Blood worms and Spirulina

[Wai]

I just went to a pet shop last week, and found tiny tubs of dried blood worms and spirulina for sale in the fish section for the first time. I may have seen it before, but I guess this was the first time I actually bothered reading the text on the products.

So what exactly are blood worms? Are they real worms? I personally have some sort of phobia against worms (I freak out whenever I see them). Are they really that nutritious? Do they look gross?

I have heard that the spirulina are very nutritious for hermit crabs, so I might let my future hermit crabs have a try once I start crabbing again.

Since the two products are in the fish section, would they be safe for hermit crabs?

[Jedi_Sena]

bloodworms are mosquito larvae, but if you get them freeze-dried they aren't gross to handle; they're almost like brown dust since many of the worms get crushed. Bloodworms are a good source of protein primarily.

They're safe for crabs as long as they don't have harmful additives.

[Jedi_Sena]

Spirulina. I collected some interesting data regarding spirulina. On my blog, I have posted a chart comparing several types of seaweeds and surprisingly spirulina doesn't seem to be the front-runner. Kelp & laver appear to be of more importance than spirulina when it comes to the key nutrients for crabs.

[Jaci]

i get the dried blood worms. my crabs go nuts over them. it's like catnip for my crabs. it's funny. we try to trick them by putting the worms at the bottom of the dish and covering them with really healthy foods but they'll push that off and eat the worms lol. if they like it like mine do, you have to watch, it's a first come first serve. whoever gets to the food first eats them all. i've heard of the spirulina but i haven't tried it. they like freeze dried brine shrimp too, but that is expensive and it stinks!

[newkrabbie]

How do you feed the spirulina? I have seen the spirulina wafers for fish, can I feed those to my crabs? Do I wet them first? How about the bloodworms, how much do you feed? I have 3 crabs. Someone mentioned honey...how do you feed that? Is any honey ok? I just got my crabs about 2 weeks ago and know very little about them...but I'm learning....

Thanks,
Karin

[iluvhermies]

I myself like to mix either one in with some other foods. The honey needs to be pure honey. The addiction store sells it and mine really like it. As for how much to feedjust place some in there and they will eat it wat ever they dn't you can throw it out.

[Wai]

For protein, what other effective substitutes are there for bloodworms? I really doubt that I can get over my phobia of worms.

[HermieLove19]

You could use krill, plankton, crickets. If you know someone who doesn't mind worms you should ask them to crush them up into powder for you

[Wai]

Bringing this thread back to life...

Which brand of spirulina do you guys use? I've come across many different brands; some mention ethoxiquin, while others don't. Which brands don't contain ethoxiquin?

[Jedi_Sena]

I don't buy the kind prepared for fish. I buy it from the health food store or an online herb store.