Mystery snail eggs & inverts journal

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

I took a break and when I came back more activity on the asparagus. 
 

Also this guy is not doing well. He’s been in the same spot >24 hrs. The same behavior that was exhibited by the last little one I lost - attached to Christmas moss for a long time.

I moved a little of the moss next to this one to have a look, careful not to touch him, and he felt the movement and retracted, so he’s alive.  
 

I regretted handling the last guy that acted like this- maybe that caused too much stress, so I am going to leave this guy alone and just do this moss check each day to ensure he’s still attached.

Water parameters are showing no concerns. 0/0/10.

[redfish]

Hang in there little buddy. Is he one of your babies?

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

The snail I feared is sick was still in the same spot in the moss this morning. I ruffled the moss a little around him and no reaction. So I turned him a little to check his shell. Seems ok, kind of clear though? This left him on his back. He stayed like that.

 I walked off and did some stuff to get ready for work. Checked again and his operculum was opening and I saw the skinny feeler out and moving around. Ok. Good. He’s checking things out.

The only thing I could think to do is get him to nourishment. I put Repashy in the dish and I squished some and put him immediately next to it. He rolled on his back and stayed that way for some minutes.

I walked off to get ready again. Came back, he’s walking around! He must have had a bite and got some energy!

However he’s not out of the woods yet. Also he has a bunch of stuff on him. I didn’t know if it would hurt him to remove it so I left him like that. Also he pooped so his digestive system seems to be working ok.

 

Edited August 15, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Guppysnail]

That volume of poo looks like he pigged out and was sleeping it off actually.  I think you made a wise choice to restrict handling but placing him near food.  They do get stressed. They sleep in bouts of many hours to a day or so sometimes and when they wake for me they wake and either have already had or start having a massive growth spurt especially with that much poo.  Keeping my fingers crossed for your little guy. 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/15/2022 at 8:28 AM, Guppysnail said:

That volume of poo looks like he pigged out and was sleeping it off actually.  I think you made a wise choice to restrict handling but placing him near food.  They do get stressed. They sleep in bouts of many hours to a day or so sometimes and when they wake for me they wake and either have already had or start having a massive growth spurt especially with that much poo.  Keeping my fingers crossed for your little guy. 

Some concerns I have is that he is a lot smaller. See snail next to him for reference. And also that his shell is a lot more clear.  In person I can tell it's lacking a bunch of the gold hue.  That makes me think he might have been malnourished?  Again it comes to mind that the little ones probably have trouble competing with the big ones for food.  Now that there are only 7 mysteries in the tank, I hope he will gain strength.

[Guppysnail]

I sprinkle fry food and flake all over the tank because I always fear that same competition issue. 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:06 AM, Guppysnail said:

I sprinkle fry food and flake all over the tank because I always fear that same competition issue. 

I'm sure my limpet population would love that!  😭

[Guppysnail]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:25 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

I'm sure my limpet population would love that!  😭

Yeah probably not a good idea.  If it makes you feel better when I was testing RR I used untreated plants as a control to see affects of RR on plants and also have a snail tank full of limpets. 🤣

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:27 AM, Guppysnail said:

Yeah probably not a good idea.  If it makes you feel better when I was testing RR I used untreated plants as a control to see affects of RR on plants and also have a snail tank full of limpets. 🤣

They have industrial strength grip on everything!

On 8/14/2022 at 8:32 PM, redfish said:

Hang in there little buddy. Is he one of your babies?

Yep!  He hatched on 6/8.

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

"I Am A Snail"

If you listen carefully here (turn on closed captions because the song speeds up quite a bit later) it starts w/ the "pet store conditions" and then it proceeds to give all of the instructions on how to care for your mystery snails.  These guys liked one of my snail asparagus videos; they said I snailed it (by giving vegetables).  LOL

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

The unwell snail was on his back at the rear of the tank last night. I can’t see back there, really. I had to move a bunch of stuff to complete headcount. So I did the same as before - moved him to food dish, then he started snailing around. I think we are ok now.
 

I have 3 minis - 2 apparently have stunted growth and one is the little guy with the dark shell and foot that I “found”. I need to keep a close watch on them because they are significantly more lethargic than the larger ones. You can see all 3 in the pic with the dish.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Guppysnail]

Your mystery kid looks more and more like a Japanese trapdoor. The spire point just looks different than a mystery. I’m not versed in them @Cinnebuns is but they are slower and grow slower from what I’ve read and what I’m seeing in my two types of viviparus snails. 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/16/2022 at 10:16 AM, Guppysnail said:

Your mystery kid looks more and more like a Japanese trapdoor. The spire point just looks different than a mystery. I’m not versed in them @Cinnebuns is but they are slower and grow slower from what I’ve read and what I’m seeing in my two types of viviparus snails. 

He barely has grown at all! He’s still like a peppercorn. But I love him. 😍 He’s really cute.

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

I found this information regarding temperature for mystery snails:

• 68-72 – Best for promoting thick shells and slower growth rate. Recommend temperature for newly hatched mystery snail until they are pea sized. Often adult mystery snails will be less active and less likely to breed/lay clutches at this temperature.
• 73-75 – Ideal temperature, mystery snails will still be active but still able to focus on the shells thickness rather than length.
• 76-84 – This is breeding & laying clutch temperature. Mystery Snails will be extremely active, which means a lot of mating. However, this temperature will also promote a fast shell growth rate leading to thinner and more brittle shells.

