Readers’ Questions - Heat Mat for Snail Babies

Good afternoon, I would appreciate if you could provide me with some information.

 

We purchased 2 baby snails on Saturday, which came with a tank, soil base, cuttlefish and a piece of cucumber, we have sprayed it for the last 3 days with warm water and just today changed the piece of cucumber.

 

I have read that we may need a heat mat, which I have just purchased today, but on all the sites I have looked on it refers to the snails when they have grown, so I am unsure whether to use the mat or not.

 

Would you please tell me exactly what equipment I need and the general care day to day of these babies as I want to look after them well for my little boy?

 

Thank you in advance for your time,
Mrs. Mellors

Hi Mrs. Mellors,

It’s great that you are so keen to take good care of your snails for your little boy!

Regardless of their age, giant African land snails should be kept at a temperature of between 20-26 degrees Celsius, which usually means a heat mat is required, especially in colder months. You can find a good heat mat suitable for most tanks or terrariums in your local pet shop or on Amazon. (I’ve included some useful links below).

Both adult and baby GALS also require a humid habitat - around 80% humidity - so spray them regularly with water. You can check the humidity of the tank using a hygrometer (Links below).

Read more about heating your snail tank here.

Readers Questions - Handling New Snails

Hi,

 

I was just wondering how to handle the snails easier. My snails are only 4 weeks old and I rarely handle them, but when I do hold them they don’t really come out.

 

I was just wondering how I could get a better relationship, maybe holding them more?

 

Thanks,
Jamie-Lee Slassor

Hi Jamie-Lee,

Thanks for your question - it’s great that you want to build a better relationship with your snails, they are very rewarding pets!

The best way to handle snails is with wet hands, since they prefer warm, damp climates. I find that giving my snails a bath encourages them to come out of their shells and explore more, so you could try handling them after a quick wash in warm water to wake them up a bit.

Also, try putting some food on your hand too. Your snails will be more likely to come out of their shells if there is something yummy on offer!

You can read more about handling snails here.

Hope that helps, let us know how you get on!

Reader’s Questions - Snail Not Waking Up


Hi,

 

Hope you are well. I wondered if you could give me some advice about my snail.

 

I have just got the snail and it has not come out of its shell since we put it in the tank. I have read up and got books and have got the correct substrate and tank and heat mat , water bowl etc. and have been misting it each day and left fresh cucumber out each day.

 

I got the snail from someone who rescued them via a teacher at my son’s nursery. Perhaps it got cold on the journey and then has gone into shock when it went into a tank with heat mat? Perhaps it is hibernating or maybe it has died? I am not sure how to tell. I got the snail last Wednesday and it has not moved since and its now Sunday, do you have any advice?

 

Have a good weekend ,

Many thanks,

Rebecca

Hi Rebecca,

It sounds like your new snail might just need to get used to it’s new home. It is common for snails to burrow or hide for a few days after a big change to their habitat. It sounds like you are doing everything right, so continue to put out fresh food and be patient and your snail should come out and say hello after a few more days.

If your snail still doesn’t want to come out after a week or so, you could try and give it a gentle bath. This usually warms them up and gets them moving, and it’s not harmful at all. You can find details on how to give your snail a bath here.

If you think your snail might have died, the easiest way to tell is to pick it up and smell it. If it smells bad and fishy, then unfortunately your snail has died. If there is no noticeable smell, then he or she is just sleeping.

I hope that answers your question, good luck with your new snail, and let us know if your new friend decided to wake up!

Readers Questions - Shell Not Shiny, Is This Normal?

Hiya,

 

I have just been given a giant African land snail but his shell doesn’t look to good. I have attached a picture - is it normal to look like that, as its shell isn’t very shiny?

 

Thanks,

Vicky Dawson

Hi Vicky,

Thanks for your question. Your snail looks pretty healthy to me. Snail shells aren’t naturally shiny all the time - they do crawl around in dirt after all! Also, the greyness you can see at the pointier end of the shell is normal and occurs as the snail ages.

You could always give your snail’s shell a clean to make it shinier. You can find instructions for cleaning your African land snails here.

Hope that helps! Good luck with your new snail!

Readers Questions - How Long Do I Freeze Eggs For?

Hi,

 

I have just acquired 2 African land snail babies for my children that I adore, but I am worried about the ease of breeding and destroying the eggs. I have read several articles on different Web sites and the only way I could destroy the eggs without feeling really cruel is to freeze them, but it doesn’t say anywhere how long to freeze them for and what to do with them after you’ve frozen them. Do I just bin them? Do they need to stay frozen as When they thaw out they become viable again? I don’t want to be over run with babies that I can’t look after or re-home.
 
Can you help?
Thanks,
Jackie

Hi Jackie!

You are right, freezing eggs is the best way to make sure they don’t hatch and it’s not cruel at all.

