Not Eating Much

[khs12]

Hi all. I recently adopted 3 crabs and I'm new to this. I put plenty of Hermie food with the pellets whole, and ground up in their food dishes. I also put a fresh orange slice, pecans, popcorn, and a few slices of banana in there. Nicky ate the popcorn but that's it. I haven't seen the other 2 eat anything at all and nicky hasn't eaten anything since the popcorn. Its been a few days.
I don't want them to die.
Also, they love water and are constantly drinking or swimming, but no interest in food...
I'm very concerned.

[Mahaliapbrown]

Hello and welcome to crabbing I had the same concerns when I got my hermit crabs they weren't ratting much but an answer I got was that they normally don't eat a lot and when they do the gorge them selfs. Because they are scavengers they do this because they don't know when they will eat again so your crabs could just not be hungry. I hope that helped and made since.


Jason, Justin, and Jett my little baby "E's"

[Mahaliapbrown]

Eating* sorry


Jason, Justin, and Jett my little baby "E's"

[khs12]

Okay so its normal then for them to be finicky? I just dont want em to starve...And Patrice is a BIG girl so the fact that she has such a tiny appetite seems odd lol!

[Crabinski]

Not to worry! Hermit crabs eat such a tiny amount that sometimes the only way you know anyone's been in the food dish is by the sand (or poop) they've left behind .

We all tend to overfeed when we first get our crabs and then adjust downward over time. If you watch them eat, you'll see that they pinch itsy bitsy pieces off the piece of fruit/veggie/meat/seafood or pinch up equally tiny portions of dry mix; even after they've been eating for a long time, the fruit/veggie/meat/seafood may look virtually untouched unless you look closely to see the tiny pinch marks. When preparing for a molt, you'll see that they're eating a lot more, packing in the carbs and protein for an extended stay underground. Other than that, consumption is small by human standards and what we expect from other pets.

As you have only 3 crabs, the amount to be served will be quite tiny. I have 4 PPs (1 small, 2 medium, 1 large) and this will give you an idea of what I give them: a typical feeding may include 1/2 teaspoon of homemade dry mix, a pinch of dried flowers, a pinch of Wardley's Hermit Crab Dried Shrimp, a pinch of powdered seaweed. That will last them for several days. Fresh foods might include a few sprigs from a broccoli floret, a thumbnail sized piece of strawberry and a 1" strand of raw ground turkey. Fresh foods are best removed after 12-24 hours to prevent spoilage and discourage fruit flies and food mites. A few times a week I'll give them a fresh egg shell half with raw albumin -- it's a great source of protein and calcium as they'll pick at the shell after eating up the albumin.

Bottom line is: don't worry -- they'll eat when they're hungry!

[khs12]

Not to worry! Hermit crabs eat such a tiny amount that sometimes the only way you know anyone's been in the food dish is by the sand (or poop) they've left behind .

We all tend to overfeed when we first get our crabs and then adjust downward over time. If you watch them eat, you'll see that they pinch itsy bitsy pieces off the piece of fruit/veggie/meat/seafood or pinch up equally tiny portions of dry mix; even after they've been eating for a long time, the fruit/veggie/meat/seafood may look virtually untouched unless you look closely to see the tiny pinch marks. When preparing for a molt, you'll see that they're eating a lot more, packing in the carbs and protein for an extended stay underground. Other than that, consumption is small by human standards and what we expect from other pets.

As you have only 3 crabs, the amount to be served will be quite tiny. I have 4 PPs (1 small, 2 medium, 1 large) and this will give you an idea of what I give them: a typical feeding may include 1/2 teaspoon of homemade dry mix, a pinch of dried flowers, a pinch of Wardley's Hermit Crab Dried Shrimp, a pinch of powdered seaweed. That will last them for several days. Fresh foods might include a few sprigs from a broccoli floret, a thumbnail sized piece of strawberry and a 1" strand of raw ground turkey. Fresh foods are best removed after 12-24 hours to prevent spoilage and discourage fruit flies and food mites. A few times a week I'll give them a fresh egg shell half with raw albumin -- it's a great source of protein and calcium as they'll pick at the shell after eating up the albumin.

Bottom line is: don't worry -- they'll eat when they're hungry!

Man, thanks so much!!!! Big help!:)

[kleotide]

Not to worry! Hermit crabs eat such a tiny amount that sometimes the only way you know anyone's been in the food dish is by the sand (or poop) they've left behind .

We all tend to overfeed when we first get our crabs and then adjust downward over time. If you watch them eat, you'll see that they pinch itsy bitsy pieces off the piece of fruit/veggie/meat/seafood or pinch up equally tiny portions of dry mix; even after they've been eating for a long time, the fruit/veggie/meat/seafood may look virtually untouched unless you look closely to see the tiny pinch marks. When preparing for a molt, you'll see that they're eating a lot more, packing in the carbs and protein for an extended stay underground. Other than that, consumption is small by human standards and what we expect from other pets.

As you have only 3 crabs, the amount to be served will be quite tiny. I have 4 PPs (1 small, 2 medium, 1 large) and this will give you an idea of what I give them: a typical feeding may include 1/2 teaspoon of homemade dry mix, a pinch of dried flowers, a pinch of Wardley's Hermit Crab Dried Shrimp, a pinch of powdered seaweed. That will last them for several days. Fresh foods might include a few sprigs from a broccoli floret, a thumbnail sized piece of strawberry and a 1" strand of raw ground turkey. Fresh foods are best removed after 12-24 hours to prevent spoilage and discourage fruit flies and food mites. A few times a week I'll give them a fresh egg shell half with raw albumin -- it's a great source of protein and calcium as they'll pick at the shell after eating up the albumin.

Bottom line is: don't worry -- they'll eat when they're hungry!

Thank you so much for this information! I am giving my hermies WAY too much food! Wow. I was also concerned that they were not eating and I would wake up one morning to find them all dead and starved. I am happy you posted so I could learn from you.

[Crabinski]

You're quite welcome, kleotide . We're all learning from one another (and from our crabs) on a daily basis.