What to do with this Ramshorn snail!?

A little over a week ago, I had a hitchhiker ramshorn snail in my bag full of corys. I’m new to the hobby so I called the shop owner and asked him what to do with the snail. He told me to “toss him”, as it is a pest snail. He explained they can reproduce by themselves? I can’t bring myself to throw away something that’s alive, so I put him inside a small container.

I have been watching the snail to see what happens, and there’s already five egg sacks on the glass. Will these hatch? I bought a little 2.5 gallon tank to re-home him (or her, I guess?) into, but I was told that there will be 100’s of snails in no time. I am afraid I will be in over my head if that actually happens. I was considering abandoning this all together and just putting him into a large fountain I have outside. (There’s no chemicals in it). I fear he won’t survive the temperatures.

I am not really sure what to do with him. After researching all over, it looks like there are times that ramshorns do not reproduce solo like some people have been telling me. Any advice on the next steps would be great!

 

Don't dump snails outside. Keep them in the jar and remove egg sacks. Shouldn't get too many that way. They will only breed to what they get to eat.

 

I always kept them when they showed up. Think they look cool. Never reproduced all that much for me.

 

Don't dump snails outside. Keep them in the jar and remove egg sacks. Shouldn't get too many that way. They will only breed to what they get to eat.

So is there a chance these eggs won’t hatch?

 

is it the tiny type or the normal size ones? and what color?

a single one is not self fertile. but it has probably mated before getting into your tank, so the first few batches of eggs might be fertile. you can try to scrap the eggs off with an old credit card/gift card, etc.

what fish do you have? some fish will eat snails.

 

Mine have been self-destructing.




But I'm pretty sure that's a result of not liking the water they found themselves in.
Lucky me

 

He’s tiny. Since last week he’s gotten a little bit bigger than what you see in the picture. Color is a reddish/brown. His body is pink. He was the only snail in the tank with the corys when I brought the bag home. (From what I can remember.)

Current tank setup is just corys and zebra danios. I will be adding pearl gouramis at the end of the month. I was going to wait a see what happens with the eggs and what not before I re-homed the ramshorn into the little 2.5 gallon. (It will be filtered, heated and planted.)

is it the tiny type or the normal size ones? and what color?

a single one is not self fertile. but it has probably mated before getting into your tank, so the first few batches of eggs might be fertile. you can try to scrap the eggs off with an old credit card/gift card, etc.

what fish do you have? some fish will eat snails.

Sorry - see reply above!

 

nice ornamental ramshorn, looks like it has some spots also.

i have red ramshorns in my sump tank. when i move the larger ones into my main tank the goldfish eventually eat them.

 

If you leave the snail for a while in the small tank, just diligently remove the eggsacks and feed very little, you could be safe.
After a couple of weeks you may notice no eggs anymore, just watch her for a while longer.
I have a single Ramshorn in my 55gl tank since ~3 weeks, so far she does mot reproduce. They are fun to watch.

 

If you leave the snail for a while in the small tank, just diligently remove the eggsacks and feed very little, you could be safe.
After a couple of weeks you may notice no eggs anymore, just watch her for a while longer.
I have a single Ramshorn in my 55gl tank since ~3 weeks, so far she does mot reproduce. They are fun to watch.

Already on it! I cleaned out the water in his container today and removed the eggs. I have had him for a little over a week now and he seems to be doing great. Do you know about how big they get? This one has already grown in the short time I have had him. Also, after a few months, do you think it would be safe to move him into my 55 gallon? Maybe even my little 10 gallon? (There is just a guppy, a Cory and two Nerites in there.) Or should I keep him in a tank by himself forever?

Thanks to everyone for the information so far. It makes me a little sad that my main shop I go to would tell me to toss the little guy out, and then gave me no information on how to deal with it after telling them I was keeping the snail. They made it sound like this was going to be a complete nightmare if I moved forward with keeping him. I’m feeling a lot more hopeful now!

 

I like ramshorn snails in all my tanks. Mine only get to about a half inch size max, and don't over populate the tank as long as I don't over feed. They are fun to watch and help clean up food scraps and algae. You can move yours into your other tank at any time, I don't think the fish you have will bother them.

