Does it remotely make sense to quarantine large snails?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

FINWIN

Alligator Gar
MFK Member
Dec 21, 2018
5,921
9,331
188
Washington DC
I was thinking of maybe an apple snail or two, but I've never heard of snails having disease that transmits to fish.
 
Without running off to google, I *think* there is but nothing I’ve ever been worried about as long as they are tank bred snails. Wild caught snails I wouldn’t trust.
 
Wild caught snails can potentially introduce black spot disease. Even with domestic snails, the water they are in from the LFS could potentially carry numerous forms of pathogens.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MrsE88
Not sure how I could evaluate disease in a snail in quarantine? I wouldn't mess with the wild ones. The only thing I know of by sight is calcium deficiency in their shells.
 
Many times Snails hitch a ride with plants from the fish shop. Some carry parasites, but there isn't an easy way of detecting them. If your fish and tanks are healthy, you should be okay most cases
I have a recent infestation of surprise snails. I remove them and more often the fish eat them.
A few unintentioned snails can quickly turn into a large out of control infestation that compete for tank resources and emit that much more waste to pollute your
tank.
I buy Neerite Snails because they work hard to eliminate algae and detritus from the tank. They are attractively colored additions and can't reproduce in most tank conditions, requiring special brackish water conditions.
You can tell if your snails are reproducing if you see flat, clear circles against your tank walls. If you look closely, you will see tiny clear eggs inside the gelantinous masses. I remove them. Snails may also eat your plants, although Neerite usually don't.
Cichlids, puffers, some loaches-yoyo loaches and other fish will eat Snails. Crush the snail shell against the tank wall, and most of your other fish can pick out the meat as a treat.
 
For snails that I purposely buy at the fish shop, such as Nerite Snails, I trickle acclimate them to the water as I would my fish.
 
Some carry parasites, but there isn't an easy way of detecting them. If your fish and tanks are healthy, you should be okay most cases

That really depends on the LFS, and their tanks. A single drop of water can introduce parasites/pathogens/viruses, etc. I'm personally not big on gambling with my livestock, some that I have invested many years in, so at the very least I would for sure qt anything going into their tanks for at least a few weeks. Personally, I wouldn't even risk adding snails from a LFS, but that's just me.
 
  • Like
Reactions: phreeflow
A good rule of thumb is quarantine everything before intro in ur tank. If you have to question it then quarantine it.
 
This kind of thing is what woukd worry me about a Schoutedeni Puffer, which I think I'd eventually want to own. I'd be afraid to feed random snails to it.

I'm follow Aquarium Coop's experiences with them. Cory said there's word that the teeth may not grow on them as much as other Puffers so may be less of a concern.

When they are bigger, there's frozen clams on the half shell.

I guess there's growing your own snails for a puffer but I would think it would be hard to generate enough of them.
 
Our local grocer sells live clams, I would freeze, then within 30 days unthaw and feed to my puffer. Never had any issues following that routine.
 
MonsterFishKeepers.com