Acceptable foods

For any and all questions about feeding, diet and different foods. Questions and posts about purchasing from stores should be made in the Shopping section.

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Nate the great
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Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Sat Oct 08, 2016 11:56 pm

I need help identifying whether the food I have is safe and or good.

I have taken in rescue hermies from a couple owners over the past couple weeks, and tonight I started clearing out the supplies that came with the crabs.

I have 5 different types of commercial hermit crab food, and I need to know which i should pitch and which i can feed to the hermies. Here's the list:

Tetrafauna Hermit crab meal
Tetrafauna hermit crab cakes

All Living Things Variety diet

Jurassidiet hermit crab formula

Crab Island fruit & flower crab food

I'm going to go check the acceptable foods list in a minute, but I don't know whether this food is on the good/bad list so i decided to ask for help.
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.

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Crabinski
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Crabinski » Sun Oct 09, 2016 12:01 am

None of these are worth keeping, Nate, as they all contain either copper sulfate or ethoxyquin, preservatives unsafe for hermit crabs.
PPs are Big Enzo, Charles Paris and Mr Pinch
On the Big Beach in the Sky: Murray, Gino, Oscar, Gordon, Ignatz, Harry and King Felix the Pale
Also Mom to Imogene the Syrian Hamster


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Nate the great
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Sun Oct 09, 2016 12:10 am

Crabinski wrote:None of these are worth keeping, Nate, as they all contain either copper sulfate or ethoxyquin, preservatives unsafe for hermit crabs.
The All Living Things variety diet does not contain those ingredients, so far as I can tell from reading the tiny print on the label.

It's also not on any of the lists, good or bad.

Can someone explain the biochemistry of why these ingredients are unsafe? Everyone keeps saying it but no one has ever explained why.
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.


Topic author
Nate the great
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Sun Oct 09, 2016 12:19 am

Here's why copper sulfate is bad news:
http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/profiles/ex ... e-ext.html
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.

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isadoraisacat
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by isadoraisacat » Sun Oct 09, 2016 3:43 am

Hermies kitchen , claw of the wild and hermit crab patch all sell great healthy foods for the crabs i feed my crabs only food from these 3 shops and my crabs are healthy as can be. All the commercial products sold at major pet store chains are garbage.

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Crabinski
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Crabinski » Sun Oct 09, 2016 12:05 pm

isadoraisacat wrote:Hermies kitchen , claw of the wild and hermit crab patch all sell great healthy foods for the crabs i feed my crabs only food from these 3 shops and my crabs are healthy as can be. All the commercial products sold at major pet store chains are garbage.
There are a few commercial products that are, in fact, very good. Wardley's Hermit Crab food is 100% dried shrimp, no preservatives, additives or fillers, crabs love it and a small canister is around $3 at Walmart. ZooMed Red Shrimp is another good choice: the shrimp are larger than Wardley's so crabs are likely to carry them off for later snacking. Tetra Freeze-Dried Bloodwormsis another sound and inexpensive buy, around $4 at Walmart -- caveat: do not handle the bloodworms with bare hands as they can be toxic to some people. Fluker's freeze-dried insects are another healthy buy. Their products are found in the turtle and reptile sections: dried mealworms, crickets, grasshoppers and the ever popular Aquatic Turtle Medley (mealworms, crickets, shrimp). These are pricier, $7-$10 for a fairly large jar, but last for a long, long time.
PPs are Big Enzo, Charles Paris and Mr Pinch
On the Big Beach in the Sky: Murray, Gino, Oscar, Gordon, Ignatz, Harry and King Felix the Pale
Also Mom to Imogene the Syrian Hamster


Menders
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Menders » Tue Oct 11, 2016 12:24 am

Crabinski wrote:
isadoraisacat wrote:Hermies kitchen , claw of the wild and hermit crab patch all sell great healthy foods for the crabs i feed my crabs only food from these 3 shops and my crabs are healthy as can be. All the commercial products sold at major pet store chains are garbage.
There are a few commercial products that are, in fact, very good. Wardley's Hermit Crab food is 100% dried shrimp, no preservatives, additives or fillers, crabs love it and a small canister is around $3 at Walmart. ZooMed Red Shrimp is another good choice: the shrimp are larger than Wardley's so crabs are likely to carry them off for later snacking. Tetra Freeze-Dried Bloodwormsis another sound and inexpensive buy, around $4 at Walmart -- caveat: do not handle the bloodworms with bare hands as they can be toxic to some people. Fluker's freeze-dried insects are another healthy buy. Their products are found in the turtle and reptile sections: dried mealworms, crickets, grasshoppers and the ever popular Aquatic Turtle Medley (mealworms, crickets, shrimp). These are pricier, $7-$10 for a fairly large jar, but last for a long, long time.
I use several of the Fluker's dried varieties and they are both safe and inexpensive. I use those along with fresh foods.


