Help with an injured snail

[helptoall]

Hi, iv found him today,he probebly fell since its very windy today. He was on the floor with a big brake in his shell, and the normal opening sealed with estivation seal.Since ive found him he is trying to brake further his shell ,He isnt bubbeling or twiching for now, the brake is in a place where theres a good chance that he dosent have any internal or organs demages, but its not certain. For now hes in a tank with coco husk ,food,water and alot of humidity. Im thinking i should brake the piece that he is trying to brake, like in a way that the broken hole and the shell opening will connect, what do you think? 

[Cashell]

Ouch! 😬 That snail looks like it has an organ or part of its sac spilling out! Not sure what to say, other than to keep caring for it and allowing it access to a cuttlebone.

[helptoall]

no, its the mentel. its now looks much better though he is still weak, he still shows interest in food. lso there was a slug inside his shell, it looked like he got in there befor the snail start estivating. e was sleeping on the seal from the inside. Do you think i can put him back? he is tiny and its really scares me cuz most of the time im finding him in the tank

[jroberts]

Hi, this is going to sound like the dumbest thing ever, but believe it or not it works. When a shell is damaged like that, the chances of the snail being able to repair the shell before dyeing as a consequence are slim. Best thing you can do for him, is carefully but thoroughly dry the outside of his shell and patch it up with duck tape. This forms an "artificial" shell piece for the snail so he doesn't dry out.

If the snail is old, then he will probably never repair, but if he is fairly young he still may (providing he hasn't) yet become to docile and retracted to recover. One can only hope.

Ensure calcium and vitamin D (cuttlefish and mushroom - not direct sunlight in his condition) is available.

Do not attempt to remove the duck tape unless it is coming off and needs replacing.

Best of luck

[helptoall]

umm from my experience in this condition he wont "accept" the artificial piece, from when ive found him till now hes trying to further brake the shell. he wont dry beacause im dumping the tank.. do you have experience with taping shells this way?

[jroberts]

May 19, 2017 10:12:52 GMT helptoall said:

umm from my experience in this condition he wont "accept" the artificial piece, from when ive found him till now hes trying to further brake the shell. he wont dry beacause im dumping the tank.. do you have experience with taping shells this way?

If I had no experience in doing this, I wouldn't have suggested such a ridiculous sounding idea. 
I have patched up more shells this way, than I can remember and with much success.
If the snail is young and still growing, he may make a full recovery and repair his shell. If he is old then the chances are he wont be able to repair his shell and you will end up keeping him for the rest of his days. This does not mean he cannot still live a happy life in your care. I patched up snails in far worse condition than yours and some of the ones that were unable to repair their shells have mated several times while in my care.
As long as its only the snails shell that is damaged and the snail itself, their is no good reason why it shouldn't work for you.

Regardless of how frequently you are damping the tank, this does not mean you cannot dry his shell. You only have to dry his shell long enough to fit the duck tape. Use 3 ply kitchen roll and very gently dab. Should take you 2 minuets tops. You will probably need to replace the duck tape every 2-5 days depending on the tapes quality and your tanks dampness and humidity. Do not attempt peeling the tape of unless it is hanging off already. If the tape is still "well bonded" on part of the shell, then patch over it rather than trying to remove the older tape.

Bare in mind that your snail has been exposed for a long time now, so don't expect any miracles.