Is it safe to put such stuff in my snail's enclosure?

taira
Archachatina marginata

Escargot? No, thanks, we are the escar𝔤𝔬𝔱𝔥 gang - where the snails eat you!🤘🐌

Posts: 17

Is it safe to put such stuff in my snail's enclosure? Oct 22, 2022 11:21:41 GMT

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Post by taira on Oct 22, 2022 11:21:41 GMT

I want to add some more natural decorations in my snail's enclosure, aside from moss and branches and greens ofc, but I'm not exactly sure if such things are ok

Other snail shells I'm already a bit reluctant. 1, feels a little like someone decorating my house with real human skeletons lol, ok not bad for me as a goth but objectively its a bit nah; and 2, those are from ocean aquatic snails so they're pretty big and I'm afraid my snails would try to crawl inside and get stuck or something. As for the clam and the corals, those are real too but super old so if my snails decide to rasp on them, I don't know if it might be harmful. As for being hard object hazard, I've setup the enclosure in such a way that there's no danger of a snail falling on them and getting hurt; and I'm never putting rocks or pebbles either. So is it ok or better not to risk it? It's a bit selfish since it's purely for decoration purposes so mixed feelings..

And another question.. how do I..um.. warm my snail's house? I mean, some alternative way. I read a very good and extensive sticky topic particularly about heating but I'm still a bit unsure how to go about it or if it's needed really. Winter is coming over here soon, and I don't have any central heating or on gas so technically the house is generally cold all throughout the season, varying anywhere between 2-3°C at night to 10-15°C daytime. I'm used to it, dressing warm and if I sometime feel the need, just having some small electric quarz heater dragging it along wherever I'm at lol. So, although as far as I know snails are ok with cool temperatures, I think temperatures that low might be harsh on them. I know there are those heating pads for terrariums but they're kinda expensiveish, and my enclosure is fully diy and thin plastic so not sure how safe using such would be. Any simple alternatives? Or just be giving them another extra inch of soil to burrow, mist them with warm water and just keep them in the warmed up areas with me? I also have one of those old-fashioned electic heated pillows, maybe I could use that? It's very mild so it wont melt the plastic or anything, it's also sort of flat and small-ish so maybe I can lift up the enclosure a bit on something and have that underneath?

Last Edit: Oct 22, 2022 11:34:45 GMT by taira

Rasplutin
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Posts: 68

Is it safe to put such stuff in my snail's enclosure? Oct 22, 2022 12:53:50 GMT taira likes this

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Post by Rasplutin on Oct 22, 2022 12:53:50 GMT

I think using these decorations for your snail is OK, it will probably not pay much attention to it.
There is nocthing that can harm your snail, if you like it - go ahead!

The heating-issue is potentially much more important. If I remember it correctly, your snail could not be identified in this thread:
petsnails.proboards.com/thread/18870/snail-age

It seems to be a "Helix"-species, but not a pomatia or lucorum, as I first thought.
wolf corrected me and reminded me that you live in Bulgaria, a place with more Helix-species than usual.

But whatever Helix it might be, your snail is probably well adopted to the climate in your area!
Where I live, I only have Helix pomatia to study, and that snail can be seen crawling around at -5°C (that is below freezing!).

I am pretty shure that your snail will be fine, as long as the temperature in your room is is not below freezing, or at least not a lot below.

I do not know what species your snail is and therefore I do not know how that snail would normally hibernate (if at all). That question can only be answered if someone can identify your snail.

Edit: taira,
you wrote in your first post of that "age"-thread:
"[...] but that is now specie and identification and that goes in another place of the forum"
IS there somewhere an identification thread for your snail? I couldn't find it. I would really like to know what Helix it is...

Last Edit: Oct 22, 2022 13:05:30 GMT by Rasplutin

taira
Archachatina marginata

Escargot? No, thanks, we are the escar𝔤𝔬𝔱𝔥 gang - where the snails eat you!🤘🐌

Posts: 17

Is it safe to put such stuff in my snail's enclosure? Oct 22, 2022 14:46:28 GMT

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Post by taira on Oct 22, 2022 14:46:28 GMT

I see.. maybe for now I'll try just the clam half, it actually looks it could hold water so maybe I try it as water dish instead of the small lokum plate I have currently and see how it goes.

And yep, my Adrian is still an unsolved scientific mystery.. unfortunately haha. I did a lot of further reading and am still referring to that thread often, I learned a lot of curious things but the bottom line question is still there. I'll certainly update if I manage to identify what Helix exactly is he. I put the identification question along my age question because for some reason, the entire identification section of the forum is closed, I couldn't make a new thread there nor post in any already existing threads. But no problem.

One thing I know is that snails over here, you never actually see them in winter or mid- and late autumn. I'm almost 100% sure what's happening is they're hibernating the winter away, most likely burrowed well underground and among roots. So for Adrian, as well as his new companion (who I still haven't even got down to identifying yet because it's completely different specie lol), this will be the first winter in their lives that they'll actually be out and about. Climate here is generally continental like most of Europe, blending to the South with Mediterranean, however as my town Varna is right on the Black Sea coastline, it has its own climate "mood", it's a bit of both and also neither LOL it's weird and confusing, I know; and I just want to take care as best as I can since I see that more or less I'm interfering with their natural cycles. I do my best to provide and simulate their natural environment as much as I can. And thankfully by now, roughly already couple of weeks past their season time, I haven't seen any problems, changes in, or otherwise unusual behaviour.

Last Edit: Oct 22, 2022 14:53:36 GMT by taira

Rasplutin
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Posts: 68

Is it safe to put such stuff in my snail's enclosure? Oct 22, 2022 20:35:49 GMT

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Post by Rasplutin on Oct 22, 2022 20:35:49 GMT

Oct 22, 2022 14:41:00 GMT wolf said:

Hi,

85% for Helix albescens

. I have identified my very similar looking specimens from Bulgaria as Helix cf. albescens.

Kind regards: wolf

That is reason enough to assume your Adrian is indeed a Helix albescens.
I could not find any helpful information on how to keep these snails, like, do they hibernate in winter, and if yes, do they need soil to dig into, how deep that soil should be...

I could hardly find any images of H. albescens that show not only empty shells, but the body - here are two of H. lucorum and H. albescens:
www.schnecken-forum.de/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?p=220835#p220835

A search on youtube was disappointing, I found this video, where a lady is talking about her empty shells (or TO them?) and is maybe revealing interesting facts - but i could not understand a word:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kp3wZvA2ETA

Last Edit: Oct 22, 2022 21:00:13 GMT by Rasplutin