I just bought a snail from a big company pet store which I've had issues with in the past but they are the closest place to get snails. I bought a blue mystery snail to help with algae on the glass in my tank. The last snail got was a while ago and had the same problem. I put him in the tank and made sure he was faced down so he could crawl away when he decided he wanted to. Just checked on him and he was flipped back upside down from the current maybe? But his underside is like a disk and looks hard like he dried out. I'll try to get a picture and figure out how to post it if that will help
Did they sell me a dead snail?
- Thread starter bunnybear
- Start date
Did you acclimate him first? If you just put them in they can die due to shock. They are actually very sensitive to water conditions!
most big box stores have a generous policy on getting a replacement if a fish dies within a week or so.
Likely what you are seeing is the snail's foot, disk shaped, flat, hard and seals the shell opening. Unfortunately, there is no telling if it is dead or alive. I'd just let it sit over night and see if it moves. If not it is likely toast. If that is the case, take a small container of aquarium water and put the shell in it, just in case he comes back to life. Then go back to the store and pick one that is out and moving. If they give you any flack tell them it looked like a combo of pus and snot, trust me they won't want it back.
In the future I would suggest you purchase your live stock from breeders either here in the classifieds or on Aquabid. The vast majority of the time you will get healthy robust animals and expert knowledge from the breeder. I always ask questions and encourage anyone who buys my fish to ask away. I advise them that they are welcome to contact me throughout the life of the animal. The shipping may add cost, but not infecting your tank or buying hald dead animals is worth it. The quality difference is drastic.
In the future I would suggest you purchase your live stock from breeders either here in the classifieds or on Aquabid. The vast majority of the time you will get healthy robust animals and expert knowledge from the breeder. I always ask questions and encourage anyone who buys my fish to ask away. I advise them that they are welcome to contact me throughout the life of the animal. The shipping may add cost, but not infecting your tank or buying hald dead animals is worth it. The quality difference is drastic.
He left an indent by the one he was by yesterday. He moved to the other side of my tank and hasn't seemed to mess with the plant on that side and cleaned off the air bubbler tube today. He should have plenty of algae to eat so I think he'll be well fed for a while at least. When I do my next water change, should I scrape some of the algae off even though he's in there? There's quite a bit on the front and back of my tank
For my tanks I generally do the front and sides (because I look through those) but if your tank can be viewed from all sides then clean them
it's more of a preference of how you like it to look (provided you keep your fish and snails fed and don't expect them to survive on whatever grows in the tank)
Mine is more functional in that I prefer to watch my fish graze and watch as they follow my finger as I move it over the glass
If your tank is for show/display (or your significant other thinks it's messy) then go ahead and clean it to make it look nice
it's more of a preference of how you like it to look (provided you keep your fish and snails fed and don't expect them to survive on whatever grows in the tank)
Mine is more functional in that I prefer to watch my fish graze and watch as they follow my finger as I move it over the glass
If your tank is for show/display (or your significant other thinks it's messy) then go ahead and clean it to make it look nice
