The most unpretentious pets - how to keep snails at home
Do you want to have some kind of animal in the house, but there is absolutely no time to take care of it? Buy shellfish, because they are completely unpretentious and do not require much attention. How to keep snails at home depends on their species, although the general principles are the same. This is a cozy dwelling, better in the form of an aquarium, and timely feeding. There are two types of snails that are bred at home - the so-called land and water. It is their appearance that determines the habitat, that is, what the aquarium is filled with.
If you need a long-lived pet, get land snails, for example, Achatina. They live for a dozen, and some a little more, years. Aquatic inhabitants live on average about 4 years, so you will either have to monitor their reproduction or buy new ones.
How to keep snails at home - where to keep
The internal content of the aquarium directly depends on the type of mollusks:
- It is not necessary to talk about filling the tank for water snails. Naturally, they live in an aquatic environment, so you can even add them to aquarium fish. Just do not forget to inquire about "character compatibility". Some snails prefer solitude.
- For terrestrial molluscs, make a soft bed of small coconut substrate... They love to mink and hide. You can use peat instead of coconut soil. Or a simple, versatile indoor plant substrate.
It is not necessary to install special lighting for snails. But make sure that the aquarium is always humid and warm. The optimum temperature for keeping warm is 25 ° C. If the pets freeze, they will hibernate.
What to feed snails
All shellfish feed mainly on vegetation, as well as vegetables and fruits. Give them:
- cucumbers, cabbage;
- apples, bananas;
- dandelion leaves, lettuce, spinach, grapes;
- raspberries, strawberries;
- bran and oatmeal.
For shellfish to have a strong shell, they need calcium and protein supplements. To this end, periodically feed gammarus, daphnia, or sepia bone.
Feed adults once a day, you can feed them once every 2 days, and small ones - twice a day.
How else to care for snails besides feeding
Shellfish care also depends on their type:
- change the water once a month in aquarium snails, and if there is soil, then renew it every six months;
- in terrestrial species, remove food debris and mucus daily, change the soil every six months;
- spray the tank regularly without water, and if the moisture evaporates too quickly, then the snails themselves.