How to Make Your Own Hermit Crab Food

Hermit Crabs are scavengers by nature and they will eat almost anything. If you do feed your Hermit Crab commercial Hermit Crab food in pellets you want to read the label carefully to make sure the pellet Hermit Crab food you're thinking of feeding to your Hermit Crab does not contain copper sulfates. Look for a commercial Hermit Crab food that is copper sulfate free. If you can't find a commercial Hermit Crab food that says it's copper sulfate free then you need to make your own Hermit Crab Food. You want to be sure to always read labels carefully.

How To Make Your Own Hermit Crab Food

It's really easier than you might think to make your own Hermit Crab Food. Just feed your Hermit Crab as natural of food as possible choosing from the below list. Usually I make up a combination of these foods and feed it to them in a small bowl they can easily reach into.

1. Romaine Lettuce.

2. Egg Shells.

3. Red, Green, Yellow, Orange Bell Peppers.

4. Papaya.

5. Coconut.

6. Mango.

7. Oak Leaves.

8. Strawberries.

9. Blueberries.

10. Oak Bark.

11. Maple Leaves.

12. Cuttlebone

The Oak leaves and bell peppers are natural sources of beta carotene which will help to improve the color of your Hermit Crabs. Use only Oak leaves that are green and have not been treated or sprayed with insecticide.

Now what I usually do is keep 3-5 of these ingredients on hand at all times and I cut them up in very small pieces so the Hermit Crabs can very easily pick the pieces of food up and eat it. I can not stress enough. Keep the pieces of food very small. I give my Hermit Crabs a little bit of unwashed egg shells in about every other feeding. And they love them. Be sure that any type of food you give your Hermit Crab is all natural. If you have any doubt at all about anything not being good for your Hermit Crab don't give it to them. You want to avoid anything you think might have any type of insecticide used on it. Keep everything natural and you'll have happy and healthy Hermit Crabs.

Use a flat shallow dish for your Hermit Crab food dish. You should have the light over your Hermit Crab enclosure set on a automatic timer and 10 hours a day is enough time for it to be on. When the light goes off it's time to put the Hermit Crabs food dish with their food in it into the enclosure. Leave the food dish in the enclosure overnight and remove it and discard any uneaten food in the morning. This will help to ensure that you have happy healthy Hermit Crabs. Never leave the food dish in the Hermit Crab enclosure but over night. This means yes you should remove it every morning.

You should be sure to give your Hermit Crabs a calcium supplement and a carotene supplement on a regular basis. Buy it at your local health food store where you can carefully read the label. You want as natural a product as possible. You don't want a product with fillers or other additives.

I use the product advertised below to make salt water for my Hermit Crabs. It is a great product and it has always worked great for me. It is called Oceanic Natural Sea Salt Mix and it's a easy to use all natural product. A large container of it will last you for a very long time. Just keep any unused portion in a tightly covered container in a cool dry place.

It's important that your Hermit Crab enclosure have two small shallow ( 1/2 to 1 inch deep ) bowls in the Hermit Crab enclosure at all times. One should have fresh chlorine free water and one should have salt water. Be sure that you keep both dishes of water very clean at all times. And remember it's very important to use very shallow bowls that your Hermit Crabs can reach into easily but not fall in.

I use only bottled water to give my Hermit Crabs fresh water or to mix up their salt water. Never use water out of your tap. Any water that you give to your Hermit Crab must be chlorine free. I use homemade salt water water falls in my Hermit Crab enclosures to keep the humidity level at 70 - 80 percent in the Hermit Crab enclosure.

Other things you can try feeding to your Hermit Crab include very small pieces of fresh fish, apples, carrots, raisins, and grapes. In the wild Hermit Crabs feed on fish so feel free to offer them small bits of fresh fish as a treat from time to time. Feed them cuttlebone and egg shells and they will get much needed calcium naturally from these two items. I keep a large piece of cuttlebone in the Hermit Crab enclosure all the time and they are always feeding on it. I have it fastened to one of their climbing branches so they have to climb up to feed on it.

Keep in mind that Hermit Crabs find their food two ways. They find it by themselves or they observe other Hermit Crabs feeding. Once a hungry Hermit Crab sees other Hermit Crabs feeding they will be quick to come see what the other crabs are eating.

Hermit Crabs Have Some Of The Basic Nutritional Needs As Humans

You should remember that just like humans Hermit Crabs need beta carotene, calcium and antioxidants. You need to check with your pet shop and buy both a calcium supplement and a beta carotene supplement for your Hermit Crabs. It's very important that your Hermit Crabs receive both calcium and beta carotene so they will be at their healthiest. If a Hermit Crab is not receiving enough beta carotene they will appear washed out and grey after they have moulted. You don't want this so be sure they get plenty of food containing beta carotene and a beta carotene supplement. Remember it is the brightly colored vegetables like bell peppers, carrots and corn that are high in beta carotene.

Naturally Grown And Dried Marigold Petals Are Great For Your Hermit Crabs

One real treat I give my Hermit Crabs are naturally raised and dried marigold petals. The Hermit Crabs love them and usually eat them up quickly. Just be sure that you raise the marigolds and that no insecticides are ever used on them. This is important so keep it in mind.

It may seem funny but the best diet for a Hermit Crab would be the diet your doctor would want you to eat if you would listen and eat only what your doctor told you. This includes nuts, meat, fish, fresh vegetables and fruits. Just never give your Hermit Crabs citrus fruits as it is not good for them. Hermit Crabs also love tannin rich foods like oak bark and oak leaves. Just be sure to wash any food you feed your Hermit Crabs under cold running water. No you don't use any soap.

Most people keeping Hermit Crabs will tell you that you don't need to purchase any commercial Hermit Crab food for your Hermit Crabs as long as you feed them a widely varied diet of human foods that would be good for you and of course are good for your crabs. Be sure to read the labels on any food you feed to your Hermit Crabs and be sure they do not contain ethoxyquin or copper sulfate. Both of these substances are bad for your Hermit Crabs and can kill them. As hard as it may be to believe some commercial pellet Hermit Crab foods often contain one or both of these substances. So be sure to read those labels.

Hermit Crabs Love A Wide Variety Of Foods

Your Hermit Crabs love a wide variety of foods and you should try to offer some or all of these foods to your Hermit Crabs both to keep them happy and healthy. Feed your crabs fruits they would find in the wild like mango's, coconut, and papaya. Feed them very small portions of these items.

You can really try almost any type of vegetable as long as you know it is pesticide and additive free. My big suggestion here is to keep their vegetables raw. Don't feed them cooked vegetables. Salt with iodine can kill your Hermit Crabs so keep this in mind. Don't feed them anything containing salt with iodine. Again read the label.

I sometimes boil pork neck bones or ox tails and feed my Hermit Crabs some of both. Boil the meat on the bone only in bottled water and don't put anything on the meat. Hermit Crabs love to pick meat off bones and sometimes I even see them chewing on bones. Bones are a great source of calcium which is something Hermit Crabs need and why their should be a cuttlebone in their enclosure for them to chew and feed on. Most Hermit Crabs also love shrimp. Boil the shrimp in bottled water and give the crabs the shrimp in the shell. I bet you they will quickly pull it apart and eat it. You'll also find they love brine shrimp. But be sure to wash the brine shrimp off with water before you give it to your Hermit Crabs.

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