Do you keep snails as a hobby or just want to keep animals that are easy to care for? Do you want to increase the number of pet snails without having to catch them in the wild? This article explains how to breed pet snails step by step.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Taking Precautions
Step 1. Make sure you are ready to take care of the baby snails
This includes setting up a new terrarium (a see-through container of plants shaped like a garden), paying extra attention, and spending more time doing maintenance.
Step 2. Find information about how to breed snails
Most snails are hermaphrodites. This means that snails have both male and female sex organs at the same time. After laying eggs, snails are usually ready to reproduce within 6 weeks of the year. Snails can lay about 30-140 eggs at a time. This means 1 snail can produce almost 480 snails in a year!
- Mating 2 snails can indeed be done, but is not recommended because it will be very painful for both. Before mating, the two snails will fight for the attention of the other, and this process endangers both. In the end, the defeated slug would give in and be stabbed with an arrow-like object filled with sperm. Maybe you will see some kind of white knife sticking out of the snail's body. Don't try to pull it out as this will only harm the slugs. If likened to our bodies, this sperm-filled arrow is the size of a thumb-sized needle stuck in your stomach.
- Watch for snails to prevent them from mating. Maybe you will see the snail expel his male genitalia (penis). The snail's penis is shaped like a long white stick near the shell. Move the snail to another terrarium until the penis is completely pulled in. This can take several hours, or even a day in some cases.
Step 3. Watch the eggs
If the snails have laid eggs and you want to throw them away, freeze the eggs for about 24 hours before throwing them in the trash.
Part 2 of 3: Preparing a Residence
Step 1. Provide good snail shelter
The soil must be at least 5 cm deep with moderately moist conditions. Get the soil at a pet store to make sure there are no fertilizers or pesticides in it as they can be harmful to snails. Never use garden soil as it can contain parasites or pests that are harmful to snails (and can even kill them).
Snails need air, just like us. If you are placing it in a plastic container, make a few holes in the top of the container. Always keep the temperature moderate and comfortable
Step 2. Meet the basic needs of the snail
You don't need to play music because these animals have no ears. However, snails have mouths and eyes, so you need to provide them with the right food and lighting for them to grow and survive. Check its condition regularly.
Step 3. Snails are omnivores, i.e. creatures that eat both animals and plants
Some good foods for snails include:
- Apple
- Apricot
- Banana
- Give black (blackberry)
- Wine
- Kiwi
- Mango
- Melon
- Nectarine (a fruit similar to peach)
- Oranges, papayas, prickly pears, pears, peaches, plums, raspberries, strawberries, tomatoes, broccoli, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, cucumbers, chickpeas, mushrooms, peas, bean sprouts, potatoes, sweetcorn, turnips, lettuce water, and raw meat without seasoning. Don't forget to provide water.
- Most snails are nocturnal animals (active at night). If you turn on the light at night, the snail will enter the shell. If you want to enjoy the behavior, snails are very active in the afternoon, evening, and early morning. Spray his body with water to make the snail more excited.
Step 4. Make sure you provide leaves as a place to play
Don't worry, the snail uses a feeler (a kind of antenna) to detect obstacles (sight is very poor). Provide leaves and stems in the cage and spray with water at least once a day. Add a layer of sphagnum moss or leaves, and don't forget to moisten it. If the snail is still in another container, you can now put it in the cage.
Snails like dark and damp places. You may not be able to prevent the slugs from mating unless you keep a watchful eye at night to keep an eye on them. Unfortunately, there's not much you can do other than provide a comfortable environment
Part 3 of 3: Waiting
Step 1. Be patient
Now you have to wait until the 2 snails 'mate' or "impregnate" themselves. If it is mated, about 1 or 2 weeks later the snail will lay eggs. Depending on the species, the eggs will hatch in 1-4 weeks. Some snails lay eggs in one place, and others scatter them.
Step 2. Watch as the eggs hatch
This depends on the species of snail you are breeding. The process can be very fast or very slow. Just wait and see.
Eggs will hatch in 1-4 weeks in some species, but it all depends on the genus and species, as well as other factors, such as how long the eggs are kept internally, soil temperature, and the environment the snail lives in. Eggs do not always hatch simultaneously and this is common in species with a long gestation period (up to 4 weeks). The first egg to hatch (usually at the very top), can hatch 10 days earlier than the other eggs in the group. Some of the other eggs will hatch in a longer time
Step 3. Make sure you provide fresh food and water
Also add calcium so the snails can develop a strong shell. Snails love to play. Take the snail and let it crawl in your hands, but be careful because the shell may break. Do not take small snails because their shells are still very fragile. Never pick up an adult snail by its shell.
Tips
- Parent snails can eat their own eggs. If there is another container, you can use it specifically for incubating eggs.
- Instead of moving the eggs to another container, you should move the adult snails to another place.
- If the eggs don't hatch, wait about 2 more weeks. Remember, some species take up to 4 weeks to incubate eggs.
- Providing a spacious cage is very important so that the snails can move freely. Use a substrate (base or foundation) of soil or sphagnum moss at the bottom of the cage. You can buy it at a pet store.
- Snails crawling on top of other snails indicate that the two like each other.
- Do not forget to give vitamins so that snails grow healthily.
- Do not take eggs or small snails.
- Unless you really know that 2 different species of snails can coexist in the wild, don't try to breed 2 snails of different species. This can spread disease or cause infection, and even make the two kill each other. In addition, there are some snails that are carnivorous or even cannibals, such as the Decollate snail. If you have this type of snail, do not place it in the same cage with other snails, and never mate with other snails.
Warning
- Be careful when cleaning the terrarium as there may be eggs buried in the soil.
- Be sure to wash your hands after handling the snails. These animals secrete mucus and can spread disease.
Foods to Give to Snails
- Apple
- Apricot
- Banana
- Give black
- Wine
- Kiwi
- Mango
- Melon
- Nectarine
- Orange
- Pawpaw
- Prickly pear (fruit of the cactus plant)
- Peach
- Pear
- Plums
- raspberry
- Strawberry
- Tomatoes
- Lettuce
- Broccoli
- Spinach
- Cabbage
- Cucumber
- Beans
- Mold
- Peas
- Potato
- Sprouts
- Sweet corn
- Turnip (a type of radish)
- Watercress
- Unseasoned raw meat
