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Post by etana on May 24, 2015 11:55:02 GMT
So my dear, unfortunate rodatzi Taavetti is making me worried again. This time I can see that he's carrying a big, normal-looking clutch of eggs, but he seems to be losing weight and I can't get him to eat. Not even when I offered thinly cut sweet potato and found a very hungry friend for him too - he'd feel the food and the friend all over, and that was it, while the friend stuffed his little face with food.
His body feels much firmer to touch than my other fulica (who are hilariously soft even), too.
Any thoughts on this? As far as I've seen pregnant snails before, they're not reluctant to eat!
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Post by spook on May 24, 2015 12:41:41 GMT
Could it be he's very near to laying the eggs and is simply worn out!?... Hopefully he will lay soon and then start recovering...
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Post by etana on May 24, 2015 14:09:54 GMT
I really hope you're right, Spook. He does sleep lots too so he sure appears tired. The poor guy has had bad luck with eggs before, so perhaps he could be tense because of that. I really hope he won't miscarry this time, or get too bad post egg laying blues.
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Post by Zorst on May 24, 2015 18:22:45 GMT
I've had a couple of the bulldozers do this to me just prior to laying. I found that a warm bath did help them to relax some and I made up a bit of a mix of cooked mashed veg and some fish flakes that I was able to tempt them into eating at least a bit with. I did grate some cuttle fish into this mix also just a small amount.
Hopefully that will help you some as well and that he lays his eggs with out any problems this time and he starts to eat and pick up again very soon.
Zorst
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Post by etana on May 24, 2015 20:01:16 GMT
Thanks Zorst, that's reassuring.
Taavetti napped after my original post, now he's woken up on his own. I'll try bathing him and giving some extra nice treats tomorrow I think, but first I must see if he happens to lay tonight.
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Post by Zorst on May 24, 2015 22:08:49 GMT
Good idea and fingers crossed that he does. Let us know what happens please and I'll keep all fingers n toes crossed here that he lays those eggs and everything go's quickly n well for him n that he eats everything then has a good sleep.
Zorst
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Post by etana on May 25, 2015 12:25:20 GMT
No much change yet, he still has the eggs. His body may have been a little less tense than yesterday.
I prepared him some food by grating sweet potato, adding spirulina powder and pumpkin seed pieces, and microwaving it warm, as he sat in a warm bath (=warm water on a plate) with two young fulica. Well, the young fulica adored the food, but Taavetti just felt it and wouldn't eat.
I tried having him sit on my palm, smearing the food over his face, offering it on a piece of fresh sweet potato, making sure he sees the young ones eat. He felt the food with his lips but didn't open his mouth.
I put him back in the tank, next to the heat mat, maybe that'll help him.
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Post by spook on May 25, 2015 12:51:08 GMT
Aww bless him.... he needs to lay is eggs i'm sure that will make hin feel better!...If only we could explain that to him!!  |
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Post by Zorst on May 25, 2015 13:08:03 GMT
Agreed Spook, I also think once those eggs have been laid he'll feel a lot better and get his appetite back.
Zorst
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Post by etana on May 25, 2015 19:14:13 GMT
I really hope that this will be over for him soon. Poor little dear.  He's napped more since I last posted, right now he's asleep again, attached to a wall with plastic ivy leaves covering him. Lay those eggs, Taavetti! |
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Post by Zorst on May 25, 2015 19:15:58 GMT
Fingers n toes crossed it will be very soon.
Zorst
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Post by etana on May 26, 2015 8:18:09 GMT
I woke up to him sitting next to an empty bath tub making grumpy faces (lol, my snails do this when they want a bath but someone else's managed to empty all the tubs). I filled the tub, he snailed into it, then back out again, and went back to sleep on the wall. I have a lot of errands to run today but at least he seeked to bathe by himself now, and he's also been known to go rest against the heat mat by himself if he feels bad, so I think he'll be okay without me being a helicopter mommy every day. I'll update again tonight I think, really hoping to tell you that he's finally laid the eggs.
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Post by etana on May 26, 2015 20:18:29 GMT
Heh, I promised an update, but there's nothing to say. Taavetti slept attached to the same spot on the wall all day, it seems. At one point a baby fulica went to him, pushed his little shell against his and sat there for a long time. Then the baby made a grumpy face, pooped on Taavetti, and snailed off.
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Post by Zorst on May 26, 2015 20:59:24 GMT
Ahh poor Taaveti, I sure hope he lays those eggs soon. Please keep us posted on how things r going.
Zorst
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Post by etana on May 27, 2015 13:05:16 GMT
Let's see if this works at all... Oh, um, the board resized my picture, it seems (edit: wait, no, click on it and you get a huge version).  His mantle is a little bit swollen, and there's a lot of clear/light grey slime in and around his breathing hole. I'm not sure I see the eggs anymore and what it is that is seen in this picture, but the slime makes it hard to see anything clearly as it reflects light, so they could still be there. Either way, he still refuses to eat.  |
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He's napped more since I last posted, right now he's asleep again, attached to a wall with plastic ivy leaves covering him. Lay those eggs, Taavetti! 