Leaving the eggs in the freezer overnight is usually long enough and once eggs are frozen the embryo will die, so no, they don’t become viable after you take them out of the freezer.

Putting them in the bin should be fine, or you could bury them if you want to.

Good luck with your new snails!

Readers Questions - Snails Not Eating, Should I Dig Them Up?

Hi there,

I have 3 GALS: 2 albino snails and one normal GAL.

They burrow under their substrate for most of the day and I normally dig them up around 10pm to try to get them to eat.

I wonder if it’s just best to leave them and leave them to their own devices leaving them to help themselves to food when they’re ready?

I’m just a bit concerned that they’re not eating a lot despite giving them plenty of variety of fruit and veg to eat.

Thanks,

M .Powell

Hi M, thanks for your question!

If you have only just got your snails, then they may just need some time to settle into their new environment. If you’ve had them a while they still might need to settle in, especially if they are constantly being disturbed.

It’s tempting to try and force your snails to eat, particularly if they haven’t eaten for a while, but digging them up can be stressful for them and may make the problem worse.

I suggest continuing to leave food out, removing and replacing it when it goes mouldy even if it’s not been touched, and leaving your snails to it for a week or two. They should hopefully start to relax, explore their tank and start eating properly in time.

Hope that helps!

Carnivorous Snail From New Zealand - Video

Whilst most snails are happy to stick to a diet of fruit and veg, some snails require more to satisfy their taste buds!

The video below shows a Powelliphanta Superba - a giant land snail which is native to New Zealand. These snails are carnivorous and feed mostly on earthworms, but have also been know to eat other soft invertebrates.

Not only are they meat eaters, but just look at how quick it gulps down that worm! They might be slow movers, but when they are hungry, there is no stopping these snails from grabbing a lightning quick meal!

How To Choose a Tank For Your Giant African Land Snails

Choosing the right tank for you and your Giant African Land Snails is important, as it will be their home for the forseeable future! There are a couple of things you should consider before purchasing a snail tank:

Budget

If you have a lot of money to spare on a tank, then a reptile vivarium is a good option. Prices range from £30 for small vivariums to hundreds of pounds for large ones. Vivariums usually have sliding doors on the front so you easily feed and get access to your snails. They are also attractive as they come in a wide range of wood colours and are easy to keep at a constant temperature, which is important for African snails. However, because these type of tanks are made of glass, they can be heavy and difficult to move, which could be a problem when it comes to cleaning the tank and changing the substrate.

Fish tanks are a more affordable option - they come in a wide variety of sizes, can be made of glass or plastic and can range from £10 for a small plastic tank to hundreds of pounds for a large glass one. Glass fish tanks have the same weight issues as reptile vivariums and they open from the top rather than the front.

If you have less money to spend, a plastic storage box is a good option. These come in a huge array of sizes and can be bought in many places including hardware stores, pound shops, stationary shops and furniture stores. They cost around £6-15 for a large one. The problem with these is that they don’t often have any ventilation, so you will need to make holes in the lid before re-homing your snails. Also, it is difficult to find perfectly transparent storage boxes, although translucent ones do the job fine. Because they are made of plastic, storage boxes are easy to move around and clean, although it is harder to maintain a warm temperature in them.

Size & Number of Snails


The larger your snails, the more room they need! A small tank is fine for eggs and baby snails, but make sure you have a larger tank ready for when they get bigger. Obviously, the larger the tank, the more expensive it will be, so if you have a lot of snails a plastic storage tub is a wise choice.

Your tank should be big enough to house a food and water dish and a cuttlefish bone and still have enough room for your snails to crawl around and burrow comfortably.

How much space you have in your home is another factor you should consider before keeping snails. If you don’t have much room for a tank, then keeping just 2 or 3 small snails is a good idea.

Once you have chosen your tank, filled it with substrate and re-homed your snails, they may take a while to get used to their new surroundings. Snails will often crawl onto the lid to sleep after a change to their habitat. Don’t worry, this is normal and they should settle into their new home in a week or two!

What Do Giant African Land Snails Eat?


Feeding Giant African Land Snails is easy, as they will eat a large variety of different food. They particularly like cucumber and lettuce as you can see here!

African land snails also love tomatoes, sweetcorn, sweet potato, cabbage, dandelion leaves, banana, apple and much more. Snails can also eat dog biscuits and fish food! These are actually really good for snails as they contain lots of additional vitamins and calcium which helps their shells grow strong. For a more comprehensive list of food suitable for snails, please see the feeding page.

However, some foods can make snails ill or even kill them. Unsuitable food for snails include onions, processed starchy food such as pasta and bread, or anything containing salt.

As well as a wide variety of fresh fruit and vegetables, African land snails also need a constant supply of calcium to help their shells to grow. Cuttlefish bone is perfect for this and most pet shops stock them. Other sources of calcium include ground oyster shells and eggs shells although these are less effective.