Achatina snail is not active. What to do if the snail does not eat

Any changes in the behavior of the domestic snail begin to disturb their owners. One of the common questions is why the Achatina snail does not eat for several days, and how to restore her appetite. That is what we will talk about today.

Reasons for not eating

A healthy mollusk has a good appetite, and besides, its activity should increase closer to the night. But if Achatina is lethargic at any time of the day and stops eating normally, an imbalance occurs in her body, the reasons for which may be several.

The most serious poisoning or disease. But maybe something just doesn't suit you. pet: temperature, food quality, new environment.

If the snail's appetite has decreased so much that it began to eat 2 times less, there should be no reason for serious concern. This may be due to a change in conditions of detention or tasteless food.

When there is a long refusal of any food, as a result of which the mollusk has noticeably lost weight, you need to understand the reasons for this behavior of Achatina, the most common of which will be discussed later.

Wrong conditions of detention

Often the snail does not eat anything due to inadequate housing conditions.

Quality – important condition normal health of the African snail. It must be kept clean, not overdried and not overmoistened. Complete replacement of the substrate is undesirable. This is done in part so as not to cause stress in the pet and, as a result, refusal of food.

To accurately determine the level of humidity in the air and soil, you should purchase a hygrometer. And to measure the temperature, you need to equip the terrarium with a thermometer. Avoid sudden temperature fluctuations in the home of Achatina, as well as exposure to direct sunlight.

The terrarium should be size so that the snail is not crowded in it. It is desirable that one individual has at least 10 liters of space.

Sometimes the snail refuses to eat when the filler is completely replaced. If it is, it is washed until the water is absolutely clear.

Wrong diet

Snail nutrition should be varied within the framework of those products that the mollusk needs for normal growth and development.

Note! Stale food remains from the aquarium must be removed in time.

The main food products of Achatina are lettuce leaves, apples, cucumbers. It is also desirable to include in her diet:

• watermelons,
• melons,
• spinach,
• berries,
• bananas and zucchini.

Shells are considered mandatory for growth, as well as vitamin and mineral mixtures, which can be purchased at a pet store. You can grind eggshells into powder and mix them into the substrate.

A pet may have certain food preferences that are taken into account when choosing a diet. Sometimes snails do not eat well precisely because they do not like the foods offered. For example, Achatina prefers cucumber, and they try to feed her with zucchini or apples.

Pregnancy

Why does the snail not eat in the first days of pregnancy? When Achatina is preparing for the reproduction of offspring, at the initial stage of pregnancy, when her body is being rebuilt, her taste preferences may change or her appetite may disappear altogether. In this case, do not panic, just wait 4-5 days for the process of adaptation of the body to the new state to end, and the mollusk begins to feed. You can understand whether offspring should be expected if you look at the snail in the spiracle. The eggs will look good.

In the diet of a pregnant snail, you need to include more calcium and protein. Her appetite will be fully restored only after she lays her eggs.

Diseases

What to do if the snail does not eat due to illness? First of all, you need to find out the cause of the ailment. To do this, you need to analyze the behavior of the mollusk in recent times, remember what your pet ate and what reasons could cause stress. It is important to pay attention to side effects. For example, if the shell of Achatina began to exfoliate or the body of the mollusk began to fall out of it. Until the primary cause of the disease is eliminated, a good appetite for the snail may not return.

Stress

If another mollusk is settled in the Achatina terrarium, but she does not like such a neighborhood, stressful situation. This is the reason why the snail sleeps and does not eat. Often hostility occurs between individuals of different species.

To return Achatina to normal life, you will need to eliminate the source of stress: transplant another mollusk into a separate container.

Don't forget about quarantine. A beginner must be kept separate from other snails for some time.

Is it worth it to force a snail to eat

What to do if the snail does not eat? There is an opinion that one should not force a snail to eat if it has completely or partially lost its appetite. But such a judgment is erroneous. Without food, the mollusk can lose strength and weaken after 2 days. This will lead to even greater loss of appetite or its complete absence. Therefore, you need to constantly offer food to the snail.

How to make a snail eat

The first thing to do if the snail stops eating is to put it in a separate terrarium and offer it the food that it likes the most.

