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Learn the safest and most nutritious diet for your pet snail
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Snails make fabulous pets: they’re kind, easy to care for, and even easier to feed. However, every snail has different tastes. Whether you're caring for land snails, freshwater snails, or both, you can provide a delicious diet that will nourish your pet snails. Keep reading and we’ll give you expert advice on all the do’s and don’ts of snail feeding.
Things You Should Know
- Feed your land snail juicy fruits like apricots, leafy vegetables like lettuce, sunflower seeds, cooked grains like oatmeal, and rich calcium sources like cuttlebone.
- Feed your freshwater snail aquatic plants like algae, food debris from your aquarium, blanched vegetables, and calcium sources like eggshells.
- Avoid feeding either type of snail processed foods with sugars, citrus fruits, or salts (as the sodium may burn their bodies).
- There’s many different snail species, so check with a vet or pet store worker for diet tips on your specific type of snail.
Steps
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Choose fruit, vegetables, seeds, and grains that are safe for your snail. To feed a land snail , select a wide variety of ripe produce and a few seeds to incorporate into your snail’s diet. Boil hard fruits and veggies before giving them to your snail, but wait for them to cool before feeding (if you have a tortoise, snails also eat tortoise food that’s been soaked in water). Avoid feeding your land snail salty foods, citrus foods, or onion ; these repel snails and cause them to lose their appetites. Meanwhile, the following foods are safe for snails:
- Fruits : apples, apricot, grapes, kiwi, mango, melon, nectarine, raspberry, strawberry
- Veggies : cucumber, mushroom, lettuce, broccoli, green beans, peas, sprouts, sweet corn, turnip, watercress [1] X Research source
- Seeds : sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and hemp seeds
- Cooked grains : oats
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Chop or shred produce into pieces smaller than a dime. Use a vegetable shredder or kitchen knife to chop all produce before you feed it to your snail. Snails are sensitive to chemicals and pesticides, so only use organic produce, and wash it well before feeding it to your snail. [2] X Research sourceAdvertisement
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Start by providing ¼ cup (68 grams) of food each day. There is no hard and fast rule about how much food a land snail should eat, so alter your snail’s diet based on how much it eats over time. If your snail is consuming all of the food you're providing, add some to its habitat. Remove any food that isn't consumed within 24 hours to prevent mold or anything that might harm your snail(s). [3] X Research source
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Give your snail organic, whole foods that are easy to digest. Ensure that your snail’s diet is made up of fresh produce and other natural, nutritional carbs. Avoid feeding your snail processed snack foods, or foods that contain sugar or salt. Snails also have trouble digesting rice, millet, pasta, crackers, and bread because they cause bloating.
- Never feed your snail anything with salt. Sodium burns your snail’s body of its slimy moisture, which can be fatal. [4] X Research source
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Keep a source of calcium in your snail tank at all times. Give your snail lots of calcium so it can keep its shell healthy. Crush or break off pieces of your calcium source and place them in your snail’s tank for it to nibble on. Adjust the portion of your calcium source based on how much your snail eats each time. [5] X Research source Great calcium sources for snails include:
- Cuttlebone
- Calcium powder
- Powdered oyster shells
- Natural chalk
- Natural limestone
- Bone meal
- Wood ash
- Powdered Egg Shells
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Fill a water dish with spring water and place it in your snail’s tank. You do not need to provide snails with water to drink. However, to ensure your snail’s environment is humid enough, place a shallow dish filled with spring water for your snail to bathe in. Replace the water every 1-2 days. [6] X Research source
- Never use tap water or faucet water, since these water sources may contain chlorine that's harmful to snails.
- If you don't have access to filtered water, leave tap water out in the sun for 48 hours to remove chemicals.
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Spray your snail with spring water every 1-2 days. Help your snail stay hydrated by misting it with water. Fill a spray bottle with spring or filtered water, and mist your snail and its habitat about every 48 hours. [7] X Research source
- If you live in a very dry climate, try misting your snail 1-2 times per day.
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House freshwater snails in an aquarium to fit their aquatic diets. Freshwater snails are omnivores, and they typically subsist off of the algae and food debris in a fish aquarium. Include aquatic plants like hyacinth , duckweed , and water lettuce for your freshwater snail to graze on, too.
- Check with your vet or a clerk at your local pet store to find out which types of fish live best alongside your species of freshwater snails and vice versa.
- Nerite snails, rabbit snails, and mystery snails tend to do well in fish tanks while bladder snails, apple snails, and ramshorn snails can be pests in most aquariums. [8] X Research source
- Give your freshwater snails plenty of room to maneuver. Include 1 freshwater snail for about every 2 gallons of water in your tank.
- Do not, under any circumstance, house your snails with loaches, catfish, betta fish, cichlids, gouramis, and puffer fish. All of these fish are likely to eat your freshwater snails.
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Provide algae disks if your freshwater snails have their own tank. Freshwater snails will eat algae regularly, as long as fish don’t chew it before them. [9] X Trustworthy Source PubMed Central Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health Go to source If you don't have fish in the same aquarium as your snails, purchase and feed your snails small algae discs. Follow the instructions on the packaging and provide the right number of disks for the number of snails in your tank.
- Algae discs are readily available online or at most pet stores.
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Offer your snails shredded, blanched vegetables. In addition to algae, freshwater snails enjoy a diet of blanched vegetables. To blanch your vegetables, dip your veggies into boiling water for 2 minutes before dunking them in ice water. Freshwater snails especially like to eat shelled peas, carrots, cucumber, zucchini and iceberg lettuce. Allow the blanched vegetables to cool completely. Then, add them to your aquarium. [10] X Research source
- Chop or shred your vegetables into pieces that are smaller than a dime.
