Apple Snails

[lilacamy931]

Here is my first attempt at snail breeding. Only ones could get were apple snails, there is a filter but it blows them about too much, so have taken out for the moment. Will probably just use bubble stone and air tablets for the moment.

Food - only have bloodworm and green pepper is this ok for them?

There is no heater currently, may take the filter out and just have the heater and air tablets. Have had them since about 2pm (its now 10pm) and saw little movement at first but nothing since should I worry. Also should I wait to feed them tomorrow or put some green pepper in?

Also heard defrosted microwaved caulifower good which is what was going to try tom.

Any help greatly appreciated!

 

[Richard22b]

I've had 3 apple snails for 3 months. I know have around 100 with another batch of eggs laid the other night.

Their in 20 littre tank. filter with heater.

I feed them general fish food along with the fish and then a thick slice of Courgette every couple of days. They seem very happy with this setup as they don't usually lay eggs unless happy with enough food.

 

[saltynay]

You need to blanch most veg before adding it and apple snails have sexes you may not have a breeding pair.

 

[lilacamy931]

Thanks guys! I have 5 so hopefully I am not incredibly unlucky to get all the same! I will try the heater and hope it does not melt through the plastic..

Will try some blanched cauliflower and pepper tonight. They have not moved or appeared as of yet, so hope they are ok.

 

[Ludwig Venter]

Those snails look a bit small to think about breeding yet.... I also keep mine in a community tank so I do not specifically have to feed them... they live from the scraps etc..... Then also, I have never had any lay eggs in my tanks where there are no heaters... it seems (imo) that they prefer even slightly higher temps than the average aquarium fish.... (around 28.5 deg C) I also place a cutoff plastic bottle over the glass in one corner with an airstone blowing into the open end to keep a damp area above water level where they invariably lay there eggs..... I'll search for, and post a diagramattic picture I've drawn to illustrate this concept... Good luck.

 

[Ludwig Venter]

Ah!... I found that drawing..... The eggs can be taken off the glass by scraping off with a razor blade (a few will be damaged) and taken to a hatching tank (with the bottle cover of course) ... place airstone on tank bottom below the submerged opening to ensure the hollow section above water remains damp.

 

[Richard22b]

Mine just lay them on the hood of my tank.
They took around 3 weeks to hatch and when they do they all hatched at the same time. Was manic. snails everywhere. made cleaning near impossible and you will kill some by accident as their so small.

 

[lilacamy931]

hmmm. today is not looking good. They all seem to be pretty dead...Their latch doors are hanging away from the shell and felshy bits are slightly hanging out.. I really am not having luck at the moment. The first two batches died in the post before they got to me. Bought these yesterday, they now seem dead...Oh dear!

Had the water dechlorinated, didnt have a filter on as it was blowing them around and didn't want to dsiturb them that much. Had not added the heater as thought it could wait a day. Added a very small amount of bloodworm last night in a hope to tempt them. There is really is not hope!

I am now getting some Pond snails sent via post (fingers crossed now not hot and sunny they make it), real fingers crossed that these survive.

 

[Richard22b]

Can i suggest you read up about what your doing before you go any further.
It's like buying a tropical fish and puting it in the garden pond.

Remember when you get it wrong you kill them.

 

[lilacamy931]

In my defence I had read up, but on my part I most probably misunderstood. The batches sent in the post were unfortunate due to wrongful packaging and long dead before I got to them. The apple snails..that is my mistake. Someone is guiding me through pond snails, which have less requirements step-by-step. It seems I really did not understand the true requirements of apples and feel horrified, sorry to everyone on the board .

First try - ramshorns off Ebay, arrived fully dead and reeking..
Second try - re post of ramshorns still no luck
Third Try - Apple Snails store - my fault for not understanding properly.

Final attempt - Pond Snails - being sent via post recorded for hopeful quick delivery in a tub, properly pacakged. Please help me learn through my mistakes.

For the pond snails was going to do same layout as above. Understnad that they don't need heat as such, have a mini elite filter but worried may be too powerful. Of course they will have declorinated water. Plan to feed on veggies, get some algae wafers and have dried brine shrimp and frozen bloodworm.

p.s. I feel absolutely awful, so please accept my apologies and will endure to do better. The actual fish side of things I have read much more thoroughly and seem to strive in so far with my first tank, hopefullt I can get up to scratch on this

 

[saltynay]

Pond snails survive in anything I have a colony in one of my live food ponds outside which are just containers topped up with the hose every so often. They are positioned for maximum sunlight to stimulate high algae growth which is then eaten by the daphnia, blood worms and mossie larvae which I harvest to feed my fish. One day I decided to check some elodea from my tank in their and a couple of ramshorns and pond snails had hitchhiked. Ramshorns died but the pond snails are fine and breeding.

 

[lilacamy931]

thank you for the reassurance saltynay. We do not have a garden but a balcony so may place them there for sunlight which hits us in the mornings. If not the kitchen window will seem good..

 

[saltynay]

You can just put them in a jar and feed them flake food and spare veg. I only given them excessive amounts of algae for the live food I also keep in the tank which is the main reason why the tank is there, the snails just happened to hitch-hike in.