If the snail does not eat its favorite food, the walls of the aquarium (container) should be smeared with puree diluted to a liquid state or diluted grain mixture. While moving along the walls of the ulitaria, the pet will be able to eat a little, but. And if the mollusk is weakened to such an extent that it cannot move on its own, you can try to spread mashed potatoes on its face.

When the situation is much worse and all the ways to get the snail to eat are ineffective, you can do the following.

1. A pureed, diluted nutrient mass is poured into a container with a large diameter in such an amount that the snail does not drown.
2. A mollusk is launched into such an impromptu pool with food.
3. It is desirable that the pet stays in such a container for at least half an hour. During this time, it will get dirty with food, and some part of it will enter the body of a pet.

Such "baths" can be arranged for snails that refuse to eat calcium on their own. At the bottom of the container, calcined top dressing is poured, and containers with water are placed in it, in which chalk is diluted. After that, a snail is placed there, which can replenish the supply of calcium in the body. Such a measure is necessary, especially if the Achatina shell is very fragile or injured as a result of a fall.

Compliance with the rules for keeping Achatina at home - good prevention possible problems with an appetite for these mollusks. But if the snail has stopped eating, you should not be upset - this problem can be solved on your own, without the help of a specialist.

African Achatina snails are exotic animals that are gaining popularity and are becoming pets. Cats, dogs, hamsters have already become familiar, they can not surprise anyone, but snails are of interest.

Features of Achatina

African Achatina - big snails. The shell dimensions reach 20 cm fits in the hand of an adult. You need to keep pets in aquariums, supporting warm temperature (23-28℃ ), and high humidity air. They need light, but better artificial and in moderation. Direct sunlight leads to burns, drying of the skin, destruction of the shell. Too much low temperatures contribute hibernation for up to 6 months can lead to the death of the pet. They need enough space in the aquarium so that they do not damage each other's shells in tight spaces. Often deformations, chips occur when a mollusk falls from the walls of the aquarium. To avoid this, you can glue the walls from the inside with foam rubber.

Achatina nutrition consists of plant foods and calcium. For example, they eagerly eat cucumbers, carrots, apples, zucchini. The main thing is that vegetables and fruits are cut into small cubes. Also, snails do not mind eating plantain, lettuce, dandelion leaves. They react very positively to grated eggshells.

Advantages of keeping Achatins at home

• Do not cause allergies, so they are great for people who cannot have cats, dogs, hamsters in the house. Safe for both adults and children.
• Have no smell. So it does not matter how many mollusks you have to grow - two or twenty. No need to buy air fresheners.
• Silent. Snails simply crawl along the walls of the aquarium, do not scream, do not beg for food, but calmly wait for it. They do not have sharp teeth and claws, so they do not spoil things, and you can sleep peacefully at night.
• have decorative properties. Reaching huge size, they look very interesting, they may differ in the pattern on the shell. Beautifully obtained in the photo, and fit perfectly into the home interior.
• They are calm. You can watch them even for hours on end, take them in your arms. The snails will not break free and try to escape.
• Allows for additional income. They have a very large offspring that can be sold. Snails are hermaphrodites by nature, meaning they can have both female and male reproductive organs. If you plant snails of the same size, then they will produce mutual fertilization, and if the sizes are different, then the female will be the one that is larger. When a white shoot appears on the head of a mollusk, this indicates its sexual maturity. In a favorable environment, proper care offspring will appear every month in the amount of 50-300 eggs. Achatinas are suitable for people with an entrepreneurial streak who are open to everything new.
• Rejuvenate the skin. Clam mucus has special elements that make it added to face masks and creams. To feel the effect of rejuvenation, you need to put a snail on your face. She massages, cleanses the skin, heals wounds, scratches. After the procedure, the face looks fresh and rejuvenated.
• Relieve stress. Watching the slow movement of the snails helps to calm down. After work or a situation of high stress, acute experiences, it is recommended to observe the life of a pet.
• Suitable for food. Achatina meat is considered dietary, easily digestible. It is used in fried, boiled form. Another snail can be baked, marinated, stuffed. There are enough recipes on the Internet to satisfy gastronomic interest. Suitable for overweight people.

