Long Thin Worm

[davina]

Hello,

I have a serious worm problem. I've searched the forum and I can't find anything specific about this kind of worm, but I apologize if I just missed it in a previous post.

I own a large group of garlic snails (more than 20) and six garden snails. A couple weeks ago I discovered one of the garlic snails had died and I could not identify the cause. More recently, one of my garden snails has been acting slow and not eating very much so I took it out and put it in its own container with some food, but it's still slow and non-responsive--now it only reacts when prodded or sprayed and won't extend all the way. When I looked in the tank after a little while I found a long thin white worm where the sick snail had been resting some moments before. I did some research and I think it's a horsehair worm (Nematomorpha or Gordiacea), which are deadly to snails! There are a number of sowbugs in the tank and I think they must have passed the worm onto the garlic snails when they ate them. Is there anything I can do for my snails?

[coyote]

I too have garlic snails and garden snails (and I'm also in California). I'm so sorry to hear about the worm in your tank.

I've found that pumpkin seeds are good for getting rid of worms. I put raw organic ones whole into the tank, and both species will rasp on them. Other members here have ground up the pumpkin seeds and mixed them in with other food, and their snails seemed to enjoy that. I recall one member successfully getting rid of worms using ground pumpkin seeds.

Other food that will kill worms are garlic, pomegranates, white figs (Smyrna or Calimyrna figs) and raw cayenne pepper (the latter of which I doubt a snail would eat). It's the seeds in the figs that kill the worms by tearing the skin, not the other part of the fruit, so if you try offering figs make sure some of the actual seeds are ingested.

Are sowbugs known to carry horsehair worms? Do you have a lot of sowbugs in your tank? I used to have a couple of them in my tank but don't at the moment.

I hope your garden snail gets better. Please let us know what you try and how well it works. Best of luck!

[coyote]

"Nematomorpha (sometimes called Gordiacea, and commonly known as Horsehair worms or Gordian worms) are a phylum of parasitic animals which are morphologically and ecologically similar to nematode worms, hence the name. They range in size from 1cm to 1 meter long, and 1 to 3 millimetres in diameter. "
SOURCE

One meter long?!

[coyote]

Also, I don't suppose you got a pic of the worm?

[punki]

I found this site after googling for help with worms I found in my snails poo. Coyote said pumpkin seeds might help, so I used copious amounts of them in every way I could, whole, crushed then sprinkled on and in their food, grated and made in to goo balls. One of my two juveniles was just not growing anymore and drasticly smaller than his clutch mate and I was very worried about him/her. But after a few weeks of pumpkin seeds I only found one dead worm and now, many months on, there's no real size difference in my two fulis at all and more importantly no worms.
I do hope your snails will benifit from some of Coyote's suggestions, because she certainly helped me. Good luck and please post an update x

[davina]

Thank you so much for the help! I happen to have some pomegranates in the house at the moment so I put a chunk of one in the tank last night. I haven't seen the snails eating it, but I haven't gotten a chance to observe them very closely - been out of the house all day. I'm also getting a fresh pumpkin tonight so I can put those seeds in as well. I really hope this works!

I'm also keeping the water dish dry. I read that horsehair worms need to lay eggs in water.

Unfortunately, it's too late for my poor Homungulus (the snail that was acting slow and non-responsive). Here's a photo of my beloved snail: dragonbehin.deviantart.com/art/Homungulus-in-the-Afternoon-103499927 Now I'm down to five garden snails.

Coyote, it's so cool that you have garlic snails and garden snails too! I started out with just a few sowbugs but then they developed into a large community. I allowed it because I thought they provided some good protein for the garlics. I read somewhere that horsehair worms can infest sowbugs and I also observed them committing "suicide" by drowning in the water dish - a behavior seen in insects that are hosting horsehair worms. I noticed it months ago but didn't think about it beyond, "oh what stupid bugs."

I didn't get a pic of the worm - I'll try to next time I see one (though I'm hoping I won't). I read that too, about how horrendously long they get! The one I got rid of was probably at most 5 inches long. It was coiled in on itself in several places so it's hard to even estimate.

Thank you so much, Punki! Your success story gives me hope! With any luck I'll be able to update soon-ish with good news.

