Hbh hermit crab varietie bites

[elefants]

I got these treats/food at petco the i read the ingredient list and it looks ok the first 2 ingredients on the list were shrimp meal and coconut flakes (I will feed them mostly fruits and veggies )but will this be a good treat or should I not give them any

[fraksocks]

Here's the link to the guide that talks about commercial foods and the unsafe ingredients that are in most of them.

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 25&t=92555

[elefants]

The last ingredient is copper just copper is that ok

[fraksocks]

I looked on line at a complete list of ingredients. It looks like it has garlic as one of the ingredients. Garlic is usually not recommended for crabs as invertebrates can be sensitive to it (it's a common ingredient given to fish to prevent against parasites). I personally don't feed any commercial crab pellets and would probably return it. You'd be better off getting a thing of freeze dried shrimp from there fish food section and another thing of freeze dried mealworms and crickets (or sometimes you can find a mix) from the reptile section and just alternating those along with feeding a wide variety of fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, and fresh meats.

[elefants]

Ok

[fraksocks]

Sorry that should have said mealworms OR crickets. One type of bug will be good to start off and will give you plenty of variety between that and the shrimp. You can always expand your offerings later if you want

[wodesorel]

Hermit crab blood is composed of copper, where as mammal blood is iron. When humans overdose on iron it kills them, and the same is true for hermits, which is why it's recommended to stay away from certain forms of copper, and to not give too much of it.

The flip side to that is just like with humans needing iron to stay healthy, hermit crabs do need some copper in their diets. It is naturally occurring in plants and animal products, and marine salt mix also supplies it.

I think the straight copper would be fine. Personally, I'd use it as a treat rather than a staple diet as it's mainly just "junk food".

[Rocky]

I just treat that kind of thing like the supersized big mac meal for hermit crabs.

[elefants]

I am thinking of giving them it every 2 weeks

[KrabovyKral]

Wow- I didn't know that Variety Bites were so bad- I definitely won't feed it too much anymore.
Also didn't know hermit crab blood is copper-based- cool fact!

[PiscesPros]

Hi, I am CEO here at Pisces-Pros formally HBH. We are always glad to hear people discussing our product and from time to time we post info to clear things up. The copper that is in our food is actually copper proteinate ( take a look at the label again) Which is a bio available form of the mineral copper. True copper to most aquatic animals is harmful but all animals need this crucial mineral. The bioavailable copper in the food is dosed to be safe at any level consumed by your crab. While crustaceans are sensitive to garlic, once again the dose is appropriate to gain the benefits and mitigate the associated problems. If you ever want to reach out to me for any other questions please feel free to contact me at Jeremy@piscespros.com or look us up at piscespros.com we love all comments positive or negative. Thanks

Jeremy