Mystery Snails

Skunkmang

i have 2 mystery snails, they are both VERY inactive right now. i know they are known to go dormant. but i wanted to ask you guys just how long they really do go for. i have read days and sometimes weeks. mine have been about a week and a half. i know they are not dead cause they do not smell, they retract further if touched and only once in this time they did move, when i dropped an algae puck in, they moved away from it but HEY it was life in them lol.

the only thing i have changed was i dropped the Temp from 82 to 80 just before they went dormant, should i try putting it back up? the reason i dropped it was i was told that that was a little on the warm side. Will they not starve if they do not come out?

i do not know the parameters of the tank at this time (i have to go out and get a test kit soon)

Thanks!

Lupin

Need to check water parameters to be sure. Water changes won't hurt though until you have the parameters.

Where did you get the snails?
How did you acclimate them?
How long have you kept them?

Yes, your current temperature is too warm. It can shorten their lifespan. Ideal temp should be 72-78 degrees Fahrenheit.

Skunkmang

As for water changes i do regular weekly changes of 20-30%as well as 5ml of nutrafin aquaplus and 5ml of nutrafin cycle, i got the snails from 2 separate pet stores, if what i think you mean by "assimilate" is true (if not please correct me) i did the same as i was told to do with my fish let them float for 15 min. in bag then open bag add some aquarium water and leave for another 15 min. then add fish (or in this case snail) only into tank then i add 5ml of nutrafin cycle. The one i have had for about 2 months the other about 1.5 months.

Is it odd that they would both go dormant at the same time? and for this long? can anyone tell my from experience how long they can go dormant and be ok? or how long i can wait till i give up and should remove and dispose of them?

Thanks!

Inga

Several of my adults are dormant right now. My understanding is that months can pass before they become active again.

Skunkmang

Ok thanks thats good to know, but scary at the same time (how many poor snails have been tossed in the garbage by mistake :( ).

i was wondering, i know this would be the wrong place to start this question but since it was mentioned, how accurate are the thermometers that stick to the outside of the tank? i have the heater set to 25C (77F) and the thermometer is showing 26-28ishC (79-82ishF) if i had to guess i would say they suck or is it the thermostat on my heater that sucks?

redchigh

I've never seen a thermostat that was 100% accurate. Just drop the heater's stated temp by about 3 degrees per day until it's at the right temp.

Lupin

There is no reason your snails go dormant with that high temperature. Something else could have triggered this unusual behavior. I wonder how big and how old these snails are.

Skunkmang

OK, well i have bad news... :( they both died

RIP little buddies

i do not know how to tell how old they are (or were) but one was about 3/4" wide and the other was a little over 1" wide

I FINALLY got parameter test kits well not all but here:

PH: 7.6
Ammonia: < .05ppm
Nitrite: unknown
Nitrate: 5.0ppm

i would really like to know what killed them i really like the Mystery snails and i would like to get more but not till i figure out what happened... i don't want to kill any more.

Lupin

Hmmm...The ammonia couldn't be that toxic with pH at 7.6. What test kit was used?

The size unfortunately will not accurately tell me the age. Some grow faster than the others.

What decors do you have? Check them for metal flecks. If there are metal flecks, ditch them though the high pH and hardness make them less toxic, still not something snails can stand anyway.

Skunkmang

Well i don't think there is any metal in my tank... The paint on one of the ornaments is peeling a bit but it is plastic under it.

Until VERY recently i was importing water from town (i live in the country on a well) and using Nutrafin Aqua Plus to condition the water. I did this cause i know there is Sulfur and Iron in my well water. I have now switched to my well water by advice of a fish specialty store owner that said he used to import water from a well in my area lol! But i have made the switch after i discovered the snails demise.

The body of the smaller one was non existent but the larger one when i took it out was basically like soup and poured out of the shell.

The only thing i can think of is my daughter must have gotten something into the tank cause they were doing so well before and i didn't change anything. She is 2 1/2 and loves to help me with the "fishies" including at one point dumping a whole bag of algae pucks in.

All i can do i guess is get another and see what happens.