Retracting

[angelsue]

Hiya

im really worried over lola my snail she keeps retracting into her shell and her shell has discoloured (gone really light) i have read the link and now im starting to panic and don't know what to do ....i feel quite bad as usually i give her lots to eat ..lettuce cucumber carrots and sweetcorn etc but have only been putting some lettuce in every couple of days ....as i have been moving house and had a few problems that have taken alot of my time so really i feel so bad

please help don't know what to do

thank you.

[angelsue]

please help is anyone there

[angelsue]

[angelsue]

[angelsue]

[angelsue]

some pics just so you can see what i mean over the colour ...i mean brian looks good still and is out as much as he always has just really worried over lola.

please help

thanks

[angelsue]

looking at the pics though she looks lighter that what she is on here.

[angelsue]

i have just thought i have had her right by the window while i have been packing my room ...do you think it could be the daylight

[LisaLQ]

Hiya - just a quick reply as I'm on my way to bed, but I got your pm and thought I'd best leave a message before you get too upset (((hugs)))

Retraction can be caused by a few things. Firstly conditions - low temperature, too much/little dampness, drafts, etc - has this only come on since you moved her? It might be worth sticking a thermometer in there and seeing what the temp is - check it at night time, and check it when the suns in her tank - it could be that she's either too cold on a night, or the sun shining in her tank is making it too hot perhaps? Secondly - pests - mites are very common in snails, most of us have had them at some point (well, our snails that is!). If you go to the main petsnails.co.uk site, and check out the info pages, there's one on mites I'm sure. They're very tiny little creatures, only just visible - little white/beige dots. Definitely worth checking for them.

The most likely cause is conditions, a change in tank temp or something - but sometimes retraction just happens for no obvious reason. I've found my fulicas (I think yours are fulicas?) are my fussiest snails, far from the easy beginner species I read they were supposed to be. I've lost a few to retraction, I'm afraid - I'm not saying this will happen with yours - but what I'm trying to say is you could be doing everything right and still get a snail that retracts, so dont beat yourself up too much. I know that's hard to say when you have a poorly snail though.

So I'd check her over for mites, check the temp at various times of the day, give her a lukewarm bath and see if that makes her more active. If she's not eating, I'd probably give her a bath once a day and then plonk her on some food - warm baths generally wake sleepy snails up and boost their activity a little bit, so it might just help her a bit.

Sorry I'm not of much help - tis late, and I'm off to bed Hope she improves soon!

Ps. A hint I've found for finding mites if you cant see them on the snail. Check the underneath of your cuttlefish, and see if there's any on there - for some reason whenever there's been mites in my tanks, they've been spotted on the cuttlefish

[apple]

It´s answered for me.
Good Luck Sue.

[angelsue]

thank you so much for your replies i am still in the same house just really busy packing all my stuff away and the usual running round mad with other stuff (feel like pulling my hair out lol) so after and while i posted on here last night i gave her a warm bath and gave her lots to eat,she is still eating lots and left her downstairs for the night where it is a bit warmer today she has been a little out her shell and not right in which is good,so fingers crossed only thing i was looking last night and im not sure if her body looks like its getting smaller and skinnier or brian is just growing quicker, will just have to keep an eye on her oh and theres no mites....so thank you for your help

[ian]

Hi thought i would just add a few questions onto this.
Ive recently increased the moisture of my big fulicas substrate most of them are showing really positive signs such as being more active feeding more and showing new growth-even the elderly ones who havent grown for years! On the negative side ive had 2 retractions, one of which has died. Could the change be related to the retraction, and if so does it mean that each snail has its own individual optimum conditions?