Weekend feeders and shrimp

I came across a sample one I had from somewhere a while back and dropped it in a tank with a few shrimp. The first listed ingredient is calcium sulfate -- I saw calcium and thought it would be good for the shrimp, but after looking up calcium sulfate and seeing things like "desiccant" and "plaster of paris", I'm not so sure. I don't know if they were eating that part or just looking for the particles of food embedded in it. Anyone know if this is okay to give them?

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It's fine to give them. Zoomed makes plankton blocks etc. Mostly plaster of paris. Works wonders for shrimps.

I have a little block I feed my plecos and the just sit and suck on it, so cute

Thanks for the info. I was imagining their little bodies full of plaster of paris. They are fine this morning.

So what would a good calcium suppliment be?
I'm looking for cheap alternatives, I've already ran accross Cuttlefish bones and crushed coral, and I'm dosing my tank with seachem trace, but my snails are still not recovering from their previous shell erosion

CRUSHED OYSTERSHEEEEEEEEELLS...
(http://www.hermitcrabpatch.com/Oyster-Shell-Calcium-Supplement-Small-p/su001.htm)
I sprinkled some in my 10 gallon tank, and I see the snails flock to it from time to time.
Not so much with the shrimp, but I guess whatever dissolves in the water, ends up helping them in the long run.

I've also heard that TUMS works for building snail shell growth, but I'm still iffy about using tums O_o;

As for feeding shrimp with something with calcium sulfate, it should be okay, as Cory had mentioned. You don't haaaaaave to feed them per se, because they're fine with just the biofilm that grows everywhere in the tank. I tend to feed my shrimp tank once a week with repashy shrimp souffle that Cory sells at his store. Just made a small batch, and froze the rest. It's great for weekend food, because the gel stays "fresh" for up to 24 hours, and it doesn't cloud the water. Granted, I put such small amounts in my tank, my shrimp end up eating it all within hours. LOL...

You could make SNAIL-O I made a bunch a while back... lots of calcium for the snails.

Here's a link to some recipes; I used powered calcium carbonate I found on Amazon for the calcium content.

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There may be recipes on here, but I don't remember where they are. I got my recipe from Kaosu, but I didn't write it down She'll likely respond to a PM. Most are pretty similar - gelatin, calcium content, veggies high in calcium.

I use cuttlefish bone that birds use to naw on for calcium. It floats so tie a rubber around it to rock. Shrimps go for it.