Disadvantages of keeping Achatins at home

• Require care. They are not toys to bring home and forget. They need a properly equipped container or aquarium that should be cleaned frequently as it gets dirty. They should be on healthy soil, eat fresh food. Snails get dirty, so it's worth doing a daily bath in water without soap and detergents. Some foods and substances are so harmful that they can kill. These include salt, lemon, garlic, bread, chocolate, potatoes.
• Very slippery. Not suitable for squeamish people, as mucus will cause disgust.
• Too passive. They do not run joyfully to meet the owners, you can’t really play with them. Sometimes Achatinas show attention to people: they stick out of the shell, substitute their heads for stroking. Only they do this not to show love, or the desire to communicate, as cats do, but simply because the human body emits heat, which is pleasant for snails.
• Not allowed to roam freely around the house, because they hide so that it will be difficult to find. In addition, they can get hurt or damage the shell, like a cat or dog for a treat.
• Get sick with the wrong content. It is important to notice unusual behavior in time, to establish its cause. Often veterinarians don't know how to cure a snail.

Achatina can pick up worms, and so that he does not die because of this, his diet should be changed. Give him carrots, raw pureed pumpkin seeds. Completely clean the habitat, replace the soil.

You can not wash the snail in hot water, or allow overheating, because this leads to burns. Sometimes a pet can be saved, but it is often more humane to freeze it.

Conclusion

Thus, it is possible to start Achatina for different purposes: as pets, for food or sale. These giants can be ideal pets as they have more advantages than disadvantages.

It is recommended to purchase Achatina responsible people, who will monitor the snails, and take into account helpful tips to maintain the health and life of the pet. Suitable for people with problem skin who want to eliminate pimples, blackheads, wrinkles without resorting to foundation, powder and other cosmetics. Suitable for enterprising people and real gourmets.

A few days ago, I received a letter in the mail, which said that I had become lethargic and inactive.
Eats and immediately hides in the sink. Decreased in size and goes into the shell behind the curl, but the entrance does not close.
What to do? What is the reason for such changes in the behavior of the snail?

Decided to write this article to help those who may have this problem with the snail.

Main reasons

To maintain a constant temperature, a thermal cord is attached to the bottom of the terrarium or a lamp is placed inside the terrarium. Read more about how to do it.

Nutritious top dressings can be prepared for the future and they do not contribute to the appearance.

It requires a lot of strength and energy from Achatina, so she becomes a little mobile, eats poorly, sleeps more.

Metronidazole is an antibiotic, it will destroy all pathogenic bacteria, and milk will help the snail recover quickly.

• another type of soil;
• direct sunlight;
• undesalted sepia;
• chemistry in products or on your hands.

SALT

CHOCOLATE

HOUSEHOLD CHEMICALS

GARLIC

LEMON

SMOKED

May your snails be healthy and delight you for many years.

Help save the snail!!!

Dear fellow snail breeders, help!!!
My snail, a fulica named Horse, is the largest, most active and sociable snail I have ever had and still have. She stopped eating about 2 weeks ago, mostly sleeps, buried in the ground, does not wake up herself, periodically every 2-3 days I pull her out of the ground and bathe her. He discovers food, crawls sluggishly towards it, sniffs, and does not eat. Not even exciting fresh cucumber. Just crawls over it, or lettuce, or a piece of sepia, or other food. I used to gnaw on sepia so that the crackling was heard all night long, and the shell grew regularly. I ate half of the cucumber whole without a trace. And now sometimes it just hangs on the wall of the terrarium in a wrinkled state with bent horns and sits in a daze all day. If you bathe again, it comes to life for a while. The tone of the muscles, according to my sensations, has slightly weakened.

