HCA: Hermit Crab Association

While at Petsmart I saw a container for a new hermit crab food (well new to me anyway)

JurassiDiet Easi-Mix Hermit Crab Food

Ingredients:
de-shelled, farm raised snails (achatina fulica), river shrimp (macrobrachium nipponense). Refridgerate after opening. Not intended for human consumption.

I was quite intrigued. First, I usually don't find shrimp that aren't freeze-dried. Second, snails!

So I gave it a try.

I threw a little in the food bowl last night. Wow, the snails were a hit!

A crab went into the bowl, and went straight for a snail.

Then another crab walks in, pushes him away, and steals the snail. He's so enamored eating the snail he falls over backwards over the edge of the bowl.

He gets back in. They eat it by gripping the snail in the big pincher, and then ripping off little pieces with the feeder claw.

The smaller crab sneaks back in, and deftly extends his claw under the legs of the other, and sneaks away another snail.

Then he's so enamored eating it, he also falls backwards over the edge of the food bowl.

And it gets better from there. An E runs over to him, punches him away with the typical E double-claw punch, and then grabs the snail, and takes off with it. Then the other crab goes back into the bowl, grabs another snail, and takes off the other direction with it.

Oh the crabby mealtime adventures.

JMT, do you know how long the canned food will stay fresh for in the fridge? I've been tempted on so many occasions to try it, but the cans are large and not exactly cheap, and the hermits won't eat much in one meal. I worry about having a lot of spoiled waste as it's only the hermits that will eat things like snails and grasshoppers.

I've always portioned bits out and froze it.

Oh. Total. Duh. Freezing. *faceplam*

Thanks Sebby!

I think around 2 weeks. I had the moist hermit crab food (kinda like cat food, a mix of salmon fruit and veggies and kelp, they loved it), but it molded after 2 weeks after opening.

The freezedried stuff last forever (crickets and grasshoppers). I suspect the snails'll last about 2 weeks. I'll update if it gets nasty before then.

Not that the crabs would really care. They prefer their food old and decaying in the wild.

Thanks for the suggestion! Will definitely add "escargot" to the menu. My E's are a bit hesitant to try new foods, but I'd bet they're already familiar with snails. Yum, yum!

I couldn't find this at my local Petsmart when I looked today. What section is it in? Their hermit crab section as far as foods go is a really small end unit of an isle so maybe they don't carry it.

I have to second this food, I bought the same one and they loooove it.

Oh the smell is terrible tho. Make sure you seal it well in the fridge. My tin comes with a plastic lid that's a perfect fit to seal it.

don't know if it's at all petsmarts, but mine had these on clearance for half price. I pick up the one my store had.

I just ordered from reptilesupply.com today and added this to my order. I'm anxious to see how they like it!

My order from reptilesupply.com came today, including a can of the Easi-Mix Hermit Crab Food. The snails were a hit! Thanks for the info on this product.