Post by Sach-Crabministrator on Jan 18, 2012 1:13:06 GMT -5
I decided to write a letter to reptilesupply.com about their "for hermit crabs" products.
"Hi! I have enjoyed your site for a couple years now & have ordered supplies for my hermit crabs. I wanted to talk with you about hermit crabs.
I wanted to let you know that some of the products that you market as being for hermit crabs are, in fact, not good for them, not safe, or even harmful. I know that you guys care about your customers and their pets (as well as animals in general) and may have simply been mislead. Let me give you some examples.
*Calci Sand (marketed as "Hermit Crab's Favorite Substrate" "Enhances natural color" and "High contrast color for easy spot cleaning". In a hermit crab tank, calci-sand (while okay for them to eat) can actually mold, smell & 'glue' crabs into their shell, making it a very unsafe substrate. Hermit crabs actually need a mix of about 5 parts (regular) sand to 1 part organic matter (like coconut fiber) to mimic their natural (beach) environment. (you could make a lot more money selling this mixture). Any dyes are considered unsafe for hermit crabs (even FDA approval doesn't mean much since the FDA is for people, not exotic pets). This applies also to your hermit crab sand. Please understand this info comes from decades of research & care of pet land hermit crabs.
*Your "Hermit Crab Hideaway Kit"
Marketed as, "The ideal environment for hermit crab." and including, "Natural Gravel". Hermit crabs travel miles in the wild in search of food, making this container too small for even one crab who would be lonely since they live in colonies of 100s in the wild. They also will not hold in the heat & humidity essential to a hermit crab's survival (they need 80% humidity & 80*F) nor can one attach a heat pad to a container like this. Also (reiterating what was said previously), gravel is not at all a proper substrate for hermit crabs as they need to be able to bury for molting, temperature & humidity regulation & de-stressing-something that can not be done in gravel.
*The ZooMed book "Proper Care & Maintenance of Hermit Crabs" Even without reading it, any book that shows a coenobita compressus ( a species known for it's sensitivity to condition changes) sitting on gravel (not good for crabbies) can NOT be good, nor should it be encouraged for those who know no better.
In closing, a lot of crabbers buy supplies for their crabs from you guys because of your prices and of course, we want to buy from a company that cares about ALL their customers' pets. It would be very beneficial to your customers, their crabs and to you as a company if you could offer accurate information & not sell products that are bad for hermit crabs. Hermit crabs live decades so think of the return business from your crabby customers!
Thank you for your time & consideration in this matter that I take very seriously."
I'm asking that as many of you as can, PLEASE contact them about the same issues; just be nice. You catch more hermies with fruit than with veggies, lmso.
"Hi! I have enjoyed your site for a couple years now & have ordered supplies for my hermit crabs. I wanted to talk with you about hermit crabs.
I wanted to let you know that some of the products that you market as being for hermit crabs are, in fact, not good for them, not safe, or even harmful. I know that you guys care about your customers and their pets (as well as animals in general) and may have simply been mislead. Let me give you some examples.
*Calci Sand (marketed as "Hermit Crab's Favorite Substrate" "Enhances natural color" and "High contrast color for easy spot cleaning". In a hermit crab tank, calci-sand (while okay for them to eat) can actually mold, smell & 'glue' crabs into their shell, making it a very unsafe substrate. Hermit crabs actually need a mix of about 5 parts (regular) sand to 1 part organic matter (like coconut fiber) to mimic their natural (beach) environment. (you could make a lot more money selling this mixture). Any dyes are considered unsafe for hermit crabs (even FDA approval doesn't mean much since the FDA is for people, not exotic pets). This applies also to your hermit crab sand. Please understand this info comes from decades of research & care of pet land hermit crabs.
*Your "Hermit Crab Hideaway Kit"
Marketed as, "The ideal environment for hermit crab." and including, "Natural Gravel". Hermit crabs travel miles in the wild in search of food, making this container too small for even one crab who would be lonely since they live in colonies of 100s in the wild. They also will not hold in the heat & humidity essential to a hermit crab's survival (they need 80% humidity & 80*F) nor can one attach a heat pad to a container like this. Also (reiterating what was said previously), gravel is not at all a proper substrate for hermit crabs as they need to be able to bury for molting, temperature & humidity regulation & de-stressing-something that can not be done in gravel.
*The ZooMed book "Proper Care & Maintenance of Hermit Crabs" Even without reading it, any book that shows a coenobita compressus ( a species known for it's sensitivity to condition changes) sitting on gravel (not good for crabbies) can NOT be good, nor should it be encouraged for those who know no better.
In closing, a lot of crabbers buy supplies for their crabs from you guys because of your prices and of course, we want to buy from a company that cares about ALL their customers' pets. It would be very beneficial to your customers, their crabs and to you as a company if you could offer accurate information & not sell products that are bad for hermit crabs. Hermit crabs live decades so think of the return business from your crabby customers!
Thank you for your time & consideration in this matter that I take very seriously."
I'm asking that as many of you as can, PLEASE contact them about the same issues; just be nice. You catch more hermies with fruit than with veggies, lmso.