# Mystery snails?



## lunalove199 (Jul 30, 2010)

I know they can go with bettas and I herd they eat the fish food and they eat some veggies. I was wondering how do i feed the snails if the fish eats the food? lol. I give my bettas food until they dont want any. Should I take out the snails and put them in another container and feed them and put them back with the bettas or what should i do. Ive never owned any snails lol.

Thanks :]


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## 1fish2fish (Sep 10, 2009)

First thing.. make sure your tank is big enough. Mystery snails are BIG poopers so they must be treated like a fish. Meaning that if you want to put a snail with a betta I would recommend nothing smaller than 3 gallons, 4+ gallons being preferable.

Second... you can get sinking algae pellets to feed your snails. Be warned though because many bettas will nibble on these so its best to feed the snail at night about 1 hour after you turn the tank light off. You will also need to substitute calcium rich foods like spinach and kale because snails need high levels of calcium for proper shell growth.

Third.. when you say you feed your bettas "food until they dont want any".. how much are you giving them? I only ask because a betta's stomach is roughly the size of its eye so you should only feed a small amount so they don't get bloated/constipated. I wouldn't want your guys getting sick 

Mystery snails are great tank mates and IMO fun to watch crawling around the tank. As long as you have a big enough tank and do proper feeding they should be great tank mates.


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## Welsh (Apr 13, 2010)

I feed my mystery snails Hikari crab cuisine which is calcium enriched and helps strengthen their shell, other than that I feed them nothing, occasionally I will throw in the odd algae wafer but depending on my bettas mood I often see them swimming with the wafer in their mouth, its comical but inappropriate lol As for the tank space some people say they require 2.5 galls where others say 5, I personally have kept 3 MS in a 2.5 gallon with 23 RCS and have had the water params where they should be, I don't recommend it unless you are willing to do the extra water changes and as 1fish2fish said they are extremely big poopers.


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## Kokonoko (Jul 28, 2010)

Yep, big poopers for sure. Contrary to belief they are horrible tank cleaners, mainly due to first reason, by also because they don't actually clean anything at either an alarming rate or an effective rate. although, the poop isn't like that of a fish in most cases, it contains a micro organism that lives in its digestive track to help it break down foods. When in the water though it creates a hazy fog. If you've had a fish tank a few weeks prior to putting the snail in, you'll definently notice a diffirence.

One thing that is fairly unknown is that mystery snails actually -do not- do well in tropical climate waters. This brings them out of thier comfort zone (although still survivable of course) and often times makes them incredibly less active then normal. This is displayed by the snail often sitting in spots for a day, with little to no movement, and often near the top of the tank or floating. 

Also, be sure to check for metals in your tap water, as these can quickly kill snails.


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