# Snail help! Which snails are good?



## Vanah (Jul 26, 2011)

Apple snails, mystery snails, ramshorn snails, assassin snails, trumpet snails, pond snails, and nerite snails... OH MY!

I've never had snails. I want to have them. They're cute and make good company for small betta habitats. Smaller plecos still need more room, corys need groups, and loaches need both.

So here's what I've got and what I'm looking for:
~10G divided in half with a glass cover, so a snail or two that would be good for each 5G space with a small amount of detritus to eat in addition to sinking foods or veggies but would leave my java ferns and anubias alone

~5.5G with a standard hood (I could get a glass lid to go under if necessary) looking for a larger snail who will again leave my java fern be and be happy with detritus, sinking foods, & veggies

I've done a bunch of research but I'm getting all kinds of mixed opinions and "facts" on who eats plants, who's a pest and who isn't, etc. I know there are some really knowledgeable people here and I'd like you guys' advice on which snails are better in general and also what's better for what I want so I get the right kind.


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## TL1000RSquid (Sep 25, 2011)

Vanah said:


> Apple snails, mystery snails, ramshorn snails, assassin snails, trumpet snails, pond snails, and nerite snails... OH MY!
> 
> I've never had snails. I want to have them. They're cute and make good company for small betta habitats. Smaller plecos still need more room, corys need groups, and loaches need both.
> 
> ...


 What substrate will you be using? MTS are good if you have sand they keep it stirred up so it doesnt get compacted or build up gasses, you'll also rarely see them out during the day they come out after dark, they won't harm healthy plant leaves. Nerites are also nice, they have some interesting looking designs on their shells, they won't breed out of control they may lay egg's but the egg's can't hatch in freshwater. I've had mystery snails before they never harmed anything but they breed like rabbits.


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## Laki (Aug 24, 2011)

I hear apple snails need a mate to reproduce so you won't be overrun. I'm subbing this thread so I can learn more about them too  I think I might get a snail for Laki's tank.


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## VikingPrincess (Aug 26, 2011)

I have an apple snail. They do eat live plants though,so if you have live plants and don't want them destroyed...then maybe an apple is not the best idea? 

I give mine pellets and discs as a staple and he also eats algae and any flakes or bloodworms that fall to the bottom. I plan on trying him on lettuce tonight. Also my betta is fascinated by my snail. He always hangs around the snail and actually will watch the snail when he's on the move.


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## VikingPrincess (Aug 26, 2011)

Oh and on another note...I would also avoid ramshorn snails. I had a couple before (years ago) and a couple turned into hundreds. They infested my tanks and I had a hard time getting rid of them. Unless you got just one...but they are small so I don't see the point in having just one because it might get lost. They breed like rabbits though!


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## Foisair (Aug 3, 2011)

I've had an apple snail (which is often labeled as a mystery snail at petstores) and he was a lot of fun. He produced a lot of waste for his size though. He was very fun to watch. Being that he was bigger (his shell being about as big around as a quarter) I could see his mouth eating when he was on the side of the glass. Bettas tend to eat the antenne of apple snails. Overall, he was very fun to watch but the cons outweighed the pros for me. 

I've been looking into getting some MTS's since I changed the substrate in my planted tank to sand. Although I'm still a little nervious about the idea. Since they don't need a mate to reproduce, you could end up with a lot of them in no time. I have read that they only reproduce if there's enough food to feed everyone though. So theoreticly, they shouldn't overrun the tank if you don't feed them too much. I'm also afraid that if I do get too many, I won't be able to get rid of them if I want. 

I would love to learn more about these little guys as well so I will be watching this topic as well. ^_^


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## Laki (Aug 24, 2011)

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f24/apple-snail-vs-moss-ball-158955.html

I think this might help


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## SassyBetta (Aug 1, 2011)

im gona be getting a nerite snail and another betta for my new 5g in a week or so. they dont breed allot cuz they like brackish salty water for breeding and i think i read somewhere that they live birth so in theory if thats correct u could just scoop out the babys,,, if that is true tho. they also have such cool shells i really like them and they are as cute as a button  they also stay relitivly small-ish.