The snail is about 4 years old, has lived with me for 2 years. I feed Chinese lettuce, cucumbers, zucchini, less often carrots and peanuts, in the terrarium on the ground and on the ceiling there are always sepia plates. I regularly moisten the ground and walls with a flower spray. In the terrarium, there is always water in a large drinking bowl, where the snail used to sometimes crawl in its entirety to bathe. Temperature at home: now 22-23 degrees, before it was a little higher than 25-26 degrees. Humidity in the apartment is now unfortunately low in winter: 25-28%. Soil - neutral soil for begonias with an admixture of pieces of Mediterranean pine bark (neutral bark, used for many terrarium animals - arthropods, reptiles, etc.). I change the soil 2-3 times a year, regularly (2-3 times a week) loosen it and remove snail kaki and leftover food.

About a month ago I planted a one-year-old iredalea with the Horse (now I regret it). It looks like a healthy active and voracious snail. But the two older snails - her parents - recently died after living with me for about 11 months. Six months before death, they showed a gradual decrease in activity, appetite, muscle tone, lack of shell growth and the desire to eat sepia, the snails stopped burrowing into the ground and simply fell asleep on the surface, drawn into the shell. 3-4 months before death, their body acquired a slightly yellowish tint and more mucus began to be released in the form of lumps-clots with whitish inclusions. A month before death, the shell of the snails became mostly completely white, without a colored outer layer, just white and calcareous. Gradually, the snails weakened more and more, until they could not eat and move at all. In the same way, with exactly the same symptoms, 3 more fulica died in me, having lived 2-2.5 years each. One of these fulikas lived alone all her life (did not contact anyone), was very active and grew almost to the size of this snail.

And now my Horse seems to be showing the same symptoms of general weakness... WHAT AM I DOING WRONG? Are there any other chances to save a sick snail!!!??? Look at the photos - the shell is clearly visible in the pictures, slight yellowing on the body, which I marked in green and lumps of mucus, which began to stand out more. But it still digs itself into the ground.

I will be very grateful for good advice!

Good afternoon. Today we'll talk about what not to do
When all the eggs have hatched.

Scientists have proven that snail peeling is a useless procedure. In addition, through the mucus secreted by the snail, you can bring all sorts of unpleasant “byaki” onto your skin. And for the snail itself, this is the strongest stress, due to which growth can stop, scars appear on the shell, care for the coil. So don't torture the poor animals.

The soil in the terrarium should be on the entire bottom area, in such a layer that the snail can burrow into it.

Sawdust must not be used as soil. Also, any parts are not suitable for decoration. coniferous trees. It is also forbidden to use sand, earth as a soil.

Sawdust does not hold moisture. All snails pass the soil through themselves, that is, they eat it, I think there is no need to explain what will happen sooner or later when the sawdust clogs her stomach. Sawdust is potential splinters. What is in the photo is the consequences, the same can be with the internal organs.

Incorrect ventilation. Such ventilation will not retain moisture and will not allow you to create the desired microclimate.

Round containers are not suitable for snails. It is not possible to create proper ventilation, insufficient bottom area, in a small one there is also deformation of the shell.

Too big bowls, occupy the entire area of ​​the bottom, there is no room for the snails to move. If the snail falls off the lid of the container it may damage the sink.

Overpopulation of the terrarium leads to the fact that the snails stop growing, begin to stress, gnaw themselves and their neighbors, go beyond the coil, which leads to further death.

Snails should not be washed under running tap water. The water contains chlorine, which spoils the shell, over time an ugly coating forms on it. With such bathing, a temperature drop can occur and the snail can get a thermal burn. Yes, and snails do not like to swim, when bathing they stretch out, completely crawling out of the shell, which creates a deceptive impression that they like it. In nature, this behavior is explained by the fact that when it's raining, the snail, stretching out, tries to grab onto something higher from the ground, so as not to choke and drown. Snails do not require bathing. It is enough for them that you spray the terrarium and them. If the snail gets dirty in soil or food, it can be sprayed with a spray bottle or washed in boiled lukewarm water.

Snails should not crawl on sinks or tubs, as cleaning agents may remain on them, causing a chemical burn to the snail.

Stones are strictly prohibited in the terrarium, falling from the lid, the snail will break the shell on them, and crawling over them will scratch it. A bathing suit is also not needed in a terrarium, small snails can drown in it, and large ones turning it over will create a swamp.

In the next post I will write how to properly care for, what to feed, what soil to use.