Coconut oil leave white residue

[sweetsnail]

Hi all,

I am new to this forum. I have an elderly garden snail Helix Aspersa whose shell has started to peel off and turns white. I applied some organic coconut oil and when it dried it left like whitish residue. I tried to remove it with water and cottonbud but the oil settles in the crevices.
Any idea how to remove it?

Thanks heaps in advance. I am new to owning snails.

[morningcoffee]

Apr 21, 2021 8:42:09 GMT sweetsnail said:

Hi all,

I am new to this forum. I have an elderly garden snail Helix Aspersa whose shell has started to peel off and turns white. I applied some organic coconut oil and when it dried it left like whitish residue. I tried to remove it with water and cottonbud but the oil settles in the crevices.
Any idea how to remove it?

Thanks heaps in advance. I am new to owning snails.

Hi and welcome.

Coconut oil liquifies with gentle warmth, you may be able to warm it with a finger or your palm where the oil has solidified, and then wipe it away.

The shell turning white is usually due to the periostracum layer coming off or wearing away, which is the outer part of the shell, and it can't be "fixed" with oil or anything else. It's very common in snails as they age.

[sweetsnail]

Many thanks. I will give that a go.

Cheers