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13-01-2008, 12:27 PM
| | New Member | | Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 2
| | | Giant land snail HELP Hello to all,
please help, My sons giant african land snails are breeding like Rabbits we now have two lots of cute little snails god knows how many but there are loads  does anyone know where i can rehome them? and can i do anything to stop them breeding again i.e cange temp of tank. My son does not want to split them up as he says they will get lonley. | 
13-01-2008, 12:40 PM
| | Officer of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 611
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Sorry - cannot advise what to do with the surplus, but I do know this is a relatively common problem. It seems Giant land snails are the new stick insects as far as kid's pet projects go!   | 
13-01-2008, 12:42 PM
| | Officer of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 611
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP By the way chrylisa, welcome to the forum! I see that was your first post  | 
13-01-2008, 03:02 PM
| | Frozen | | Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: march, cambridgeshire
Posts: 2,176
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP hi chrylisa welcome to the site,sorry i cant help you on giant land snails havnt a clue,but if you want to stop the breeding the only way is to seporate the lovers. | 
13-01-2008, 04:01 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: North Yorkshire
Posts: 3,862
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP If you separate them they wont get lonely, they are not quite as affectionate as us humans. Perhaps cooling the tank would reduce it, but would make the snails very slow and could cause problems.
__________________ Hunting is not a sport. In a sport, both sides should know they're in the game!! | 
13-01-2008, 06:32 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Lancashire
Posts: 3,203
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP I would definately separate them.  Apparently you can stop the eggs from hatching by freezing them for 24 hrs but I would question the reasons for continuous use of this method where separation is possible.
__________________ Be glad that it happened, not sad that it's over.
Last edited by demicav; 13-01-2008 at 06:38 PM.
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15-01-2008, 06:11 PM
| | New Member | | Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 2
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Thank you all. I fear the only way is to split them up. My son is having a lip wobble as we speak. | 
15-01-2008, 06:25 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Hertfordshire..
Posts: 2,541
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Hi ther Chylisa welcome to the forum...with reference to your snail breeding problem ...Ive read that if you provide them with less than 1inch of substrate this will discourage them from breeding... Giant African Land Snails page
Julie
__________________ A Promise isn't kept until Its Delivered. | 
15-01-2008, 06:48 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: West Molesey, Surrey
Posts: 1,648
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP I'm no expert but as snails are hermaphrodites they can fertilise themselves ifr necessary I think. So separating them might not solve the problem.
Try asking your local pet shop if they can suggest somewhere or take them off your hand themselves.
Do not release into the wild.
Cheers,
Adam | 
15-01-2008, 07:00 PM
|  | Knight Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Little village called Chedworth
Posts: 5,023
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Adam Cheeseman I'm no expert but as snails are hermaphrodites they can fertilise themselves ifr necessary I think. So separating them might not solve the problem.
Try asking your local pet shop if they can suggest somewhere or take them off your hand themselves.
Do not release into the wild.
Cheers,
Adam | I would second the do not release into the wild suggestion I think this species is an ecological disater waiting to happen myself..... | 
15-01-2008, 07:02 PM
|  | Member of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: South Cumbria
Posts: 330
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP I took some on a couple of years ago due to similar circumstances. Very tasty they were too. | 
15-01-2008, 07:10 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Berkshire
Posts: 2,296
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by The Woodman I took some on a couple of years ago due to similar circumstances. Very tasty they were too. | I was going to suggest it but thought better of it....................  | 
15-01-2008, 07:36 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Hertfordshire..
Posts: 2,541
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Stewy I was going to suggest it but thought better of it....................  | Stewy how could you even think of it...
Stick to your bacon sarnies...
Julie
__________________ A Promise isn't kept until Its Delivered. | 
15-01-2008, 07:54 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Berkshire
Posts: 2,296
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by juliejam Stewy how could you even think of it...
Stick to your bacon sarnies...
Julie | Don't worry Julie, I wouldn't be able to bring myself to do it, I ate a whelk once and that was enough, let alone massive snails............ | 
15-01-2008, 09:36 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Hertfordshire..
Posts: 2,541
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Stewy Don't worry Julie, I wouldn't be able to bring myself to do it, I ate a whelk once and that was enough, let alone massive snails............ | Quite a few yrs back I can remember being over in Brussels with my aunt and having my choice of a seafood plater which i enjoyed enormously..My aunt had ordered Snails ...I can remember watching her munching away on these which seemed like an eternity she did managed to munch her way through a fair few...