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## TL1000RSquid (Sep 25, 2011)

Foisair said:


> I've been looking into getting some MTS's since I changed the substrate in my planted tank to sand. Although I'm still a little nervious about the idea. Since they don't need a mate to reproduce, you could end up with a lot of them in no time. I have read that they only reproduce if there's enough food to feed everyone though. So theoreticly, they shouldn't overrun the tank if you don't feed them too much. I'm also afraid that if I do get too many, I won't be able to get rid of them if I want.
> 
> I would love to learn more about these little guys as well so I will be watching this topic as well. ^_^


 I have MTS in a few tanks, never had any problem with them getting out of control. Then again its hard to say how many are in each tank since they rarely come out when the lights are on, and they don't all always come out even when its dark if I shine a light in the tank at night I might only see 1-2 out or I may see 10. They're also the only snail that none of my betta's have ever harassed they'll come over and inspect it and thats about all. I've one betta that's harassed mystery snails to death.


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## TL1000RSquid (Sep 25, 2011)

SassyBetta said:


> im gona be getting a nerite snail and another betta for my new 5g in a week or so. they dont breed allot cuz they like brackish salty water for breeding and i think i read somewhere that they live birth so in theory if thats correct u could just scoop out the babys,,, if that is true tho. they also have such cool shells i really like them and they are as cute as a button  they also stay relitivly small-ish.


 Nerites can lay eggs in the tank but the eggs will not hatch in freshwater. If they do just scoop out the eggs and throw them out. Some fish might eat the eggs too.


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## Vanah (Jul 26, 2011)

Thanks everyone so far for the input. I would honestly LOVE nerites but they're not around here anywhere and I can't find a website with them in stock either. Anyone know a good place to order them? Also I read in another thread that mystery snails are just a smaller variety of apple snails, but that while apple snails turn your plants to salad mystery snails prefer just the dying leaves. Can anyone confirm that?

@TL1000RSquid, I use mixed small & medium rounded natural gravel in my tanks, is that okay for trumpet snails or do they need the sand?


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## GreenTea (Jan 31, 2011)

I have 3 apple snails and love them. They are so fun to watch and do a great job of cleaning up.


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## Pitluvs (Jun 22, 2011)

I have Trumpets, they breed like crazy. I started out with about 25, now I have to remove them by the handfulls. I have pond snails, 2 of them as my fish love to nom on the babies so they don't survive. I have one ramshorn snail in Nixons tank, it never reproduced but that tank is cleaned every three days. And last I have an Apple Snail who is huge and lazy, won't clean algae or food but loves hiim some algae wafers LOL He's one messy dude, gag. If you don't want potential over run, don't get ramshorn, pond, trumpet. Get Apple, Nirite, or Mystery. These don't reproduce on their own. 

My personal favorite is Assassins. They breed at a slow rate, keep pest snails out and tunnel in your gravel/sand to eat up food. They also leave plants alone and are peaceful towards fish.


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## GreenTea (Jan 31, 2011)

For full disclosure, I have all my apple snails in a goldfish/platy tank and don't feed them algae wafers, so they keep on the move cleaning my tank for food =]


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## Pitluvs (Jun 22, 2011)

Just to counter that, I've had mine for 2 months and started giving him wafers last week. Meanwhile the tank turned green and the gravel was yucky. This is my tropical tank lol Mine is also an adult, and adult are known to he lazy with cleanup.


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## GreenTea (Jan 31, 2011)

Annddd I should mention my goldfish/platy tank is a forest of java moss so the snails have tons to eat lol I sound like a slavedriver


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## VikingPrincess (Aug 26, 2011)

I have seen the MTS in a pet store here and liked the look. But if they breed on their own,I will probably pass on that. 

I wish I could find assassin snails here.


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## Silverfang (Mar 25, 2011)

I can see the trail from where my apple ate algae off the leaf of an anubis


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