New Mystery Snail With Thin Cracked Shell

Hi,

I bought 2 mystery snails online, but when they arrived it looked like the package must have been handled roughly in transit, because one's shell had completely cracked and it had died. The other was still alive but has some small cracks.

It's shell also seems very thin and pitted compared to what I would expect.

What can I do to help my new snail buddy out? Are they able to thicken up or repair their shell on their own? If not, I've seen some places online recommend repairing weak shell with superglue - would this be helpful? I've put some cuttlefish bone in the filter to add calcium.

Here's a picture:

 

It should be okay, they can regrow their shells. Good luck!

 

Aw, sorry about the poor shipping. Unfortunately, unless it's severely cracked (exposed flesh, etc) the damaged parts generally won't heal. The best thing to do is to make sure there is enough calcium in your water, and you can add extra using cuttlebone, like the kind you get for birds. Take out the metal bit and put it in the filter or something, just so it's out of sight.
As for places to get them from, once you hit 50 posts, people on here sell them (including me, but I only sell the black ones). Oh and the 50 post requirement is to access the BSTF (buy sell trade free) section of the forum. You can also check out aquabid, many mystery snail sellers have great reviews. Some places on eBay may work as well.
If you don't mind my asking, where did you get these guys from? And how we're they shipped (what did they come in, like a cup or water?)

 

Thanks - that's good to hear that it'll probably be ok on it's own.

I'm in New Zealand, so I'm pretty limited on where to buy. I got these ones on our local equivalent of ebay. The seller had put them in a plastic container which was lined with damp paper towel. The couriers here are useless, so it wouldn't surprise me if they just threw the package around. It was also delayed by a day because they sorted it wrong and it went to the wrong suburb. Even worse - this was the second pair she sent me, because the first delivery was stolen out of my mailbox. I was home when they delivered it but they didn't bother trying the door, and also didn't update the tracking to say it was delivered until the next day - by then it was gone.

Next time I'll wait until I can find some locally instead of trying to ship them.

 

Thanks - that's good to hear that it'll probably be ok on it's own.

I'm in New Zealand, so I'm pretty limited on where to buy. I got these ones on our local equivalent of ebay. The seller had put them in a plastic container which was lined with damp paper towel. The couriers here are useless, so it wouldn't surprise me if they just threw the package around. It was also delayed by a day because they sorted it wrong and it went to the wrong suburb. Even worse - this was the second pair she sent me, because the first delivery was stolen out of my mailbox. I was home when they delivered it but they didn't bother trying the door, and also didn't update the tracking to say it was delivered until the next day - by then it was gone.

Next time I'll wait until I can find some locally instead of trying to ship them.

Wow, that just sounds like a load of bad luck, I'm sorry. It looks like there isn't a New Zealand subsection of the BSTF forum, but there is an Australian one, and I know you're not the first person from New Zealand on here.
Sorry to say, but your best bet is probably a pet store within driving distance, I don't know what chains you guys have over there, and I know there's some heavier restrictions. Other than that, I guess retrying with a different seller, but I get being hesitant over that.
But yes, as long as flesh isn't exposed it should be okay. I did have one with a bad crack that continued to spread even with the new growth, but didn't seem to suffer any ill effects and lived a full lifespan. The new shell growth will likely be thicker, and often changes a bit in color, so if it does there's nothing to worry about. If it seems to be growing in thinner, add some cuttlebone, seashells, or boiled eggshells with the membrane removed.

 

Thanks - I've never seen mystery snails for sale in actual pet shops here, but there are often people selling them in facebook groups. I'll just wait until I see some there and grab a couple next time, I'm not in a rush.

The restrictions here are super strict- there's a list of allowed species, and almost no invertebrates are on it. Even for the allowed ones, they have to be quarantined for 6 weeks before they can go into pet stores, so they're really expensive. For example, the going rate for an oto here is about $15.

I can understand why they do it though. We've had a few introduced fish species get free and wreck natural ecosystems. I'm ok with a limited selection in my tank if it saves the native populations. Also, on the plus side, it means that by the time you buy them you don't have to worry about early die off, because they've already survived the quarantine. Out of around 30 fish I've bought from my lfs in the past few months, I've only lost one.

 

Thanks - I've never seen mystery snails for sale in actual pet shops here, but there are often people selling them in facebook groups. I'll just wait until I see some there and grab a couple next time, I'm not in a rush.

The restrictions here are super strict- there's a list of allowed species, and almost no invertebrates are on it. Even for the allowed ones, they have to be quarantined for 6 weeks before they can go into pet stores, so they're really expensive. For example, the going rate for an oto here is about $15.

I can understand why they do it though. We've had a few introduced fish species get free and wreck natural ecosystems. I'm ok with a limited selection in my tank if it saves the native populations. Also, on the plus side, it means that by the time you buy them you don't have to worry about early die off, because they've already survived the quarantine. Out of around 30 fish I've bought from my lfs in the past few months, I've only lost one.

Well I certainly hope someone sells some nice ones near you soon. Out of curiosity, are you planning on breeding them?
It's a shame they get out and wreck such damage, in Florida here we have Burmese pythons people released once they found out how big they got, and now they're easy everything in the Everglades, even the crocodiles. Certain things are restricted depending on state, like I can't get mosquito fish but just about everyone else can, lol. I know in Canada and the UK the main issue is tons of medications are restricted, and in India and China a lot of the common use medications aren't available.
And we started to have issues with common plecos in lakes and stuff, people just dump them because they get huge.
It's interesting to see how every place is different, with different availabilities of different things in the hobby
That's an expensive oto! I have a really great LFS near me, and everything is in great health, but it's all pretty expensive. Like the mystery snails are $6 usd each, I think that's $9 nzd. Lol, if I buy three online, it's cheaper than buying them in store, even with shipping.