 

Already on it! I cleaned out the water in his container today and removed the eggs. I have had him for a little over a week now and he seems to be doing great. Do you know about how big they get? This one has already grown in the short time I have had him. Also, after a few months, do you think it would be safe to move him into my 55 gallon? Maybe even my little 10 gallon? (There is just a guppy, a Cory and two Nerites in there.) Or should I keep him in a tank by himself forever?

Thanks to everyone for the information so far. It makes me a little sad that my main shop I go to would tell me to toss the little guy out, and then gave me no information on how to deal with it after telling them I was keeping the snail. They made it sound like this was going to be a complete nightmare if I moved forward with keeping him. I’m feeling a lot more hopeful now!

My adult ramshorn is 7/8 inch now, and she is in my 55gl community tank, just cruising along. She is in the tank as my personal experiment, and no offspring so far.
The nightmare starts when you have a second one in the tank. If food is abundant they multiply happily and exponentially.
There is a lot of mixed information on the internet, very confusing.

 

My adult ramshorn is 7/8 inch now, and she is in my 55gl community tank, just cruising along. She is in the tank as my personal experiment, and no offspring so far.
The nightmare starts when you have a second one in the tank. If food is abundant they multiply happily and exponentially.
There is a lot of mixed information on the internet, very confusing.

Did you add her to your community tank immediately, or did you wait?

I was curious as to how long they stay fertile for? Someone mentioned if the one I had mated at some point prior to getting him, then I just need to hold out until he’s not fertile anymore and then I’m good to go. I can’t seem to find any information on this.

I am keeping him in a small container still, as it is easy to manage the egg sacks. I have a little 2.5 gallon ready for him to go into before I put him in one of my community tanks, but I want to make sure no baby snails emerge before then. I’m wondering when I can leave the eggs alone to see if anything happens.

 

I wouldn't add it to the main tank. They are very very hard to get rid of IME. I also think they look cool, but I wish I didn't add him to my tank. Just my experience. Good luck

 

Did you add her to your community tank immediately, or did you wait?

I was curious as to how long they stay fertile for? Someone mentioned if the one I had mated at some point prior to getting him, then I just need to hold out until he’s not fertile anymore and then I’m good to go. I can’t seem to find any information on this.

I am keeping him in a small container still, as it is easy to manage the egg sacks. I have a little 2.5 gallon ready for him to go into before I put him in one of my community tanks, but I want to make sure no baby snails emerge before then. I’m wondering when I can leave the eggs alone to see if anything happens.

For the longest time I had Ramshorn snails as a pest in the display tank, they drove me up the wall. With pure luck and determination I was able to eradicate them. The tank was for a month snail free before I added the one adult snail from my QT tank where she lived with a tiny snail population which stayed small due to minimal feeding.
The big ramshorn was in a breeder net in the display tank before escaping.
With the abundance of confusing information available it seems like everybody has to do their own experimenting or leap of faith.

 

1 single snail should not imo cause babies

I had 1 by itself with my shrimp for a yea, no Ramshorn snail babies.

dude got huge - as big a s dime. My fav snail by far, RIP big dude. Live a full year, lots of fun to watch

 

1 single snail should not imo cause babies

I had 1 by itself with my shrimp for a yea, no Ramshorn snail babies.

dude got huge - as big a s dime. My fav snail by far, RIP big dude. Live a full year, lots of fun to watch

Agreed, I should create a poll....The opinions and experiences on the internet are very mixed which drove me (and other members) to experiment. So far so good .

 

1 single snail should not imo cause babies

I had 1 by itself with my shrimp for a yea, no Ramshorn snail babies.

dude got huge - as big a s dime. My fav snail by far, RIP big dude. Live a full year, lots of fun to watch

That’s reassuring. My little ramshorn is not so little anymore. I’ve had him/her contained since December 29. Lots of eggs have been laid but I clear them out. I will probably move him to a bigger space (by himself) on February 1. At that point, I won’t clear out any eggs so I’m curious to see what happens.