- Begin by adding a small amount of blanched veggies each morning, and gauge how quickly your snails can finish them.
- Add a bit more or less until you notice that all of the food is being eaten in 12 hours or less.
- Remove uneaten produce after 24 hours.
- A good starting place is to feed aquatic snails as much food as they can consume in about 3 minutes, twice daily.
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Provide an additional calcium source for your freshwater snails. Just like land snails, freshwater snails require calcium to keep their shells healthy and strong. Provide a calcium source that your snails can nibble on at least once a week, as a supplement to your snails' diet. [11] X Research source Some sources of calcium for freshwater snails include:
- Cuttlebone
- Shells from dead snails
- Oyster shells
- Natural limestone (but be aware that this may raise your tank’s pH levels)
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Get advice about your snail's diet from a clerk, expert, or vet. How much, how often, and what you feed your snails will vary based on a number of factors. These factors include: your snails’ species, the number of snails in your tank, and what other aquatic life shares the aquarium with your snails. Speak to someone at the place where you purchased the snails or consult a vet to determine the best way to take care of your freshwater snails. [12] X Research source
- Incorporating a formulated snail food , mashed chicken feed, or other dense macronutrient into your snail’s diet can increase its growth rate and lower its toxicant sensitivity. [13] X Trustworthy Source PubMed Central Journal archive from the U.S. National Institutes of Health Go to source
- If your snails are leaving a lot of food behind, try providing a little bit less food or experimenting with different food choices.
- Some snail species may need additional food sources, such as fish food or bottom feeder tablets.
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Tips
- If your snail won't eat its calcium, try adding mashed banana to the calcium. Then, add shredded cabbage so your snail will be more attracted to the taste.Thanks
- If your snail is picky with calcium, try crushing eggshells into powder. Instead of water, add watermelon juice for a tastier scent and taste. Then, spread this eggshell-watermelon paste across its food so it has to eat it.Thanks
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Warnings
- Never give a snail food that is dirty. Always wash your food before feeding it to a snail and throw out any food that’s been touched by other insects.Thanks
- Never give a snail acidic or moldy food.Thanks
- The sharp edges of eggshells can hurt snails. Don't feed your snail eggshells if they are not powdery or pasty. [14] X Research sourceThanks
- Baby snails have the same diet as adult snails; however, feed them less calcium since their shells are smaller and need less nourishment. [15] X Research sourceThanks
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References
- ↑ http://www.molluscs.at/gastropoda/terrestrial.html?/gastropoda/terrestrial/food.html
- ↑ http://www.molluscs.at/gastropoda/terrestrial.html?/gastropoda/terrestrial/food.html
- ↑ http://www.molluscs.at/gastropoda/terrestrial.html?/gastropoda/terrestrial/food.html
- ↑ https://www.sciencefocus.com/nature/why-does-salt-kill-slugs/
- ↑ https://agresearch.montana.edu/wtarc/producerinfo/entomology-insect-ecology/EasternHeathSnail/GermanFactSheet.pdf
- ↑ http://www.petsnails.co.uk/care/feeding.html
- ↑ http://www.petsnails.co.uk/care/feeding.html
- ↑ https://modestfish.com/freshwater-aquarium-snails/
- ↑ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34003360/
- ↑ https://aquariumbreeder.com/how-to-blanch-%D1%81ucumbers-and-zucchini-for-shrimp-snails-and-fish-the-right-way/
- ↑ http://www.petsnails.co.uk/care/feeding.html
- ↑ http://www.aquariumcarebasics.com/freshwater-snails/
- ↑ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29266349/
- ↑ https://www.nativepestmanagement.com/blog/post/how-to-recognize-signs-of-snail-and-slug-damage-within-your-garden-florida-pest-ad-lawn-experts
- ↑ https://www.floridayards.org/what-do-garden-snails-eat/#What_Can_I_Feed_Baby_Snails
About This Article
Article Summary
X
If you are unsure how to feed your snail, give it a wide range of fruits, vegetables, and seeds, such as apples, tomatoes, and mushrooms. Before you feed your snail, chop the food into small pieces. Aim to feed your snail 1/4 cup of food per day, and be sure to remove any uneaten food within 24 hours. In addition to food, provide your snail with a shallow dish of water to bathe in and pieces of cuttlebone to keep its calcium levels high, which helps the snail keep its shell healthy. To learn how to feed a fresh water snail, read on!
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Reader Success Stories
- "When I got my garden snails, I had no idea how to feed them. I practiced for ten minutes or so feeding wild snails. They were not eating the food I gave them. I was feeding them grass which I thought they ate. I was stressing. My snails were going to die of starvation. I read this article and it has helped me. I have only had my snails for 2 hours! I already love wikiHow. Now I will have healthy little snails!" ..." more
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"When I got my garden snails, I had no idea how to feed them. I practiced for ten minutes or so feeding wild snails. They were not eating the food I gave them. I was feeding them grass which I thought they ate. I was stressing. My snails were going to die of starvation. I read this article and it has helped me. I have only had my snails for 2 hours! I already love wikiHow. Now I will have healthy little snails!"
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"Articles are all pretty helpful. I have a 2.5 gallon tank with one common pond snail who hitched a ride home from the lake last summer. I've been careful to remove all egg sacs, but today this tiny pond snail appeared! Hes 1/8 inch and seems quite happy eating algae off this shell. "
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"This is Toby! We have had him for a couple months now and he is doing great. He loves cucumbers, but I have been searching for articles on what else is safe to feed him. I am also looking for more ideas to make his terrarium better for him."
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"My snail became very healthy. She wasn't very healthy when I found her. She got a bad shell back then. She was found in a broccoli. I decided to care for her until the end of her life. I love her so much. She is as big as my pinkie finger."
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