the nut bowl and then the dry food. How often do you guys change their food, fresh water and salt water? I'm learning so much from all of you. Thank you so much!