Hermit Crab Food and Water
Nutritious food and clean water is crucial for hermit crabs to remain healthy. Food and water are two of the six main elements that hermit crabs need to live long and happy, healthy lives.
In the wild, hermit crabs live near the ocean and are scavengers, eating most anything edible they can find. And they use and need both fresh water and salt (sea) water.
In captivity, hermit crabs are low-maintenance and fairly easy to please. But there are some very specific guidelines on food and water to follow, in order to maintain good health and longevity.
Types of Hermit Crabs --> Types of Food & Water
The type of food, water and climate parameters of the habitat should depend on the type of hermit crab pet(s) you have ! Most everyone with hermit crab pets have the same type, depending on where they live: Purple Pinchers, Ecuadorians, Ruggies and Strawberries are the most common hermit crabs sold within the pet industry and gift shops. There are other types of hermit crabs as well, and each type have different needs. Types of hermit crabs are related to where in the world they are from, and the food and water in each location differs. It’s important to understand what type your hermit crab(s) you have, and what their specific needs are.
Store-bought Food... Good or Bad?
Mass-produced, store-bought hermit crab food has evolved a lot over the past decade, but much of it is still terrible to feed to your pets. Do NOT rely solely on ANY mass produced food pellets to provide the nutrients your hermit crabs need.
There ARE some great small business hermit crab pet owners who make healthy, real hermit crab food that has the nutrients they need… and some even sell on Amazon now! Support your fellow hermit crab pet owners!
Here’s more information on store-bought hermit crab food, and when it should (and should NOT) be given to your hermit crabs.
Water is CRUCIAL!!
Water is crucial to the survival of hermit crabs. They need to drink water! But equally important is their need to store water in their shell for hermit crab molting, which is an essential part of their life cycle.
What kind of water do you use for hermit crabs? What do they drink? What do they bathe in? Do all hermit crabs need both fresh water AND sea water? Read more about the basics like hermit crab water needs here.
REMEMBER… ALL WATER COMING FROM YOUR FAUCET NEEDS TO BE DETOXIFIED BEFORE IT GOES INTO YOUR HERMIT CRAB HABITAT! It’s easy and inexpensive to remove the chemicals in tap water that will eventually kill your pets.
Hermit Crabs Get BORED!
Hermit crabs are curious. They love to explore and inspect new things. They DO GET BORED!
Yes, they will get bored with food and have been known to stop eating!
Don’t feed your pets the same food every day. It’s important to make sure they are getting healthy doses of the right nutrients, which means feeding them a variety of good foods to include all the important food groups (see our Hermit Crab Food Pyramid).
They DO get bored with water too!
Look for ways to add slight changes and improvements to your crabitat regularly. Give them a larger water bowl so they can wade in and bathe. Give them moving water by adding a bubbler.
There are lots of ways to add fun and stimulation, and it’s smart to start with improving the food and water you’re providing to them!
Last update on 2024-05-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API