lindsay
Member
This is more of an observation & experiment than a rule of thumb, but here goes.
A couple months ago, I wrote to RP and asked a few questions - one thing I asked was if he knew anything about snails, as I had 6 pet snails at the time (now I have A LOT more than that, as they have been reproducing like crazy and I need to release a bunch. But the littles ones are incredible). He said, it would be interesting to see what foods they like to eat, as snails are great problem solvers.
That being said - and keeping in mind they are gastropods - I have been feeding them a variety of foods and have noticed some interesting things, both about what they like to eat, as well as foods which rot and mold very quickly in a moist and fairly warm environment..... the latter part was the most striking to me, and here's why:
Foods which are "resistant" - I spray the tank daily with water and have seen foods transform like crazy (note, I use pretty much all organic produce):
-Carrots: RP is incredibly right about this; while the snails are not super into carrots per say, they are incredibly resistent to mold and can last in the tank for weeks. Not a super food, but certainly resistant to bacteria.
-Raw Sweet Potato: this was shocking to me, but raw sweet potato is almost as resistant as raw carrot and lasts for probably a week or so in the tank without molding or decomposing. AND, the snails love sweet potato - it is one of their favorite foods that I've fed them. However, they will change color if they eat too much. So please chime in, is it possible that raw sweet potato is another possible bacteria resistant food? Cooked sweet potato does not last as long - I've tried this and they will not eat the stuff. I feel like raw orange sweet potato is far less starchy than white potatoes.
-Romaine lettuce: of all the greens I've tried, romaine is pretty resistant. Granted, it gets gross after a few days, but is not super terrible and still very edible to the snails. They like it.
-Raw Kale: Similar to romaine, raw kale survives a few days in the tank without discoloring and, even when I throw it out, it's usually because the buggers have pooped all over it and not because it's moldy.
-Basil: I started throwing my wilting basil plants into the tank (only to witness them come back to life) and they have survived almost two weeks in that environment. Snails love basil. Basil seems resistant.
-Sorrel: same as above, my sorrel plant revived in the tank and did not get gross for almost a week.
-Mushrooms: I feed them raw mushrooms and they do last surprisingly well in the tank. At least 3 days. I'm not sure I would eat a lot of raw mushrooms though.....
-Cuttlefish bone: Calcium is super important to snails. They adore cuttlefish bone & calcium carbonate. Both do well in the tank, of course. Better than egg shells, which get moist and moldy after a few days in the soil.
Okay - so there's my list of regular foods because they survive very well in a dark damp and warm tank. Now, here's the shocker and worth noting. All the foods I'm listing below I have tried in the tank on numerous occasions (because I want the snails to have variety) and they get gross really fast - like we're talking a day and I am cringing as I pull them out and throw them out:
-Watermelon & other melons: day & a half max. Snails are not super into fruits, but they do like melons (although, I think they get drunk from sweet fruits too......)
-Mango: not a snail favorite and not a survivor
-Raw Zucchini: The snails adore zucchini, but like cucumber, it is molding and gross within a day or two.
-Tomatoes: short life as well. Similar to zucchini.
-Cucumbers: a snail favorite, but similar to zucchini.
-Kiwi: same as melon.
-Raw potato: while sweet potato lasts for days, raw white potato browns (oxidizes) and gets gross after a few minutes. Bottom line, I would not eat raw potato.
So, basically, these are most of the foods I have subjected to the snail tank - remember, warm and very moist environment - just like the human digestive tract.
Fruits are by far the worst. Pretty much any fruit becomes instant food for mold and slime. Granted, I haven't tried oranges because of the whole citrus and snail thing (it's on the list of unsure foods), but I would expect orange to last for a lot longer than the other fruits - based on watching them in my refrigerator.
Actual veggies fair much better in the damp environment and the snails certainly prefer vegetables to fruits. Dark leafy greens are great nutrition for them, as well as sweet potato, basil and mushrooms. And calcium.
Now, as I mentioned, snails are excellent poopers - just look at the walls of the tank after a couple of days and you can see a variety of different colors. They can eat all those foods and have the luxury to poop while moving and they poop often.
However, this whole endeavor made me wonder about foods and I came to the conclusion that most fruits seem to be fantastic food for mold and bacteria - tropical or not. Oranges are a mystery still - maybe I will just put them in a tank sometime & see.
So, if you have a super good fast digestion - you can probably eat all of the above without problem. But if your digestion is slow and/or troubled, I would seriously advise you get a fish tank and watch this happen yourself. Additionally - the fact that snail mucus gets on everything does not help the situation - our intestines contain mucus, mucus makes the foods grosser faster.
Finally, is raw sweet potato another possible option for an anti-septic veggie? And what about certain raw greens? The greens might make me nervous, except romaine - I eat that from time to time without troubles. I'm still inclined to cook or pickle most of these things.
Anyhow, sorry for the long post, but I thought it might make a good discussion topic. Maybe the fruit is not problematic because it's digested faster? I just know that many fruits that aren't cooked have caused me issues in the past (oranges are the exception). I personally require some fiber in my diet to clear things out, but have always preferred vegetables (especially pickled ones) to most fruits.
I have learned A LOT from having pet snails - about providing a good environment, caring for them, etc. I have a black thumb, so of course it makes sense that I am drawn to pets that eat plants. I will end this post with a photo of one of the baby snails - I'm calling them Ziggy Stardust (this one) and the Spiders from Mars :) There are a lot of spiders.....
