loosing legs

Question
I just bought my daughters hermit crabs 2 are doing great but one has lost both pinchers and 2 legs in about a 16 hr time period is he dying

Answer
Cristi, I hope not. Loosing limbs is not an unusual thing with molting but , because you have had them such a short time they can loose them from stress. Sometimes if they are getting ready to molt the may do that to sustain the salt and mineral content in their body. In the wild these creatures molt underground burying most of themselves in the sand. Make sure he has plenty of fluid around him ad abit of the saltwater for hermit crabs supplement. As long as he's moving around give him sometime he probably has this all under control. Make sure you have lots of extra shells in the tank. Sometimes they can be picky. Watch him if he's not moving do not pull on the body it may have not all the way molted. If he die's you will know they smell. Sorry. The pinchers will probably take a good 3 or four molts to grow back. Also to keep them healthy they have a wide variety of foods you can give them like a little albacore tuna now n then try fresh fruit and veggies see what their preference are ...keep the foods in for short amount of time to stop the flys and anything that may cause a parasite problem. Good Luck,Tina