New Snail Babies!

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Lovely! I kept land snails and their offspring for decades!
 
Congratulations. They are bigger than I thought too. When my pond snails had babies they were like pin heads.
 
These guys are only about 6 months old so they will get a lot bigger!

I'm a bit worried about them as they're sleeping a lot, I'm not sure why. They're mostly staying buried and not really eating. They have a heat mat and are in the required temperate.

Can anyone help?
 
image.webp Decided to get them out for a late dinner, they seem okay with my limited experience!
 
Redribbon said:
Lovely! I kept land snails and their offspring for decades!
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Me too :)

@Cavy Kung-Fu : Is the atmosphere in there humid enough? Mine were kept in glass tanks, they tended to do better than in plastic tanks, and the lids had only a few air holes. The heat mats were on the side of the tanks and I placed a backing behind them - a plastic chopping board makes a good backing for a heat mat. You need one that keeps the glass tank side at a nice temperature to touch, not too hot or cold.
It can take a while to get the set up to the right temperature and humidity - some experimentation and adjustment. Achatina fulica are quite hardy and forgiving for a while, so don't worry!
You can keep them on organic soil, or coir. I chose coir for mine. Make sure when you change the coir you don't replace it all in one go as they need the bacteria that forms in there for their digestion. It's a good idea to let some of the veggies go a little mushy too but not rotten, as again a little bit of 'going off' can help with their digestion. The opposite of piggies really - as we know must not have off food! :)

They enjoy a supplement of wet goldfish flakes one a week too :)

They are lovely x
 
Thanks @Critter ! I've been experimenting with humidity etc (doesn't help that my current spray bottle is crap lol) and I'm looking into getting a glass tank now. The plastic tank was only temporary as they were going to be "small" haha. I'd love an Exo Terra style tank, it would be a lot easier for it to open the front rather than go in from the top.

What sort of chopping board would work? I don't wanna risk a fire but I do think it needs a boost to warm the tank now the air outside lol.

They're on spider life atm but I'll probably be changing to coir when I find a source :)
 
I read about fish food before but I've not tried it yet, they've got a snail food which is in the recent pic which the seller of my snails makes. They seem to love it!

The only trouble is that they don't come out of their own accord, only when I'm handling them and bring them out of their tank. I don't really know what to do to encourage them to come out and explore. I also worry they're not eating enough cuttlefish bone as their shells are looking a little dull and a tad flakey now. The first night they were here one of them went to town and ate loads of it and was exploring, but now they're just digging down and sleeping but not showing signs of hibernation.

I'm just a worry pot I think :))
 
Their shells go through phases. You will find new growth which looks quite yellow and can be thin, then thickens but can be soft, then hardens and turns brown, and hence you will have those faint stripes on the shell. The snail food and fish food is likely to have calcium in so they may not feel the need for extra cuttle fish. I expect when you can get the tank to warm up they will come out. They need the warmth. :)
As for chopping board, literally any cheapo plastic board will do.
 
That's the hard part - rehoming them. I used to have to freeze the eggs as soon as they were laid to stop them from developing into babies. They can lay over 100 at a time. 200 is common infact, and sometimes they pretty much all hatch! Finding homes for that many is almost impossible, so freezing the eggs is the only thing to be done.
 
I never thought of snails being pets before I joined this forum. They are quite cute.
 
Yea I'm struggling to keep their tank warm, I've put the chopping board against the Heat mat but it hasn't helped too much. Oh dear, what to do?

You can keep as many as you like providing you have a tank big enough, I'll be freezing the eggs too. Or give them to my neighbour for their fish.

They make lovely pets :)
 
I don't atm but I can take a pic when I get home. Tbh with you it's just a naff plastic tank, I expected them to be A LOT smaller (like 1-2cm) so went for something smaller and simple so I didn't lose them in the tank lol. Then when they outgrew that I was going to get a large glass one. I also didn't realise that it would be so hard to heat.

I was looking at maybe getting an Exo Terra glass tank but I don't know if that would be hard to keep heated too? Either way I'll have to wait til pay day to get them a new home, just not sure what to get x
 
I had normal fish tanks for mine. I did also try plastic tanks and couldn't get the heat mats to be efficient with those - the plastic insulates too much, plus many plastic tanks have too many air holes in the lids. This can be remedied with cling film, but even so, the plastic doesn't go well with the heat mats.
I also tried ExoTera and still have some in the loft. They're lovely tanks BUT the humidity was all wrong in them some-how.
A normal glass fish tank with Correx for a lid with just a few (literally just a few) air holes drilled in did the trick. If it's too humid and the substrate gets soggy at the bottom then drill a few more holes.
Glass really is the way to go, you'll probably find that they are more active once that's sorted out.

It may be worth taking a look on your local FreeCycle/Freegle website or second-hand sites for a decent tank. :)
 
Ah okay thanks, yea there are a lot of air holes. Was it too humid or not enough in the Exp Terras? The main reason I like them is the front opening doors, it would be nice not to have to go in from the top but if it's not a great tank I won't waste my money lol.

I'm not particularly handy so might have an issue with a lid :)) I'm thinking about a 3-4ft tank, I'd like to get more snails one day too.
 
It wasn't humid enough in the ExoTerra tanks. sadly.
The tank size is great in a 3-4 ft one. You can also keep several species together, as long as the conditions are suitable for each. There are a few species who prefer to be with their own kind only, and a couple that have been known to chew on other species, so if you want to expand in terms of species let me know :)

The lids are easy-peasy to make. Correx is simple to work with - you just need scissors :)

Changing the subject, if you see a white bulge on the side of the neck don't be alarmed - it's their - erm - mating organ! :)
 
Ah okay, I'll have a look around for a fish tank then! For the correx lid does it have to be attached? I made the correx base for my piggies which was easy just wondered if the snails could squeeze out of it if unattached?

Haha yes I haven't noticed it with mine yet, I guess they're shy or too cold :))

Just a note about fish food, is it okay if it contains krill & fish meal?
 
Congratulations! So cool!
 
sport_billy said:
How often will you have to upgrade tanks?
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Perhaps once more after this one but probably not for a few years (I hope!). I'd love to set up something bigger now but I'm not really sure how at this moment in time!

What with the pigs having half my sitting room too :))
 
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