WHAT IN THE WORLD HAPPEND TO MT HERMIT CRAB

Question
QUESTION: About a year ago I went to wash my Hermit Crabs rocks off so I picked him up out of his cage to put him in a bowl and some bugs flew out of him and he was a little whiter then usual, then practically all of his legs fell off and he really smelt bad so i dont and i'm still wondering what the heck happend to him. My current hermit crab is a lot more active then the other one, he also comes out of his shell more then my other one. Maybe is it because he fell on the floor on accident???????? I really want to know what happend,can you help? Thank You

ANSWER: It's hard to say but it sounds as though he died and bugs moved in. It could be anything from poor humidity to stress. I need more information. Details about your tank including water types offered, foods, substrate, temp/humidity and diet.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Well, his cage was small because that was what the lady gave me. Its a wired cage so he could climb too. I gave him water out of our water filter on our fridge for bathing and to wet his sponge. I fed him the food the lady gave me also. around 76 he didn't really have a diet because i didn't know a lot about hermies back then but i went on a website an dim feeding my current hermie white bread, little pieces of cheese but I don't think he really likes it but i never fed my other hermie any of that because i only thought they ate the food the ladie gave me but it said it was MADE for hermits but it probably like the website said most of the things that say are made for hermies might not so I don't know if that was the problem i don't about what the humidity was sorry but plaese write back thank you

Answer
Hermit crabs need a temperature and humidity between 74 and 82. The need fresh and salt water Pools deep enough for a crab to get their shell into. A wire cage is not a sufficient to maintain humidity.

You can learn a lot about the different kinds of foods a hermit crab can eat by visiting www.hermitcrabcuisine.com

You can learn a lot about hermit crab care and behavior by visiting www.crabStreetJournal.com