Giant African Land Snails

We have had some new arrivals in our home that I wanted to introduce you to.

Two Giant African Land Snails called Max [Short for Maximum and owned by William] (Identified with the thin dark stripes) and Zoom [owned by James] (Identified with a solid dark patch).

Many years ago when I was a primary school teacher I owned a lovely Giant African Land snail called Norman Tom (named by my pupils) who was a wonderful pet for 4 years. I knew how to look after them and have always found them fascinating and after our lovely stick insects slowly died with old age I knew that we should we should use our tank and get some!

Not a traditional pet but definitely an interesting one and easy to look after! (Which I hope to show you)

Giant African Land Snails or GALS (insert joke about Martyn loving the Gals) are native to East Africa. They grow to 25 centimetre (9.8 in) / 10" in length in their natural environment but in captivity they can grow up to 12cm in length and weight up to 600g. Most of their growth is usually achieved in the first year, so after a year you can generally see the maximum size your snail will reach.

In countries where they can be legally kept (they’re illegal in the US), they can make good pets, as they are relatively low maintenance and fascinating to watch. Even though they're apparently slow, they can move quite fast so I suppose I wouldn’t have to worry if any escaped and I tried to rescue then ;-)

They can live for up to 10 years in captivity (although usually around 5-7 years), so the decision to start keeping snails shouldn’t be made lightly.

How to keep them

Line the floor with a thick layer of substrate. Use plain topsoil from a garden centre rather than compost which can contain added fertilizers harmful to snails. Do not use topsoil you have collected yourself as this can be contaminated with pesticides and fertilizers, as well as a range of bacteria and pathogens.

Like any animal they do enjoy being entertained so we have put a log in to create different textures for them to climb and feel.

Spray the tank every other day with warm water to maintain the level of humidity at 60-70%

They will need a shallow bowl of fresh water, but can drown if it is deeper than a few millimetres so have to be careful.

Scrub and rinse the tank thoroughly about once a month.

Make sure they have a cuttlefish bone to give them calcium to help develop their shells.

It is fine at the moment with the moment but when winter hits I will use a heat mat with a thermostat and thermometer at the back of the tank to check the temperature is kept at about 25ºC Placing the heat mat is optional though but I think it is useful.

Your snail should have few health problems if kept in the right conditions. If the environment is too hot, cold or dry, your snail will hide and become inactive and a membrane may form over the aperture of the shell. A healthy snail has a clean, unbroken shell and no unusual lumps or patches on its body.

Handle with care

Snails should be picked up gently by their shells. It is best to pick them off the floor rather than when they are stuck tightly to the glass.

Snails don't mind being handled but make sure your hands are clean and damp, as sweat or chemicals are easily absorbed by your snail, and can be harmful.

Food

Giant snails love leafy greens every day such as lettuce, cabbage and spinach. All vegetables should be washed to remove all traces of chemicals. Remove any food that hasn't been eaten within a day. We are keen on using skins and leaves that we aren’t using in our meals and offer a bit of variety. From previously owning them I found that they do have their individual favourites.

Cucumber is always a popular choice on the menu. I love how you can see where they have eaten on it!

Snails do need calcium. So we have provided a cuttlefish bone for an easy source of calcium for them.

So there you have our new family members and how to look after them.

What do you think? Cool or disgusting? Would you keep any?