HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I have two questions...
I went thru all the food list stickies, and saw all the meats and most said cooked, but can they have uncooked of any kind?
And also all the flowers listed, in both safe and unsafe, I grow every year in my flower gardens(avid gardener here) it would be great if I knew how to give my crabs these flowers. Do I put then in freshly picked, do I dry them out?

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I'm wondering this as well because I had some sushi last night and would like to share the salmon and shrimp with my little guys but I won't until I know for sure that it's safe for them to have fresh raw (or maybe half raw?) salmon.

I'd imagine we can give them the flowers fresh but you should wait for someone more experienced to answer that lol. I suppose it could depend on the species of flower, whether to serve fresh or dry. Or it may not matter at all! Let's wait for someone with more knowledge


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No one is cooking their food in the wild...

Check the safe food list.

Raw fish and shrimp is fine as long as they haven't been seasoned with garlic or onion or anything that would be toxic to crabs (like table salt, cocktail sauce, etc.)



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I give fresh & dried flowers. As far as meats I do both cooked and raw. I've noticed that my crabs prefer cooked though.


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I agree with above 100% about the no one is cooking for them in the wild. I try to use that as a rule of thumb when im not sure.

My crabbies are weird and they like different mixes of the same things so i try both raw and cooked foods. As far as giving them anything from sushi id rinse it first. Some places put a sauce or season on it while some dont. Better safe than sorry.

Very true I guess there aren't little crabby beach BBQs going on in the Caribbean. I thought for sure they kept little grills in the ground with them while they molt! I must be mistaken then

The sushi was completely natural: just cooked shrimp, rice, seaweed, crab, avocado, cucumbers, and fresh salmon. They get quite a little treat tonight then


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Only the nicest of crabs can afford those! Lol. Im sure they will love it!

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Oh my little Olve must be one mean crabby then! He did not come with a BBQ unfortunately. Such a shame, I was craving ribs tonight... I thought he'd cook some Caribbean food with those little purple punchers of his


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If you do uncooked meat, just make sure you wash your hands after doing anything involving the crabitat. Salmonella won't hurt the crabs, but it can definitely hurt you. I've fed raw shrimp before, they seemed to enjoy it considering I had to pick it out of the sub.

PinchersAndShells wrote:If you do uncooked meat, just make sure you wash your hands after doing anything involving the crabitat. Salmonella won't hurt the crabs, but it can definitely hurt you. I've fed raw shrimp before, they seemed to enjoy it considering I had to pick it out of the sub.

I have day lilies still blooming right now, in theory, can I go pick one and put it in the tank?

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As long as there aren't any pesticides, then I'd assume so.

If you use any sort of fertilizer on your plants that is not 100% organic, they can't be fed to the crabs.

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soilentgringa wrote:If you use any sort of fertilizer on your plants that is not 100% organic, they can't be fed to the crabs.

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Nope, I don't use any kind of fertilizer, mulch, pesticide or flower "food" so I guess next summer these are going to be sure happy crabs with a very pretty tank

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for uncooked flowers/nuts/meat and the such i will either dunk it or mist it with salt then fresh water before i give it to my crabbies. i currently have two air plants in my tank one of which the crabs are devouring. the apple stick tho? not so much.

Do go ahead and dry extras for later! They'll appreciate it when flowers are no longer in bloom and you'll appreciate having a stash to grab from.


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