I bought two little babies yesterday for my 5 year old son. I've been reading lots about them, their quite interesting little things.

Anyone else have any?

I had a variety of species of for a while, some rescued from Brixton market lol.

Fascinating little critters, just watch for them breeding out of control, squish the eggs when you find them or freeze and put out for the birds

I was really surprised that there are so many species! Thanks for the tip

I keep some species also. I'm guessing its Achatina fulica you have?

You watch them self breeding? Is that possible?

Not sure about self breeding, not something I've witnessed personally.

But two will never stop producing eggs, and both will produce A LOT and Fulica are so common they are tricky to rehome,

I didn't realise they were edible, not that I would advise the OP to do that.
We used to have some in School, they seemed friendly enough but they produced a staggering amount of eggs in a very short time.

I had 6 snails at one point. Unfortunately after a couple of years they started dying one by one, and now I only have the one left who is hibernating. It makes me sad because I loved their little faces.

Some general pointers:

1) Keep them around 20 degrees or higher (don't forget they are native to Africa, so ensure they're kept warm)
2) If you're using a heat mat and have a plastic tank, don't leave it too close to the bottom of the tank, as it could melt the bottom (happened to me)
3) Clean the tank at least once a month - this requires transferring the snails to another bowl/tank while you do it...avoid using cleaning fluids as they can damage snails health. Simply use warm water and clean paper towels
4) When they breed, they do lay a lot of eggs. You either have to crush them all or freeze them.
5) Give them a sub-strait, but not too deep. You want to allow them to bury, but not too deep to encourage laying eggs.
6) Provide them with a calcium source (cuttlefish is perfect)
7) Change their food regularly, once a day or two (foods like cucumber start putrefying after a while)
8) Keep the tank humid, they like warm humid atmospheres.
9) Spray the snails and tank with water once a day. (Cheap spray bottle from a garden centre will do)
10) Buy a hydrometer and thermometer that you can store in the tank (the little circular ones are good)

That's all I can think of at the moment. If I can think of anything else, I'll post it later.

Yes they are the ones. I didn't even know there were other species to keep!


Thank you for that, i have got everything on your list. No heat mat at the moment as they're in my living room which is always warm. Don't have a hydrometer but i will be getting one, what sort of humidity should they be at?

My Mum's still got the very last of my Fulica, they must be 8 + years old now, they just keep going!!!

She keeps them in an unheated propogator (though her house is insanely warm!) on sterilised coir, mostly fed sweet potato, lettuce, cucumber with cuttlefish always available.

Hope yours are doing ok x

Millipedes next???

Millipedes are great also. I'd recommend Archispirostreptus gigas, one of the largest species, certainly the largest commonly available species. They spend much more time on the surface than some other species, and are easy to keep.

fulica don't need to be kept as humid as some other species, such as A.achatina, which need around 80-95% humidity. Around 70-80% should be ok.

Ooh glad they're still going strong! Ours are doing ok, they've not long woken up

Erm, no i think the snails are enough for now lol


Thanks that's good to know

No matter what happens, dont let them lose in your garden. They will breed like mad and devour your garden in no time. They are hermephrodite self breeding.