# Suddenly Snails



## FishCat13 (Jan 7, 2013)

So, I'm in the process of setting up a planted tank for a sorority. It currently has 5 peppered cories as residents and I'm growing the plants for more coverage before adding the bettas. My plants all cMe from petsmart, and all were in those sealed tubes except for a bunch of anacharis (I think I spelled that right).

Well, today I look in my tank, and crawling on the bridge decoration are two little brown dots. I'm like "WTH is this?" They're so tiny, like smaller than the nail on my pinky finger. And then I realize: snails. I have two teeny baby snails in my tank.

I'm assuming they hitched a ride with the anacharis, which I didn't quarantine or anything...

Pros: I wanted snails to clean up the algae, hopefully these guys will do that without screwing with my plants.

Cons: No idea what kind of snails they are or if they are the only two...

I guess I want to keep the snails alive but what do I do with them? How do I keep them alive? I've never had snails before....


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## kjg1029 (Jun 14, 2014)

i would remove them and put them in a differnt container for now. there porbably pond or ramshorn (aka "pest snails") so they cant reproduce in your tank, they will reproduce now matter where they are lol. if you want algae controll i would look into a specific type of snail for example nitrates.
most of the time they make more waste then they clean up TBH.
to keep them alive either leave them in the tank, or put them in a separate tank or container and give them some food maybe 1x a week, there snails, they can live almost anywhere.


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## FishCat13 (Jan 7, 2013)

Ok, after getting a closer look, and looking at pics, they look like garden snails. I caught the two (fast for snails!) and put them in a cup. I guess I would prefer a better way to control algae. What do I do with them now? How do I killthem humanely?


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## hrutan (Jun 25, 2014)

Whether you keep them alive or not is up to you. I like having snails in the tank. They don't overpopulate unless the tank is over-fed. However, if the tank does have too much free food lying around, you can find yourself with quite the population explosion. Snails do produce waste, but excess food also pollutes your tank. I personally find snail poop easier to clean up than decaying food.

If they look like garden snails, meaning a round shell that spirals, but no point (so it looks like @ from the side, but doesn't stick out on either side) they are probably Ramshorn snails. If they are shaped more like seeds (Shaped like @, but coming to a gentle point on one side) they are probably pond, and if they are shaped like a unicorn horn, they are probably malaysian trumpet snails.

As far as I know, there isn't really a humane way to kill them. You just...have to kill them. Squish squish.


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## kjg1029 (Jun 14, 2014)

yeah^ squish squishxD...it is fast though


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## FishCat13 (Jan 7, 2013)

Well, I thought my catfish were eating all their food but maybe not.

I caught a third snail. I put them in one of the cups bettas come in. I haven't quite decided what I should do with them. I'm pretty sure they are pond snails at this point.


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## kjg1029 (Jun 14, 2014)

i personaly would either kill them, or get a tub for a snail tank, thats what i did, just a gllonish breeding tub.


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## hrutan (Jun 25, 2014)

You can make a snail trap by blanching a piece of lettuce and putting it in a baby food jar or under a saucer. Check for snails in the morning and get rid of them.


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## n25philly (Dec 5, 2013)

First rule of pest snails:

For everyone one you see there are probably at least a half dozen that you don't.

I would leave them in. Most snails don't bother plants and will eat up stuff like dying plant matter which is a good thing in a planted tank. (healthy growing plants are good for water quality, dead plant matter is bad for it) Their population will be tied to feeding, so just don't overfeed if you don't want a population explosion.


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## Charc14 (Aug 27, 2014)

Make a snail Tank!!!!! I had a one gallon bowl in my garage. I put a few Pond snails in there, a mystery snail, and one Ramshorn. I love watching them. Seriously, I doubt you will regret it. 

Or you could just Leave them in.


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## hgual22 (Jul 18, 2014)

I have Ramshorns and Pond snails in my 10gal and I like them. They clean up extra food, dont mess with the plants, and they are fun to watch. I dont over feed so they stay in good numbers.


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## sweetbettafish (Sep 7, 2014)

I suggest the same as the others. Keep them in a different tank, give them away, or kill them. Snails are cute little additions though!


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