[coyote]

Aw, what a sweet little snail. I'm so sorry for your loss.

I was never able to get a sowbug population established in my tank; perhaps that's a good thing. You're right about infected hosts drowning in water so the worm can get out of their bodies to reproduce. I think it's wise to keep the water dish dry for a while until you can be more sure that the worms are all gone. I hope you don't find any more worms -- I'd be very glad if you won't be able to post any pics!

If you'll be harvesting the seeds from a fresh pumpkin, don't forget to remove them from their hulls before offering them to the snails (unless you were going to grind them all up in a blender, in which case you could probably get away with not hulling them if they're ground up sufficiently).

Please give us an update on how the rest of your snails are doing! Good luck!

[davina]

Oh, thank you for telling me about the seed hulls, I was going to just put them in fresh and untouched - but I found some raw seeds at the store that are hulled so I put those in the tank. The snails aren't thrilled about them but are nibbling. Same with the pomegranates. I saw a few of the sowbugs (I was not able to remove every single one of them since there are so many and they burrow into the ground a bit sometimes) tasting the pomegranates and seeds. I hope this means they'll be cured as well!

By the way, I love your avatar, Coyote.

[coyote]

I found that snail pic in my av on a Hungarian website about snails. I don't even know what species it is, but it's such a wonderful picture that I thought it would make a great av.

I'm so glad the snails and sowbugs are nibbling on the pumpkin seeds and pomegranates, that's a good sign. Best of luck!

[davina]

So far so good. No sign of worms and the snails seem to be mostly okay. They're acting kind of slow and not eating very much. I was wondering if this lethargy is a response to the pumpkin seeds, the weather (this will be my first winter with my snails, but I live in an extremely temperate climate so there's hardly a difference between summer and fall/winter), or if they're hosting the worms still. Or maybe they're just missing the water dish? I do mist them every day, but they really seemed to have fun crawling through the water and dunking their heads in it.

Coyote, since you live in California too, could you tell me if your snails get less energetic in winter time?

About the water issue, I found a water substitute at the pet store that I've never seen before. It's a kind of gel and people use it for keeping crickets (presumably to feed to their reptiles). It's called Fluker's Cricket Quencher. Has anyone ever heard of this or tried it? The snails seem to enjoy it but only after I've placed them on it, unlike normal water, which attracts them.

[coyote]

My snails do slow down a bit in winter. It sounds like I have more temperature swings between summer and winter than you, though (I'm near San Jose; I'm not sure what part of the state you're in).

Now and then my snails love sitting in the water dish as though it was a bathtub. I'll bet you could put your water dish back in the tank as long as the water was changed and the dish cleaned every day. That way any worms, eggs or larvae wouldn't have a chance to grow in it.

I've never heard of a water substitute. I'm temped to say that if it's safe for crickets it would also be safe for snails, but I'm reluctant to come right out and say that, especially since I'm not familiar with the product.

I'm glad there have been no further signs of worms. Sometimes my snails go through phases of not eating very much for several days for no obvious reason. I hope it's nothing more than that with your snails. I doubt the lethargy would be due to the pumpkin seeds.

[davina]

Haha, now I feel ridiculous. I live near San Francisco so it usually is very mild, but it's been alarmingly cold the last couple days. The snails are reacting normally, I think.

Hmm, maybe I should give them back the water dish. But I worry even about washing it out every day since the worms can start living in my drain, which while not dangerous is very gross. The snails are routinely nibbling on the water substitute. I think it's okay, but it's still a strange idea to me!

[coyote]

I've been keeping my tank in the unheated garage during the day but bringing it inside the house at night because it's been getting too cold (frost on the rooftops in the mornings, and there was snow on Mt Hamilton and Mt Diablo yesterday). My snails perk up once I move them into the cooler garage, crawling about the tank even though it's daytime. It must feel very refreshing to them after being in the warm, dry house all night long.

I still can't quite wrap my mind around the concept of a water substitute . . . But I suppose if your snails are doing okay with it, then that's all that matters.

I wonder if you put a little bit of chlorine bleach down your drain, it would kill any worms or larvae in it?

[lee2211]

petsnails.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=pests&action=display&thread=7110

This is another thread about worms, has some good ideas ect and includes lots of other links that may come in handy, I'd suggest giving it a read.