Menders
5 PPs, 1 cat exotic short hair, 2 children and a wonderful husband


CrabMater
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by CrabMater » Tue Oct 11, 2016 6:26 pm

Hi there! I'm pretty cheap and if i can supplent my crabs diet with fresh fruits/veg/grains etc, (for free) i will. Get yourself some freeze-dried bloodworms for a steady protien source, as i have found providing meat is harder than anything else. I love FD foods because they are good "forever" as long as you keep them dry. I recently inherited 2 PPs and the first thing i did was throw away 4 bottles of "crab food" The smell was awful and chocked full of chems, dyes, preservatives. You're eating good food (i hope :) ) every day. I have feeder shells right up on the kitchen counter. They get a little bit of everything (aside from non-safe foods) i get a lot of satisfaction discovering what they like. Good luck. Read the great info available about safe/non safe foods that is posted.
CM
CrabMater to 2PPs : John & Diana (formerly Cherry Bomb)
Crabbin' since June '16 (RIP Pinchy 7/16 / RIP Dean )

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Topic author
Nate the great
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Sat Dec 03, 2016 7:55 pm

Nate the great wrote: Tetrafauna Hermit crab meal
Tetrafauna hermit crab cakes

All Living Things Variety diet

Jurassidiet hermit crab formula

Crab Island fruit & flower crab food
Could someone please make sure these foods are on the appropriate safe/unsafe lists, please?

Thank you.
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.

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Rawrgeous
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Rawrgeous » Sun Dec 04, 2016 1:21 am

viewtopic.php?f=25&t=92555 This is a link to our commercial food guide. It lists all the safe commercial foods we know of, as well as the unsafe. It also highlights on the harmful ingredients to look for in commercial foods. :)


Topic author
Nate the great
Posts: 151
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Location: Northern Virginia

Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Sun Dec 04, 2016 8:50 am

Rawrgeous wrote:viewtopic.php?f=25&t=92555 This is a link to our commercial food guide. It lists all the safe commercial foods we know of, as well as the unsafe. It also highlights on the harmful ingredients to look for in commercial foods. :)
Yeeeeees, and when I started this discussion a few months ago at least one of the food mentioned in the OP was not on any list. It still wasn't listed last night.

Can you correct that oversight, please?

Thank you.
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.

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cherryflamez
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by cherryflamez » Sun Dec 04, 2016 11:11 am

Both tetrafauna types have ethoxyquin which i have read is very bad for crabbies. I am at the pet store as we speak looking - those are the only two on your list that they carry. Hope that helps

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CherryTree
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by CherryTree » Mon Dec 26, 2016 11:45 am

Nate the great wrote:The All Living Things variety diet does not contain those ingredients, so far as I can tell from reading the tiny print on the label.
I'm looking at a 4 oz canister of All Living Things Variety Diet right now; it came with the hermits I've recently adopted. The second to last ingredient is copper sulfate. It's going into the trash right now because I don't think it'sworth keeping when I have a whole box of fresh goodies that aren't as questionable (and 2 more orders on the way!).


Topic author
Nate the great
Posts: 151
Joined: Sun Jul 01, 2012 5:31 pm
Location: Northern Virginia

Re: Acceptable foods

Post by Nate the great » Mon Dec 26, 2016 6:01 pm

Crabinski wrote:None of these are worth keeping, Nate, as they all contain either copper sulfate or ethoxyquin, preservatives unsafe for hermit crabs.
CherryTree wrote:
Nate the great wrote:The All Living Things variety diet does not contain those ingredients, so far as I can tell from reading the tiny print on the label.
I'm looking at a 4 oz canister of All Living Things Variety Diet right now; it came with the hermits I've recently adopted. The second to last ingredient is copper sulfate. It's going into the trash right now because I don't think it'sworth keeping when I have a whole box of fresh goodies that aren't as questionable (and 2 more orders on the way!).
[citation needed]
Currently the caretaker for:
Six hermies in 37G bow front, and two more in a ten-gallon tank.

I build websites, and blog about ebooks.

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GotButterflies
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Re: Acceptable foods

Post by GotButterflies » Tue Dec 27, 2016 2:51 pm

Nate the great wrote:
Crabinski wrote:None of these are worth keeping, Nate, as they all contain either copper sulfate or ethoxyquin, preservatives unsafe for hermit crabs.
CherryTree wrote:
Nate the great wrote:The All Living Things variety diet does not contain those ingredients, so far as I can tell from reading the tiny print on the label.
I'm looking at a 4 oz canister of All Living Things Variety Diet right now; it came with the hermits I've recently adopted. The second to last ingredient is copper sulfate. It's going into the trash right now because I don't think it'sworth keeping when I have a whole box of fresh goodies that aren't as questionable (and 2 more orders on the way!).
[citation needed]
This is interesting ~ so I also adopted crabs that were fed this, I feed all natural foods, but pulled the bottle out, because the box of stuff is still in my garage. The bottle that the previous owner was using does NOT have copper sulfate in it. Expiration 8/17.


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