Oil shell treatment and Shell growth?

[Phantom]

I'm sure a lot of snail keepers give their snail oil shell treatments to give it more shine. I know that olive oil can help your hair, nails etc to grow better and faster, so now I'm curious: can it help snail's shells to grow too?

Thanks

[seastar]

I don't know. I use coconut oil now for my snails' oil shell treatment, though I've already used olive oil.

I didn't know that olive oil favorizes nail growth! I'll know what to do if I need to grow my nails for my Halloween costume now  Anyway, I almost never used olive oil on baby snails, so if it does, I may not have noticed a big difference.

[simple]

Getting scientific here, hair and nails are made of keratin (a protein), whereas a snail's shell is made of mostly calcium, so olive oil probably won't help shell growth, but it sure makes them shiny 

[Phantom]

Thanks!

[Cashell]

Oiling your snails like beach stars, eh? 🤣

[rubberman]

I wash mine under the tap everyday lol. They're always shiny

[natalia_atxa]

Oil for snails? That's new to me
Do you make your snails eat the oil or you just daub them in oil

[jupiterlupus5]

Oct 4, 2018 15:08:05 GMT natalia_atxa said:

Oil for snails? That's new to me
Do you make your snails eat the oil or you just daub them in oil

Rub it on their shells with a cotton ball or paper towel, I'd assume. Never done it though.

[pearthesnail]

Whenever my snail's shells are looking a bit dry I gently rub olive oil or coconut oil on them after a bath- helps to moisturize and really brings out the colours in the shell (plus it makes them smell great too!)

[Liguus]

The shell is made from calcium + an outer periostracum layer which is made of proteins. Once that protein layer flakes away and the shells become dull there is not really any way to get the protein layer back. The oil will make it look shiny, and kind of "seal" the outer layer, but oil will not be useful for shell growth or repair in any sense though. It's just a temporary protective layer until it starts to wear off.

[everythingsnails]

Around 1 or 2 times a month, my snails look a bit dirty, I tend to run a very very very shallow bath for them and go over the edges of their shell with a wet cotton bud. I take a very small amount of coconut oil and spread a thin layer of it on the shell and shell only. I’ve never had any problems and the snails have never tried to lick it off!

[lacythefulica]

Hello,

I use sesame oil once in a while. I bathe my snail and then with a toothbrush i brush it on his shell softly and later wash it again with water.

[thinklerz]

Aug 20, 2018 18:28:13 GMT simple said:

Getting scientific here, hair and nails are made of keratin (a protein), whereas a snail's shell is made of mostly calcium, so olive oil probably won't help shell growth, but it sure makes them shiny 

Oct 4, 2018 18:21:07 GMT jupiterlupus5 said:

Oct 4, 2018 15:08:05 GMT natalia_atxa said:

Oil for snails? That's new to me
Do you make your snails eat the oil or you just daub them in oil

Rub it on their shells with a cotton ball or paper towel, I'd assume. Never done it though.

Just like simple said. It makes scientific sense though.