Source: https://mysterysnailguardians.com/ideal-environment/

Does anyone have any thoughts or experience with this?

On 8/7/2022 at 9:33 PM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

 

I wonder why York has a growth line. She's been in the same tank for a long time.

It makes sense for Dodger because he recently came from the pet store and/or wherever else he was before that.

[Cinnebuns]

On 8/16/2022 at 10:51 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

I found this information regarding temperature for mystery snails:

• 68-72 – Best for promoting thick shells and slower growth rate. Recommend temperature for newly hatched mystery snail until they are pea sized. Often adult mystery snails will be less active and less likely to breed/lay clutches at this temperature.
• 73-75 – Ideal temperature, mystery snails will still be active but still able to focus on the shells thickness rather than length.
• 76-84 – This is breeding & laying clutch temperature. Mystery Snails will be extremely active, which means a lot of mating. However, this temperature will also promote a fast shell growth rate leading to thinner and more brittle shells.

Source: https://mysterysnailguardians.com/ideal-environment/

Does anyone have any thoughts or experience with this?

I wonder why York has a growth line. She's been in the same tank for a long time.

It makes sense for Dodger because he recently came from the pet store and/or wherever else he was before that.

I think those temps are very accurate but I would never go above 78. My snabie tank I had at 72 for awhile and found they were SUPER slow to grow so I bumped it up to 75. I think 75 is a happy medium. 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/16/2022 at 1:06 PM, Cinnebuns said:

I think those temps are very accurate but I would never go above 78. My snabie tank I had at 72 for awhile and found they were SUPER slow to grow so I bumped it up to 75. I think 75 is a happy medium.

I want the shells to be thicker on those tiny ones, so I might go to the 75.  I'm having a hard time with water temp at the tap.  Yesterday it was 103!  My pipes run through the attic.  I always add ice cubes if I'm water changing in the afternoon.  In the morning I can get 78 out of the tap.

[Cinnebuns]

On 8/16/2022 at 12:22 PM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

I want the shells to be thicker on those tiny ones, so I might go to the 75.  I'm having a hard time with water temp at the tap.  Yesterday it was 103!  My pipes run through the attic.  I always add ice cubes if I'm water changing in the afternoon.  In the morning I can get 78 out of the tap.

Oh wow 103!!  I will share this experience I've had with adding ice cubes. IT TAKES A LOT!!! I put a whole tray in a 5 gallon tank that was at 93 and it still took about 3 hours for the temp to get down to 78. Also, keep in mind to declorinate for the ice cubes too!

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 8/16/2022 at 3:01 PM, Cinnebuns said:

Oh wow 103!!  I will share this experience I've had with adding ice cubes. IT TAKES A LOT!!! I put a whole tray in a 5 gallon tank that was at 93 and it still took about 3 hours for the temp to get down to 78. Also, keep in mind to declorinate for the ice cubes too!

I takes me a large cup of ice to get from 89 to 78 (24-ish ounce cup), but I have to do 2 cups of ice to take it from the 103 down to the 78.  I just do that in a 2-gallon bucket.  That works well for changing the 10 gallon tank, but for the 29 gallon tank, I would do 2-3 buckets worth.  All this only takes about 5 minutes (per bucket) for the ice to melt and for it to get to the right temp. I use an instant read meat thermometer to check.  I'm also adding the ice while the faucet is filling the bucket.

It's better for me to do water changes in the morning before it gets hot. Then I don't have to mess with ice.

Edited August 16, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea
added

[TeeJay]

On 8/15/2022 at 10:25 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

I'm sure my limpet population would love that!  😭

You know limpets make a pretty tasty snack 😮

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

I don’t think I will feed asparagus again. Dodger didn’t like it and the babies stayed on it for awhile, then got bored with it. If it were a green bean, they’d stay on it until it was gone. York, however, loved it.  But she loves everything. Except maybe the calcium chip.  Seems everyone is turning their snoots up at those lately. Some different flavored ones are sold on Crayfish Empire.  Might be something to consider later. I've got plenty of food right now!

Edited August 17, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Husband walks into the kitchen. Sees small pot of boiling water. Meanwhile I’m making a sandwich.

He asks, “Whatcha got goin on in here?”

“Not much, just making a sandwich.”

“What’s with the little pot of boiling water? Is that for the snails’ sandwich?” Has a big grin on his face.  (4 different small veggies are in a dish aside the stove.)

Guilty as charged. LOL.

At least he’s coming around. I was told on more than one occasion not to say the S word. 😳 Apparently my snail talk was getting excessive. 😬  But he did get a kick out of the little video of York riding the bubbles up. 🫧 I think he’s starting to notice their little personalities.

(Thank goodness for the forum. I can snail talk all I want here.)

Edited August 17, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Sleepy snails

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Today is lettuce day ☺️
 

 

 

Got an update on the first little one I adopted out. Goldie is doing well. My friend said it’s like having a baby; Goldie just eats and poops! Of course I reply, “but isn’t she cute?” To which my friend responds, “Absolutely.”

Also Goldie delighted her with parasnailing this morning.
 

Now she’s off to the store to buy some green beans. ❤️ 

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

The little snails are doing better and moving around the tank.  They are still slow, but at least they are not upside down, so I feel better.

[Guppysnail]

Not knowing how mu kids are doing is why rehoming them is hard. It’s so nice you get updates on some.