What to feed/not to feed your snails

[latebloomer]

I read on the forum that pureed rosehip was high in nutrients, could you prepare it yourself? There's lots of rosehips this year. Would any kind of cat biscuits be ok?

[coyote]

I've heard that rosehips are good too, and when the ones in my area are ripe enough, I'll try them.

I suppose any kind of cat biscuit would be okay as long as it is soaked first.

[rosiesnail2]

I found a website once and I think they said you can feed them dragon fruit

[axoloa]

Dec 30, 2011 13:12:01 GMT rosiesnail2 said:

I found a website once and I think they said you can feed them dragon fruit

This is very true I often give my snails dragon fruit and al species seem to enjoy it. Larger snails consume the seeds whole though and somehow the seeds are still fertile when the snail excretes them. its wise to remove any little shoots that pop up though as the snails dont seem to ever eat dragon fruit shoots and after about a month or 2 (depending on the temperature and humidity of the enclosure), the little shoots (that look like thick cress) will start getting a hairy lump growing in between their origional pair of leaf and slowly will grow into cactus. I kept a few of these when removeing them from the snails enclosure and their now growing very well and i curently have 7 little cactus between 2 and 5cm in hight (although tese are a fast spreading 'climbing' cactus that has been known to climb metres high when allowd to).

[rosiesnail2]

so instead of growing other dragon plants they make cactus? wow! thats cool ill have to try that. and also does this list apply for aquatic snails?

[axoloa]

Dec 30, 2011 21:00:23 GMT rosiesnail2 said:

so instead of growing other dragon plants they make cactus? wow! thats cool ill have to try that. and also does this list apply for aquatic snails?

Well the cactus is the 'dragon fruit plant'. Just the same as the Prickly Pear in which comes from the edible leaf cactus 'Nopal'. Hears a couple of pictures



Dragon Fruit Cactus seedlings (judging personaly, to me these look around 3 months old and probabaly about 3-4cm tall), the leaves you see are the only leaves the cactus will ever produce and never get larger than 3mm width and 4mm lengh.




Dragon Fruit Cactus Orchard:





Very large Dragon Fruit Cactus, climbing a tree for support. Its getting its fruits




Young Nopal Cactus:




Fruiting Nopal Cactus:




Fruiting Nopal Cactus close up of the fruit (Prickly Pears)




I took these last 2 Photoes while in Mexico with my wife and Kids. This is a Nopal Cactus that was on our property when we bought it and remains their to this day (fruits each year no fail) It looks very much like a tree because of the old aged lower cactus leaves




a close up of the new growth on on the Nopal Cactus belonging to me and my wife.




a cutting from the old Nopal cactus pictured above:




Just showing off now, but this is a front view of our property the black door is not a garage its just a well secured drive way





the first 38 acres of this is all ours these photoes were taken 5 years ago when we purchased the property. Its been well transformed since and our land is now walled off from the "outside world".



SORRY ABOUT THE SIZE OF MY PHOTOES.... IL RE-SIZE THEM ASAP!!!

[rosiesnail2]

wow! that's some land you got there! what area you live in?

[axoloa]

hehe thankyou Our property is in Jacona Michoacan Not a very nice part of Mexico to be in, but its where the wifes family are, so we decided to stay close

[rosiesnail2]

Don't you live in England? Don't matter- lovely house though

[axoloa]

Dec 31, 2011 23:16:39 GMT rosiesnail2 said:

Don't you live in England? Don't matter- lovely house though

I live both in England and Mexico My wife is Mexican and im English. I do have citizenship in both England and Mexico and the kids have lived in Mexico all their life appart from the ocasional visit to England. When im in England I stay with my mother and stepfather. The reason I spend time living in England is basicaly to earn an English wage. One weeks adverage wage over hear is enough to pay £50 keeps to my mum and still be able to send enough to Mexico to suply for a whole month. Very different currencies over hear compaired with over their. The main reason im hear though realy is earn money for the best education posible for our kids. In Mexico no education is free (not even nursary/kindergarten) :/
Hope that explains your question

[rosiesnail2]

OOOO well yes that does answer it. Don't your kids miss you then? Well atleast there happy and alive xx

[prowljazz]

Sprouts... Mine Like the Teeny tiny ones You get on Sprout Tops.... I just wash and cut in half...

[prowljazz]

Can GALS have Lychees?
Thanks

[pinkunicorn]

I've fed lychees to my aspersas. I would think GALS like them too.

A food that's all the rage in our terrarium right now is sugar snaps. The aspersas rarely like foods on the first taste (like blueberries, took many tries to get them to eat them) but sugar snaps were gobbled right down with eyestalks glued to the food to inspect it while eating. Even the delish cucumbers couldn't tear the snails away from the sugar snap pods.

[saki114]

Huh, ive never thought of feeding lychees to my snails. Ill try that!

[kapos]

Hi!
I made some photos about wild plants. I often give my snails from this wild greens.
Ususally you can find this plants in all Europe not only at my country.
Have a good plant hunting!

csigavilag.hu/?p=432

Best regards!

[slimysnailies]

My snails (and my lonely slug, Teleporter) love wet paper. It sounds weird, but it's true. I use sticky notes, wet under a faucet.