A couple months ago, I wrote to RP and asked a few questions - one thing I asked was if he knew anything about snails, as I had 6 pet snails at the time (now I have A LOT more than that, as they have been reproducing like crazy and I need to release a bunch. But the littles ones are incredible). He said, it would be interesting to see what foods they like to eat, as snails are great problem solvers.
That being said - and keeping in mind they are gastropods - I have been feeding them a variety of foods and have noticed some interesting things, both about what they like to eat, as well as foods which rot and mold very quickly in a moist and fairly warm environment..... the latter part was the most striking to me, and here's why:
Foods which are "resistant" - I spray the tank daily with water and have seen foods transform like crazy (note, I use pretty much all organic produce):
-Carrots: RP is incredibly right about this; while the snails are not super into carrots per say, they are incredibly resistent to mold and can last in the tank for weeks. Not a super food, but certainly resistant to bacteria.
-Raw Sweet Potato: this was shocking to me, but raw sweet potato is almost as resistant as raw carrot and lasts for probably a week or so in the tank without molding or decomposing. AND, the snails love sweet potato - it is one of their favorite foods that I've fed them. However, they will change color if they eat too much. So please chime in, is it possible that raw sweet potato is another possible bacteria resistant food? Cooked sweet potato does not last as long - I've tried this and they will not eat the stuff. I feel like raw orange sweet potato is far less starchy than white potatoes.
-Romaine lettuce: of all the greens I've tried, romaine is pretty resistant. Granted, it gets gross after a few days, but is not super terrible and still very edible to the snails. They like it.
-Raw Kale: Similar to romaine, raw kale survives a few days in the tank without discoloring and, even when I throw it out, it's usually because the buggers have pooped all over it and not because it's moldy.
-Basil: I started throwing my wilting basil plants into the tank (only to witness them come back to life) and they have survived almost two weeks in that environment. Snails love basil. Basil seems resistant.
-Sorrel: same as above, my sorrel plant revived in the tank and did not get gross for almost a week.
-Mushrooms: I feed them raw mushrooms and they do last surprisingly well in the tank. At least 3 days. I'm not sure I would eat a lot of raw mushrooms though.....
-Cuttlefish bone: Calcium is super important to snails. They adore cuttlefish bone & calcium carbonate. Both do well in the tank, of course. Better than egg shells, which get moist and moldy after a few days in the soil.
Okay - so there's my list of regular foods because they survive very well in a dark damp and warm tank. Now, here's the shocker and worth noting. All the foods I'm listing below I have tried in the tank on numerous occasions (because I want the snails to have variety) and they get gross really fast - like we're talking a day and I am cringing as I pull them out and throw them out:
-Watermelon & other melons: day & a half max. Snails are not super into fruits, but they do like melons (although, I think they get drunk from sweet fruits too......)
-Mango: not a snail favorite and not a survivor
-Raw Zucchini: The snails adore zucchini, but like cucumber, it is molding and gross within a day or two.
-Tomatoes: short life as well. Similar to zucchini.
-Cucumbers: a snail favorite, but similar to zucchini.
-Kiwi: same as melon.
-Raw potato: while sweet potato lasts for days, raw white potato browns (oxidizes) and gets gross after a few minutes. Bottom line, I would not eat raw potato.
So, basically, these are most of the foods I have subjected to the snail tank - remember, warm and very moist environment - just like the human digestive tract.
Fruits are by far the worst. Pretty much any fruit becomes instant food for mold and slime. Granted, I haven't tried oranges because of the whole citrus and snail thing (it's on the list of unsure foods), but I would expect orange to last for a lot longer than the other fruits - based on watching them in my refrigerator.
Actual veggies fair much better in the damp environment and the snails certainly prefer vegetables to fruits. Dark leafy greens are great nutrition for them, as well as sweet potato, basil and mushrooms. And calcium.
Now, as I mentioned, snails are excellent poopers - just look at the walls of the tank after a couple of days and you can see a variety of different colors. They can eat all those foods and have the luxury to poop while moving and they poop often.
However, this whole endeavor made me wonder about foods and I came to the conclusion that most fruits seem to be fantastic food for mold and bacteria - tropical or not. Oranges are a mystery still - maybe I will just put them in a tank sometime & see.
So, if you have a super good fast digestion - you can probably eat all of the above without problem. But if your digestion is slow and/or troubled, I would seriously advise you get a fish tank and watch this happen yourself. Additionally - the fact that snail mucus gets on everything does not help the situation - our intestines contain mucus, mucus makes the foods grosser faster.
Finally, is raw sweet potato another possible option for an anti-septic veggie? And what about certain raw greens? The greens might make me nervous, except romaine - I eat that from time to time without troubles. I'm still inclined to cook or pickle most of these things.
Anyhow, sorry for the long post, but I thought it might make a good discussion topic. Maybe the fruit is not problematic because it's digested faster? I just know that many fruits that aren't cooked have caused me issues in the past (oranges are the exception). I personally require some fiber in my diet to clear things out, but have always preferred vegetables (especially pickled ones) to most fruits.
I have learned A LOT from having pet snails - about providing a good environment, caring for them, etc. I have a black thumb, so of course it makes sense that I am drawn to pets that eat plants. I will end this post with a photo of one of the baby snails - I'm calling them Ziggy Stardust (this one) and the Spiders from Mars :) There are a lot of spiders.....
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