|
Post by seasalad on Jul 21, 2021 19:41:51 GMT
I have posted before on the Problems thread because my garden snail Portobello's tank had recently become invaded by common soil mites and was given very helpful advice and reassurance by more experienced fellow snail keepers and am very greatful. I have changed some of the soil and personally take great satisfaction in blasting them off Portobello's body and shell with my mister/ water sprayer (not harming Portobello of course) but they just keep coming back!
Recently I've noticed that Porto has stopped eating as much as they normally do and I don't know whether they are put off by the mites crawling on their food or the heat wave that has come in my area.
I know garden snails can tolerate up to 30 degrees Celsius (I am up to the high 20s to 30 in my area) but I really don't think they like it. Right now they stay inside their shell throughout most of the day (only to move around a bit when I do my regular misting of the enclosure and they move around a fair bit around dusk and at night). I have been more succesful in hand feeding Porto when I do his food changes but other than that, he doesn't really touch his food dish. More worryingly, he hasn't really pooped for at least a couple of days. They used to poop quite regularly before but since the heat wave has started, I can't find any poop when I'm checking their enclosure. I'm quite perplexed, if it's the mites (though they are harmless) or the heat affecting their willigness to eat food and poop. I'm honestly quite confused because they aren't acting like a sick snail- thay are fairly nocturnally active and seem to be reacting normally to their surroundings but the 'constipation' really worries me. You all probably know this but snails eat fairly slowly and it's not practical for me to hand feed them forever!
How do your snails behave when it gets hotter? I know some land snails prefer more humid conditions but does anyone notice signficicant changes in their snail's behaviour as temp increases or changes in general? Also, if anyone has better ways of cooling tanks/enclosures please do share!
|
|
snaileyhammy
Achatina tincta
Hi I am Hammy! I adore snails and slugs.
Posts: 550
|
Post by snaileyhammy on Jul 21, 2021 22:00:40 GMT
Hello! I hope you are having a great day! First, I have a few questions. Is the tank damp when you stick your hand in it? is he sealing himself up? is he deeply retracted? Does he seem weak at all? What mites where in your tank before? This doesn't sound too serious, but you should still do some investigating. It could be too dry/not humid enough. Or it being too hot. I recommend getting a thermometer for your tank, it will help you out a lot! You will want to keep your tank between 20-24 degrees Celsius, depends on the species though. Since you said there is a wave of heat going on, I think you can rule out him being too cold. As for him not eating, how many days do you think it has been since he ate? Snail can go a while without eating, so this could just be normal. What is his diet currently? If it is too hot for him, you can cool the tank down by airing it out or use a small fan. Here is a list of reasons, other the the tank conditions not being right, for him to be inactive. He could have; mites, broken radula, dehydration, gut extrusion, asphyxiation, wounds, other pests, etc. Here is a website that www.petsnails.co.uk/problems/inactivity.html can help you. I can write a much more in depth reply later, but I hope this helped for now!
|
|
snaileyhammy
Achatina tincta
Hi I am Hammy! I adore snails and slugs.
Posts: 550
|
Post by snaileyhammy on Jul 21, 2021 22:17:03 GMT
Ok!
So, I looked back at you mite post and I don't think that your snail is inactive because of the soil mites. There is a small chance though. Like I said before, your snail could an illness, so be sure to look for symptoms, etc. Your snail could be weak, so you could give them green tea bath and give them some boiled veggies, etc.
Just let me know what you think!
|
|
|
Post by counterbalance on Jul 22, 2021 5:03:29 GMT
This summer is the hottest summer we've probably ever had in my country, and since I live in a normally cold climate, I don't have an AC. I've tried my best to keep my snails' tank as humid as possible, but they still hid in their shells, because it was just too hot, and some of them even sealed up. I started putting a good sized plastic dish (not large enough to interfere with their activities, but still pretty large) of ice into the tank, and it works well, so long as I change the ice when it melts completely. Thankfully, I work night shifts, and nights aren't that hot when I can't change the ice, plus, I have a spacey freezer to prepare plenty of ice. I also keep the spray bottle that I use for the tank in a fridge. The snails are more active now and don't hide all that much, though they are a bit lazier than they normally are.
|
|
snaileyhammy
Achatina tincta
Hi I am Hammy! I adore snails and slugs.
Posts: 550
|
Post by snaileyhammy on Jul 22, 2021 15:10:38 GMT
This summer is the hottest summer we've probably ever had in my country, and since I live in a normally cold climate, I don't have an AC. I've tried my best to keep my snails' tank as humid as possible, but they still hid in their shells, because it was just too hot, and some of them even sealed up. I started putting a good sized plastic dish (not large enough to interfere with their activities, but still pretty large) of ice into the tank, and it works well, so long as I change the ice when it melts completely. Thankfully, I work night shifts, and nights aren't that hot when I can't change the ice, plus, I have a spacey freezer to prepare plenty of ice. I also keep the spray bottle that I use for the tank in a fridge. The snails are more active now and don't hide all that much, though they are a bit lazier than they normally are. Ok, interesting! That’s a good idea!
|
|