[owsla]

I have 5 garden snails and one of them is not doing well. I don't think she is going to make it. =( I don't know how but her shell broke and then she pushed the cracked portion out and stuck her head/body through the hole. She wouldn't stick her body back through the hole so I clipped it the shell so she could move again. I felt I was doing the best I could by her. Maybe I made the wrong decision but she couldn't move around or eat the way she was. I originally had 6 but another one had retreated into her shell and died a couple of months ago. I want to make sure I give my snails a well rounded diet and I can use some advice.
I'm in the U.S.A. and I want to buy tortoise food mix for them but I don't know what it should contain. Zoo Med Natural Tortoise Food is mostly made from hays and is for grassland tortoises. Others contain fish flakes. Some are strictly dehydrated vegetables or fruits. I'm going to order from www.drsfostersmith.com if any of you are familiar with them. Normally my snails get fresh romaine lettuce and have a cuttle bone. I rotate other fruits and veggies like cucumber, bell peppers, carrots, strawberry tops or watermelon. It kind of depends on what is in season. I think I must be failing because of shell problems. I used to only give them egg shells for their calcium and that is when I originally noticed shell issues but once I put the cuttle bone in that seemed to go away. Now of course shell structure is popping up again. I really want to do right by them. But I admit easier is better for me. Making them a completely homemade diet with a large variety of foods at all times is not very realistic for me. I also have two cats, 1 rabbit and 3 guinea pigs to care for. I had 2 rabbits but my bunny Polly died last week. She had health issues for the past year or so and that took a bit of time every day and within the last few months a good deal of time. One of her health issues was degenerative spinal disease and when her bunny mate Hazel mounted her (domination display) it injured her back and she went downhill fast. She was already on pain medication and we did everything we could for her. She was almost 10 years old. But with her passing I can focus some more time and clear my head some to see what I can do for my snails.
Also, what is the call on oatmeal? Cooked, raw or not at all? I appreciate all input and help.

Thanks!

Lydia

[feelahthetigress]

Jul 4, 2012 23:50:31 GMT owsla said:

I have 5 garden snails and one of them is not doing well. I don't think she is going to make it. =( I don't know how but her shell broke and then she pushed the cracked portion out and stuck her head/body through the hole. She wouldn't stick her body back through the hole so I clipped it the shell so she could move again. I felt I was doing the best I could by her. Maybe I made the wrong decision but she couldn't move around or eat the way she was. I originally had 6 but another one had retreated into her shell and died a couple of months ago. I want to make sure I give my snails a well rounded diet and I can use some advice.
I'm in the U.S.A. and I want to buy tortoise food mix for them but I don't know what it should contain. Zoo Med Natural Tortoise Food is mostly made from hays and is for grassland tortoises. Others contain fish flakes. Some are strictly dehydrated vegetables or fruits. I'm going to order from www.drsfostersmith.com if any of you are familiar with them. Normally my snails get fresh romaine lettuce and have a cuttle bone. I rotate other fruits and veggies like cucumber, bell peppers, carrots, strawberry tops or watermelon. It kind of depends on what is in season. I think I must be failing because of shell problems. I used to only give them egg shells for their calcium and that is when I originally noticed shell issues but once I put the cuttle bone in that seemed to go away. Now of course shell structure is popping up again. I really want to do right by them. But I admit easier is better for me. Making them a completely homemade diet with a large variety of foods at all times is not very realistic for me. I also have two cats, 1 rabbit and 3 guinea pigs to care for. I had 2 rabbits but my bunny Polly died last week. She had health issues for the past year or so and that took a bit of time every day and within the last few months a good deal of time. One of her health issues was degenerative spinal disease and when her bunny mate Hazel mounted her (domination display) it injured her back and she went downhill fast. She was already on pain medication and we did everything we could for her. She was almost 10 years old. But with her passing I can focus some more time and clear my head some to see what I can do for my snails.
Also, what is the call on oatmeal? Cooked, raw or not at all? I appreciate all input and help.

Thanks!

Lydia

Not sure on the tortoise food, but my understanding about oatmeal is that you should use the basic plain dried oats, uncooked, and just moisten them fully before serving. You can leave them whole or serve them ground up. Obviously oats shouldn't comprise a huge portion of their diet, but I usually put some oats into my snail mash. I pick out 4 or 5 vegetables and grind them up in a food processor, add in 1 part oats, and 1 part ground calcium, then I freeze it in ice cube trays and only pop out one cube at a time as needed. Thaw to room temperature and serve! This new plan is saving me a ton of spoiled veggies!

[prowljazz]

What about Carrot Tops that have been allowed to Grow? Need Something that has Interest for Prowl, Jazz Thing 1 and Thing 2...
Thanks Guys

[pinkunicorn]

If you grew the tops yourself they're ok. The big bunch you get at the shop unfortunately has pesticides unless it's organic quality. I mainly use carrot tops for snails to climb on.

[prowljazz]

Thanks pinkunicorn...
I Know where I can get Some organic ones from....

[ilovegals7]

is it ok to give snails peeper(the none hot ones)?

[prowljazz]

Can Prowl and Jazz have Soaked Rice Krispys?
Thanks

[pinkunicorn]

Commercial cereal tends to have very high levels of salt and sugar, and very little of important nutrients. Probably not ideal food for Prowl & Jazz. There are organic, whole-grain and salt-free versions, which don't taste as appealing to humans but have more nutrient value. Soaked puffed rice does not bloat up in the gut like plain cooked rice does, so it probably isn't dangerous to snails.

Sweet peppers and bell peppers on the other hand are fine for snailies without worries! Except they sometimes have lots of pesticide residue, so wash them well.

I think the pesticide matter doesn't always get enough attention. Since they are designed to kill snails and slugs, among other agricultural pests, especially babies' food needs to be clean to ensure healthy growth. And adults' health is important too, some pesticides attack the reproductive system of the target animals.