Rotted food?

[katie]

I'v been reading through some stuff on the internet about the feeding of Snails, and came across a site that said Snails prefer to eat rotted food to fresh. If this true? I've not heard it before, but then again the only stuff I read about feeding is the food lists

Can't find the site now, but im pretty sure that what it said?

Katie x

[feebix]

Yes it`s true. Some species more than others for example Sublima octona really love thier rotten food. All snails benefit from having an amount of rotten food because it contains various enzimes that they need to thrive. The very first lesson I learnt with keeping snails was to not keep them clean, to let them make a mess and leave rotten food in the tank. Keeping snail tanks really clean isn`t the way to go at all. Of course letting the food rot will mean you`ll see an increase in mites but bare in mind that not all mites are bad, I have plenty of springtails and various crawley things in my tanks, they eat snail poo and the rotten food. Think of it as creating a little mini environment for them, mimicing thier natural environment as closely as possible means rotten food and a few mites.

[katie]

Ooooh, didn't know that lmao.
So how much do you leave in (for Fulica) baring in mind that my tanks above my bed, and I don't want my room infested and stinky lool

[AlienSnail]

Yep, just what Feebo said.

I give mine some fresh every day, but I give more than they require and leave the old food in there until it disappears. Occasionally there will be mould and I when I see it I throw it away, I don't like to leave mould in the tanks, though I doubt that it would hurt the snails.
As for smell - well it doesn't! The only food that I find has a strong smell is banana, and they don't have that often.

You'll get to know which snails appreciate spoiled veg and which go for fresh, even the ones that won't eat the spoiled food will benefit from having the enzymes around in the soil.

Yes you will get little crawlies, I don;'t know where they come from some times, but as long as they aren't actual snail-mites it's fine. The snail mites will hang around the snail's air hole mainly, whereas general little mites eat food and poo and appear to be completely harmless.

[feebix]

Yep, banana is smelly but everything else is fine ! I still offer banana because `ol Poo loves them but I`ll always take those out the next day, everything else rarely gets taken out, I leave it there to rot. Also, as well as helping the snails, think about how a compost heap works, the little creatures eat the waste food and excrete it, then smaller creatures eat the poo and excrete that and eventually you have compost ! I use clean worms also but I`m sure it maintains the compost when done properly, I rarely need to actually change my compost.

[crossless]

I like to give rotten food for them, why you should everyday food if it's edible, we don't throw the next day our yesterdays food away. So small bugs really comes out nowhere, you can easily grow some mealworms and fruit flyies how weird. I'm going to try some day get some worms in tank, I think I buy them from some fishing store have to see. But plate I will always use, uh disgusting get in tank some huge worms and some noisey flies after while they are everywhere. Worms keep soil nice and airy too.

Now days I some how know how much they eat but they have eating heavily days and then nibbling days and I can't be all the time adding more food I don't like disturb them too often. If I put the right amount food in and just little leftovers I don't prother take them out at all then maybe when plate needs cleaning.

[welsh]

Yes my tigers are like that some days they will bulk up and other days just a nibble if anything. And yes banannas got smelly and mouldy fast, and oats smell like puke lol i forgot to take them out for a day and omg uuuuwwwwww! BLLUUUURRRR

[feebix]

I`ll remember that LOL I haven`t had the little scarid fly for ages for some reason, maybe it`s the wrong time of year, I suppose it is. I always recomend clean worms though, they do a sterling job keeping the compost in good condition ! I started out with nine worms and I`ve got hundreds and hundreds now ! lol I was amazed to learn that worms lay eggs, with three little worms in each egg. I`ve seen them mating aswell, it looked like two worms wrapped together with a bit of hair or something until I realised what was going on lol Using worms and woodlice is refered to as using a "Custodian layer" which is a really fitting term actually, they are like little diddy caretakers ;D

[crossless]

I don't mind those fruit flies but those nother kind of flies were size or normal fly. Did you know that worms are hermafrodite too but after mating they lose they nother sex so they come female or male. Example 2 worms mate, nother one "decide" to be male and nothe female, aften mating male comes only female and female is now only male. After that they can you mate with opposite sex. Biology it's so fun and weird.

[feebix]

Oh blimey ! lol Normal sized flies eeew !! lol