# UGH - a good reason to ALWAYS watch your big snails!



## Jane in Upton (Aug 10, 2005)

Well, I've discovered the BEST reason in the world to always make sure to watch your larger snails! 

No, not just for the wonderful way they glide around like big spaceships. And not for the way they interact with one another in a kind of slow-motion dance. And not even for the way they eat, with their sideways mouths and conveyer-belt like intake.

No...... I'm talking about the unfortunate necessity of being on the lookout for a big DEAD snail.

I've kept some lovely large Brigs for nearly two years now. I've read that their lifespan is 2-3 years, and these were "adolescent" when I got them. In one of my planted 10 gal, I'd put a nice Pink Brigs (Pomacea Brigsii), and enjoyed watching her glide around as the benevolent, well-fed giant in the tank. Occasinally I'd see her (I had arbitrarily decided it was a "her") half buried in the substrate, taking a deep nap. Then this weekend I noticed that she'd been in the same spot for an awfully long time. And the water suddenly looked a bit cloudy. I lifted the hood, reached in and lifted up the snail, only to see that it was no longer my happy snail, but a gelatinous mush of dead snail. UGH! I barely had a moment to feel bad about the demise of my cute snail when the SMELL hit me. OH MY HEAVENS! I've rarely smelled anything SO rank! I quickly grabbed something to put under the dripping mess and dispatched it with an unceremonious flush. After two consecutive days of 40% water changes (I figured the shrimp could withstand the huge water change better than staying in THAT water) I finally no longer get a big whif of dead snail when sniffing around the tank. WHEW!

I've learned a few things I'd like to pass along.

1) If you ever see a large snail in the same spot for more than 8 hours, check on it. Just DO IT. Regardless of whether you're late for work or even High Tea with the Queen, just DO IT. 

2) If you ever need to remove a dead snail from your aquarium, use a long tweezers, NOT your bare hand. Dead snail stench has an unnatural ability to completely soak into your skin in a matter of a few, brief seconds. And Dead snail stench will STAY on your hands, creating a localized cloud of dead snail stench around you for HOURS. Friends and family members are sure to find this dead snail stench highly offensive. 

3) If you're trying to remove the vile dead snail stench from your hand(s), don't bother with the soap and water. It won't work. Remember the chemistry adage that "like dissolves like" (whew - thanks Dad!). Use cooking oil, margarine or butter to scrub your hands, dissolving away the organically-based dead snail stench, and THEN use detergent to dissolve the oils, which now carry the dead snail stench, and remove them from your stink-soaked skin. Lather, rinse, repeat. 

So, while I do still feel badly about the demise of my big snail, I am no longer naive about the other consequences. Watch your snails, enjoy your snails, but be aware to be vigilant about your snails.

-Jane


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## turbomkt (Mar 31, 2004)

All good points! Too bad my brigs never lasted...


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## Rob Tetrazona (Jun 21, 2005)

Bad experience, good advice!

This just reinforces why I remove snails on sight!


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## Shrimp&Snails (Mar 27, 2006)

Aww Jane sorry you lost your snail.

I'm also a big snail fan and the worst thing that happened to me after a big snail died is that pea sized babies wedged themselves inside to eat the body. I couldn't throw the babies away and the smell was sickening.

Since then i'm always on the alert for sick acting snails.


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## Jane in Upton (Aug 10, 2005)

So what does a sick acting snail act like? Just lethargic, or not eating, or something else?

So Shrimp&Snails, did you just leave the snail body for the little ones to consume? How did you ever put up with that? I was trying to practically run away from myself! 

So S&S, do you breed snails? I've had by big ones in another tank lay eggs just above the water line, but they don't seem fertile - the clutches turn opaque white and crumbly rather quickly.

Thanks,
Jane


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## Shrimp&Snails (Mar 27, 2006)

Jane in Upton said:


> So what does a sick acting snail act like? Just lethargic, or not eating, or something else?


If a snail acts out of the ordinary...like floating a lot or being inactive, not eating etc.



Jane in Upton said:


> So Shrimp&Snails, did you just leave the snail body for the little ones to consume? How did you ever put up with that? I was trying to practically run away from myself!


No I chickened out and hubby swished the dead snail about in some treated tap water until the babies fell out. Lovely hubby.



Jane in Upton said:


> So S&S, do you breed snails? I've had by big ones in another tank lay eggs just above the water line, but they don't seem fertile - the clutches turn opaque white and crumbly rather quickly.
> 
> Thanks,
> Jane


I keep brigs, viviparus, nerites, asolene spixi and baby ramhorn snails (not marisas). I have quite a few brig hatchlings (purple, pink, blue and ivory) that just hatched over a week ago but i'm not a big breeder and end up throwing away a lot of clutches.

Perhaps you have two female snails? Females will still lay eggs even though they haven't been fertilized.


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## rain- (Dec 16, 2005)

I have never smelled anything worse than a dead apple snail. The stench really is something that you wouldn't want to experience. Dead clams smell the same and they are a bit harder to spot (well, luckily they usually open up after they've died).

If I spot a dead snail in the tank, I leave it there (if it isn't really, really big) and let others eat it, but I do a water change as soon as I spot it and after it has been eaten. It's just easier like that (with tight lids on top of the tank), since that way you don't have to touch a really, really smelly snail, but just a bit smelly shell.

I've noticed that a mixture of lemon juice and salt are good when trying to wash off a bad smell from my hands. You also get soft and nice feeling hands after that since the salt mildly exfoliates the skin.


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## Jane in Upton (Aug 10, 2005)

Hmmm, interesting Rain - do you think you're making hydrochloric acid? HCl? The Chloride from the salt, and the H+ from the acid? I know if I have something really tough (like burned on spills on the liners under my stove burner coil) I'll use salt, with a splash of vinegar - it'll eat through most anything!

Oh, S&S - I didn't know the females would lay unfertilized eggs! That tank has 4 snails - three Magenta and a Violet. I thought at least the Violet is a male, because he seems to do what looks like mate with one of the Magentas. One of the Magentas also showed this behaviour, but with much less gusto. I went on the applesnail website, to learn more, and I'm pretty sure Mr. Violet was mating with one of the Magentas. Let's just say protuberances and positioning was correct. (Yep, early morning, half-awake, coffee in hand, and I'm watching the snails *ahem*, LOL!)

Your hubby is a brave, brave man!

Phew! I will not soon forget that smell. Yikes. 

-Jane


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