|
Post by laurent on Aug 30, 2008 10:02:40 GMT
Hi there,
I'm finally back ! thank you all for your support. My mom is getting better. The doctors are positive about 2 things : a/she's made a complete recovery, b/it's going to happen again if the cause isn't found (and it isn't yet but they're still searching).
I got my 2 snails back yesterday. They are ALIVE ! they havent been eating until two days ago, and have roughtly kept the same behaviour during my absence. Even now that they're eating again (carrots) and not producing this yellow substance, they do not burrow.
Therefore, I'm trying to understand what happened, and the only environmental factor I can think of is the substrate. even though it has been cleaned before putting it into the tank, I am wondering if this lot wasn't treated or something. If so, it may have affected all the snails, some surviving, and the others not. After all the time that it has now spent in the tank, the toxin may have gone down (with the watering), leaving the surface more inhabitable. That would explain why they're not burrowing.
Has anyone seen Tigers not burrowing for a month ? I for one never did.
So what do say : do I change the substrate for a clean, pesticide free, one ?
AlienSnail, how is BigBoo doing ? I hope he's better now.
Thanks again, Laurent
|
|
|
Post by AlienSnail on Aug 30, 2008 10:27:06 GMT
That's great news that your mother is expected to fully recover. I really hope they can find the cause though to prevent it from happening again.
Yes I think it's worth changing the substrate again for a fresh one, but also worth, in my opinion, getting some from other snails tanks (that have niot been affected by any illness) and putting it in there, mixing it with the fresh substrate.
This should contain enzymes and bacteria that are helpful for the snails and may help them to recover. It is only a theory, but it does appear to be true that snails need certain bacteria in their environement to help them to digest their food.
I'm pleased to hear that your snails appear to be recovering.
BigBoo is not healthy. He spends almost all of his time dormant, comes out briefly to smell the food, but hardly even nibbles at it. The he just gives up and goes back into his shell. It's a sad sight. On a plus side he does come out by himself, without me having to wake him up.
The other two Tiger snails are a bit slow but are eating and moving around a bit.
All other snails appear to be unaffected.
Burrowing.... When some of my Tigers were young they burrowed every day and came out at night. When they got older, and the Tigers I had that were already older, they didn't burrow much. However some of them usually liked to hide under a fake hollowed out half-log I have in there.
|
|
|
Post by laurent on Sept 2, 2008 17:37:42 GMT
Hi
and here is another update, with good news ! I have cleaned the tank, cleaned everything that is inside (pool, bricks*, food plate), rinsed everything and put new substrate. I've added water, food and my snails.
Guess what : they carried on eating (5 days in a row, it sounds safer, doesn't it ?) and they buried. Not deeply, but yet, they have gone back to their old habits.
* about the bricks, I used new ones in more or less the same setting than before. My aim is to provide the snails with a different soil texture and fun park, as well as a heating device for the substrate. My heat-mat is on the side of the tank, and I put 2 bricks underneath the substrate in a zone not touched directly by the heat-mat and a third one on top of them, perpendicularly to the other two and barely touching them (a inversed U) but in contact of the heat. It used to work very well for gently heating the substrate. The thing is, as my wife pointed out : these new bricks are the one used in barbecues and chimneys and are designed not to convey heat but to reflect it... she must be right, the substrate isn't heated at all. 'should have thought about it before, I'll redo it all over again this Saturday.
Laurent
|
|
|
Post by kab on Sept 2, 2008 19:50:31 GMT
sounds like things are improving laurent , thats good to hear ;D
|
|
|
Post by AlienSnail on Sept 2, 2008 21:59:51 GMT
Oooh I hope that's the end of the problems. It's great to hear that your Tigers are alot better now Thanks for the update x
|
|