Julie
__________________ A Promise isn't kept until Its Delivered. | 
15-01-2008, 09:41 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Gloucestershire
Posts: 1,373
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Adam Cheeseman I'm no expert but as snails are hermaphrodites they can fertilise themselves ifr necessary I think. So separating them might not solve the problem.
Try asking your local pet shop if they can suggest somewhere or take them off your hand themselves.
Do not release into the wild.
Cheers,
Adam | I was going to say the same... they don't need to breed do they, like stick insects, I remember I ended up with hundreds. One of those problem pets that you think will be easy to look after and ends up being a nuisance. They're a delicacy in Africa, the snails that is.
__________________ "Paw print marks leave a tell tale sign, there's a furry friend loose and committing a crime." SFA | 
15-01-2008, 09:43 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: North Yorkshire
Posts: 3,862
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Adam Cheeseman I'm no expert but as snails are hermaphrodites they can fertilise themselves ifr necessary I think. So separating them might not solve the problem.
Adam | Hermaphrodites like Snails are not Parthenogenetic so they still need fertilization from a different individual.
__________________ Hunting is not a sport. In a sport, both sides should know they're in the game!! | 
15-01-2008, 09:56 PM
| | New Member | | Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 20
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Hi there chrylisa,
I keep land snails myself!...You may find these sites and forums VERY helpful.... Keeping Pet Snails & Slugs - Snail & Slug Care, species, health & much more... PetSnails Forum - Home SuperSnails - Home
I highly recommend reading through their info!! If you don't want to separate them then the only course of action is to remove and freeze the eggs as soon as they are laid......I personally think that snails function better when they have their own company.
You may find that the snail forums could also help with the rehoming of the young snails....  | 
15-01-2008, 09:58 PM
|  | Member of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southend, Essex
Posts: 328
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Quote:
Originally Posted by Stewy Don't worry Julie, I wouldn't be able to bring myself to do it, I ate a whelk once and that was enough, let alone massive snails............ | How can you not like whelks 
__________________ Enjoy when you can, and endure when you must.
Chris | 
15-01-2008, 10:10 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: May 2006 Location: Berkshire
Posts: 2,296
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP A little bit chewy for my liking Brocker.......... | 
16-01-2008, 08:30 PM
|  | Member of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: South Cumbria
Posts: 330
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP You'll find land snails featured on this site. Document sans-titre | 
18-01-2008, 06:04 PM
| | New Member | | Join Date: Jan 2008
Posts: 6
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Separating them is really the only option in my opinion. I'm sure that temperature changes would also have some effect, unfortunately then you have unhappy snails who could possibly die, which kind of defeats the purpose.
God Bless,
Joshua | 
11-08-2008, 06:49 PM
| | New Member | | Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Essex
Posts: 6
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP Hi there
Ive owned Giant African Land Snails since I was 13
If I was you I would keep your snails together!! But check once a day for eggs, on finding them take them out the compost/bark chipping carefully and place them in a sandwich bag...the kindest thing to do with them is to place them in your freezer for a day or too, the earlier you do this the better as they wont be developed. GALS do have both female and male reproductive organs and cannot inseminate themselves. To produce fertilised eggs there has to be 2 snails, once one has done the job of inseminating the sperm in the other that sperm can last a year or more in the snail, so even seperting them on their own doesnt mean you wont have unfertilised eggs.......In my humble opinion snails are social, Ive spent months watching them and this is just what I have experienced.....
I hope this info helps you, there is so much info on these fascinating creatures, do some searching and most sites will tell you the same
Regards
M
x | 
14-08-2008, 07:25 PM
|  | Commander of the Wild Empire | | Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: West Molesey, Surrey
Posts: 1,648
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP [quote=chrylisa;220097] and can i do anything to stop them breeding again /QUOTE]
Garlic butter and a steady heat usually does the trick
Cheers,
Adam | 
15-08-2008, 07:24 AM
| | Frozen | | Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: UK
Posts: 227
| | | Re: Giant land snail HELP [quote=Adam Cheeseman;320556] Quote:
Originally Posted by chrylisa and can i do anything to stop them breeding again /QUOTE]
Garlic butter and a steady heat usually does the trick
Cheers,
Adam | Apparently there is a market for these snails among North London African restaurants - especially Nigerian - I believe Customs Officers find lots of these beasties being brought in from West Africa as permissible "pets" - i.e. one at a time - in plastic boxes in people's luggage. Served in slices I understand. So maybe you are on to a pocket-money booster there.
(And apologies if this has all been said earlier in the postings!) |  | | | | Thread Tools | | | | Display Modes | | | |