How to keep my mystery snails from starving to death

[jaydawnsin]

I've got two mystery snails in my 30 gallon aquarium along with entirely too many ramshorn snails and some trumpet snails. I'm trying to feed enough to keep these mystery snails alive because I've already lost two of them but the ramshorn snails are eating everything too fast and they just explode in population. I don't really have the option of moving the mystery snails to a different tank because the only other tank I have right now is a 10 gallon quarantine tank for my betta, how do I keep the mystery snails alive long enough to get through this quarantine? I love all of my snails but having lost three of my favorite ones, another being my only japanese trapdoor snail whom I lost this morning, I would rather make sure that the mystery snails don't die as well. Should I get another tank and what should I do in the mean time while I wait to have the funds to do this?

[H.K.Luterman]

What are you feeding them? Have you tried Repashy gel foods? My idea would be to makes a lump of Repashy and put it in, wait and see if the Mysterys get to it. Or maybe a big piece of blanched cucumber. Thinking bigger food would last long enough for them to have a go.

Putting them in with the betta would be ok as long as the betta doesn't harass them; just watch them and see how they do.

You could also just get a cheap tupperware bin and use it as quarantine if you're really worried. Or a 5 gal bucket from Home Depot.

That all being said, I've never quarantined snails. 

[Dancing Matt]

What are your water parameters?

[Kat_Rigel]

Are you certain that the food is the issue? I would think the mysteries should be able to compete with the ramshorns. I have trumpet snails in my mystery breeder tank and the mystery snails always out-compete the pest snails.

[jaydawnsin]

On 12/15/2020 at 11:44 AM, H.K.Luterman said:

What are you feeding them? Have you tried Repashy gel foods? My idea would be to makes a lump of Repashy and put it in, wait and see if the Mysterys get to it. Or maybe a big piece of blanched cucumber. Thinking bigger food would last long enough for them to have a go.

Putting them in with the betta would be ok as long as the betta doesn't harass them; just watch them and see how they do.

You could also just get a cheap tupperware bin and use it as quarantine if you're really worried. Or a 5 gal bucket from Home Depot.

That all being said, I've never quarantined snails. 

Thank you so much for the advise, I'm sorry I haven't responded I got caught up doing a lot of things.

The mystery snails are still alive, there's enough calcium so they're good on that, I've seen them eating but the food gets quickly overrun by ramshorn snails because I have so many cause I overfeed cause I'm scared the mystery snails aren't getting enough so the problem cycles 😅.

The problem I should have been worrying about is my nitrates though, those are... Not good is a light way of putting it. Everything else came out absolutely perfect as far as tests go, but god, the nitrates were awful. I should have been on top of it but I wasn't and that's the real problem.

Onto how I'm fixing the overfeeding problem, I've bought some repashy food, thank you for the advise on that I didn't even know that was a thing I could buy, I'm waiting for it to come in, should be here in a few days, I've set out a trap so that I can remove some of the ramshorn snails, the Malaysian trumpet snails are fine as far as population goes, and I'm going to be gravel vac-ing in there this weekend to get rid of the tiny baby snails I'm finding.

I have a plan for how I'm going to fix the nitrates as well, and hopefully I've got it all fixed by the time the quarantine period ends for the betta in a week or two. I ordered some new plants to go in there and am removing some plants that are no longer wanted from the 30 gallon. If I continue seeing a problem with the mystery snails not getting enough food, I'll just move them into the quarantine tank as buddies for the rest of the community fish I plan on quarantining. If that doesn't end up working out, I don't see anything wrong with setting up another permanent tank and finding them a fishy friend. 🤣

Again, sorry to leave ya'll hanging like that. I really appreciate yall taking the time to answer.

[FishyThoughts]

I’m not sure  if your trying to keep all of your ramshorn snails as well. But if you get a small dish and put the food in it. Then when the ramshorns swarm the food you could pick up the dish to remove them from the tank. Which would make feeding your mystery snail easier. And you could feed less at the same time. 

[jaydawnsin]

15 hours ago, FishyThoughts said:

I’m not sure  if your trying to keep all of your ramshorn snails as well. But if you get a small dish and put the food in it. Then when the ramshorns swarm the food you could pick up the dish to remove them from the tank. Which would make feeding your mystery snail easier. And you could feed less at the same time. 

I don't want to keep all of them but at the same time, I don't have the heart to cull them either. I got a 10 gallon tank yesterday and they're gonna move into there once I get it set up, but in the mean time I'm just going to feed the mystery snails in my floating breeder box and put them back in the main tank after they're done eating and feed the rest of the snails a lot less than they've been getting.