 

Don't put cuttlebone in the filter. The snails need to eat the cuttle bone. Make sure vegetables are in the tank. This will make the cracked shell heal up. Plenty of vegetables and meats will help as well.

 

Don't put cuttlebone in the filter. The snails need to eat the cuttle bone. Make sure vegetables are in the tank. This will make the cracked shell heal up. Plenty of vegetables and meats will help as well.

Can seashells and eggshells go in the filter though? Huh, I keep my cuttlebone in the tank but I've never seen them eat it... Lol at least I was doing it right

 

Can seashells and eggshells go in the filter though? Huh, I keep my cuttlebone in the tank but I've never seen them eat it... Lol at least I was doing it right

I wouldn't try seashells in the tank. Only in the filter, but eggshells are safe. And same! They likely suck some up as they move over the cuttlebone!

 

I wouldn't try seashells in the tank. Only in the filter, but eggshells are safe. And same! They likely suck some up as they move over the cuttlebone!

Why no seashells? I use them in quite a few of my tanks and haven't had any issues. Just the salt? I always boil them for 30 minutes before using them, then give a good rinse.

 

Why no seashells? I use them in quite a few of my tanks and haven't had any issues. Just the salt? I always boil them for 30 minutes before using them, then give a good rinse.

I personally wouldn't use them because I can just see the snails going over them and injurying themselves! Mine were very clumsy though.

 

Don't put cuttlebone in the filter. The snails need to eat the cuttle bone. Make sure vegetables are in the tank. This will make the cracked shell heal up. Plenty of vegetables and meats will help as well.

Ah, thanks. I had put some in the filter, but I'll move it to the tank. I have zucchinI in there too that he's been munching on.

Well I certainly hope someone sells some nice ones near you soon. Out of curiosity, are you planning on breeding them?
It's a shame they get out and wreck such damage, in Florida here we have Burmese pythons people released once they found out how big they got, and now they're easy everything in the Everglades, even the crocodiles. Certain things are restricted depending on state, like I can't get mosquito fish but just about everyone else can, lol. I know in Canada and the UK the main issue is tons of medications are restricted, and in India and China a lot of the common use medications aren't available.
And we started to have issues with common plecos in lakes and stuff, people just dump them because they get huge.
It's interesting to see how every place is different, with different availabilities of different things in the hobby
That's an expensive oto! I have a really great LFS near me, and everything is in great health, but it's all pretty expensive. Like the mystery snails are $6 usd each, I think that's $9 nzd. Lol, if I buy three online, it's cheaper than buying them in store, even with shipping.

Mosquito fish are a big problem here too. Also, koi have also taken over our waterways and are banned from being kept as pets now. The main thing I get jealous of is freshwater shrimp. They're so cute, but there are none allowed on our import list. We have native freshwater shrimp that some people catch and keep as pets, but you need to keep them in a cold water tank - and that's cold as in under 18C, so you have to have a chiller.

No, I'm not planning to breed them, I don't have the extra tank space. At this stage, I think I'll put one or two in each tank and remove eggs if I see them.

 

HiI that crack is just tiny and superficial the snail should be just fine. I’m more worried about the new growth starting there. Make sure it is eating a meat based sinking pellet at least 5 days a week. Vegetable or algae 2 days a week. Cuttlebone is useless whether they eat it or not. It’s more effective if you crush it and put it in a bag in the filter. What is much better is calcium powder. You can read about it in my care guide pinned to the top of this snail section. Eggshells if cooked around 150 F in the oven for like 45 minutes and then crushed into a powder and put in the water is effective but you’d need to add more powder every week. Maybe a dozen cooked and crushed eggshells a week for a 10 gallon tank. It’s much easier to go with calcium powder. You can buy it in the reptile section. Boiling sea shells and using them is fine. It doesn’t help the calcium but it does raise the hardness in the water which is also good for their shells. Read the care guide and then let me know if you have and more questions!

 

It isn't new growth at the edge, it looks that way because the edge was all chipped up in shipping too. It's grown back in now, but there's a distinct line where the old cracked edge was.

Do you have any tips for feeding sinking pellets without my betta getting them? I've tried but the snail is too slow and I just end up with a bloated betta

 

I accidentally have one in my bettas tank, and I run into that problem as well. So far, the betta hasn't seemed interested in snello, but I only drop snello in maybe once a week since there's so much infusoria all over (it's really cool to see the snail eat that).
If it helps, for snello I ground up a bunch of flakes, blanched some kale, and added in some unflavored gelatin.
What kind of sinking pellets do you feed? Mystery snails need a good deal of protein. Is there anyway or anyplace, you can put the pellet where the betta won't notice? Maybe locate the snail, feed the betta on one end of the tank and drop the pellet right by the snail.
That's the best I got, sorry

 

I'd been using algae wafers because I thought they needed more vege matter, but I have other sinking pellets I can switch to.

The betta smells food the moment it's in the tank. I've tried dropping a piece of pellet right in front of the snail while the tank is dark, and still found the betta taking bites out of it while the snail was eating it.

I might try your snello recipe - maybe the gelatin will dilute the scent enough to keep her away until the snail has had a chance to eat it.

 

I use hikarI bottom feeder wafers in the orange bag, and feed the bettas first. I feed the bettas a little then drop the wafers then give the bettas a bit more of their food