Steady or keep em confused?

[foghog]

What is everyone's thoughts on snail confusion? I have heard theories that it is better to keep moving food, because it keeps them quizzical and thinking in the quest to search for it. I have also heard theory of keep it in the same spot as it makes it easier for them and dependable, and a stress free snail is a happier snail......What do the rest of you think? what about their habitat in general? moving around limestone and cuttlebones better...or worse?

[coyote]

All of my snails seem to dislike any changes in the tank. They spend a day or two clinging to the underside of the lid, and it takes a few more days for them to relax back into their normal behavior.

Due to the configuration of my tank, the food always goes in pretty much the same place all the time, just because it's easier for me to keep track of and clean out when needed (no stray little pieces tucked away in corners to go moldy, etc.), and it's more or less centrally located anyway.

I think being consistent with the feeding site in a tank is more crucial when there are very tiny hatchlings, because they won't have to roam quite so far to figure out where the food is. For an adult snail it's probably less critical, unless it's poorly or weak for some reason.

[sleepyjean]

nice question! i've just been assuming that the more variety the better, since they're in captivity and would probably cover quite a lot of ground out in their natural habitat. maybe i'm putting myself in their position, and in fact all they want is a quiet life!

[foghog]

I agree with you to a large extent. the real truth is in their native environment, their food will disappear from some sources and they will have to find it elsewhere. in the 'wild' a snail going different places gives it a number of benefits....and I am sure exorcize is one of them, and maybe feeding their minds as well. They may 'want' a quite life....I mean we all would probably love to just have things gave to us, and dropped at our feet (I'd say the current stat of ruffly half of all americans receiving some form of welfare shows that.)....but is that the best for them? I do agree with the point coyote made though with hatchlings......for them it might be a good idea to keep it close and readily available....but I also agree that you should pull food variety at the same time and only allow many variety of foods one at a time to get them used to eating different things (I personally feed my snails baby iguana food since it has good variety as well as supplement the substrate with minerals and vitamins because snails do eat substrate and soil on a regular bases for such.)...but if you move the food I believe it gets them used to being more active., obviously because their searching for it regularly, and they make it part of their daily routine searching it out. besides my vivariums are not uber huge when it comes to the real world of a snail, as they are about 4-6 feet and the world and snail food supply in it, is really surely much larger.