АХАТИН.РФ

Achatina snail is relativly resistant to many infections and parasits.The snails you buy from „snail farmer“ are as  a rule  in a good condition and you should not worry about possible deseases they can bring with. The opposite is with the just cought ones. To get sure that your homegrown Achatina snails will not get sick pickking any infection from wild snails it is better to keep them apart for nor less than 2 months time.

To strengthen the  Achatina shell and cause its rapid growth  you must give the snail calcium. The best way – grind eggshells into powder and sprinkle with this powder food and the soil in the terrarium to ensure yourself that any time Achatina will have the opportunity to get enough calcium. You can also include in the diet  Gammarus, a protein curd.

Damaged snail shell can be repaired with epoxy glue. However, if the shell is damaged around its mouth, Achatina itself will repair it quite well. But if the damage is close to the top, it will be your task to fix the shell. You can use plaster as well. In very delicate cases it is better to use thin film from the fresh hen egg. You should just put it gently on the destroied part of the shell. Still it is wet it will be glued properly and prevent from further destruction.

Dried epoxy glue is not harmful for the snails, but so far it's drying up, it is better to keep the snail in a separate dry cage so that the snail body will avoid the contact with the glued part. All the time while working with the glue the snail shell should be clean and dry.

Just be very careful with young Achatina, which shell is very thin and gentle and that's why is the most vulnerable especially near the mouth of the extreme parties - the widest part of the shell. There is a growth area of the shell there and  still young it is quite sensetive. Despite the fact that  Achatina can recover easily itself it would would be better not to force it to get  along with the damage. After 6-8 month time Achatina shell becomes so strong that the snail is able to move a heavy load without any damage.

Parasites, nematodes, trematodes, fungi can attack the snails, and such problems can spread rapidly when snail populations are too dense. The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes intestinal infectious diseases that can spread quickly in a crowded snail cages.

Problems: the coincidence of many snail diseases on the base of products used for feeding the snails, as a part of the feed produced from waste from the reprocessing of living organisms (snails, cuttlefish, .......), also prone to various diseases.

SHELL: foliated, scaly shell, gnawing shell, tuberosity, the fragility

Reasons:

• Fungus derived from shellfish, corals or seashells (mycosis (deformation shell lesion tissue )....), fungus shell disease (ultra-fast shell growth, atrophy of muscles and internal organs of mollusks).
• Improper water composition (too tough, sour) or acid soil (peat) bogs in Terre
• Lack of calcium or low-quality product (school chalk, synthetic materials with a symmetric structure (unnatural))
• Oversupply of calcium (greater tuberosity of the shells, synthetic Ca)
• Lack of vitamin A
• Punches shells (algae, sponges, polychaetes) by mollusc (shell brittle, crumbly structure (treatment: a saturated saline solution))

Treatment: Sources of calcium: - Sepia (fungus) - pounding eggshell (less digestible) - Chalk (no school one), slaked lime (sustained) - Kaltsid (often refuse because of the chemistry, changes in the structure of the material (similar to margarine)) - Gammarus (fungus), corals (fungus)
- Calcium porridge (a mixture of powders: the shell + chalk + sepia + baby food "rodents")
- "Cakes" of calcium gluconate, fresh sunflower seeds, egg shells to add crude protein, knead "the dough“ form a pellet with the diameter of 1-1,5 cm, and put on a hard surface to dry. Dry very well, otherwise mold will be in the Terra.
- Complete food for poultry and animals contain vitamin supplements and calcium. Danger: prion diseases (quick death, loss of coordination, memory loss, ulcers, mad cow disease, spontaneous tumors), presence of chemicals and salts in the feed. Reduces cannibalism have just newly hatched snails.
Preparation:

• 1.Mikoseptin. Greasy for an hour. Then washe with a solution of soda. 3 days to 2 times a day.
• 2.After bathing cream the shell with  iodine solution  in alcohol or vodka. Or use „blue with iodine“. Do not get it on the body! After 30 minutes, wash off the shell  with  water. Repeat 3 days. Then once a week.

Dropping out the shell:

Reasons:

• genetic predisposition or kancerogens
• bacteria infection: vibrozy (mass deaths of young people, the destruction of mantle tissue, impaired movement and digestion of shellfish)
• fungus shell disease

Treatment: Just a small snail shell at a loss brought up a new one. Adult freeze.

BURNS AND POISONING: Chemical burns or poisoning from household cleaning products. Sol. Other signs: a white foam, bubbles.
Salt snail venom, thoroughly rinse the coco substrate, and the usual purchase, avoid contact with household cleaning,  unverified  for salt and chemistry (fertilizers, drugs, copper) food, stimulants, hormones.

Influence of temperature (heat, cold)

The cold affects the development of the snails, the growth may stop. Direct sunrays are harmful. If you leave your Terra in the direct sunlight and the snails have no shalter they may die.
After overheating the snails you can improve the situation by bathing them.

UNWANTED NEIGHBORS Terry:

• Gorbatkov
• fruit fly
• small white (light gray), beetles (akarosy, springtail)
• bedbugs

Reasons:

• Communicating with an infected snail
• Land (raw or poorly treated)
• Rotting food remnants (cleaning, replacement of the soil).
• Food (sepia, banana ,...- also are contaminated - wash and dunk Scald)

Prevention: Bathing snails in Frc, herbal infusions, the change of the soil. Reptix First Aid - spray pesticide kills mites and other small parasites in Terre. Nontoxic water solution kills parasites in 5-10 minute time by blocking their breathing holes

1. Completely change the soil in all terrariums, rinse thoroughly with clean water the terrarium and all accessories for it and renew the soil.
2. Also, the bathing of all snails in low-warm water.
3. Do not allow the appearence of „illegal occupants“ by preventive measures:  precise monitoring the ground and  strickt removing of food remnains from the cage to avoid "turning into the moor" (observe the necessary level of humidity and monitor the ventilation). Never forget to expose new soil  with thermal treatment. Host of small invertebrates usually comes from the new substrate (double or triple heat treatment of the soil (repeat every treatment after a week break). So, before preparing canned food -they were subjected to repeated heat treatment at intervals of 1-2 weeks. This provoked the spores of micro-organisms to develop and reprocessing killed them. And I must admit that heat treatment does not always help, and chemicals can etch primer for obvious reasons - not to poison the snails.

In addition to outside living creatures in terrariums can grow mold - all sorts of varieties of fungi. They are more dangerous than the flies, fruit flies, as capable of causing allergic reactions of humans. The reasons for mold appearence are the same: dirty ground, damaged or not harvested in time food, excessive dampness. Fighting fungus is similar to the fighting against small invertebrates. It is sometimes possible to do half-measures, ie, no removal of soil or with removal a part of it. (However, in the remaining part can be preserved fungal spores and molds over time to grow again.)

Worms, helminths: helminthiasis (nematodes, tremantody, cestodes) from natural shellfish (oysters, snails, .....),  from us, humans, dogs, cats and other pets. Wanted trematodoz oysters (including humans).

Food:

• White pumpkin seeds whole (grinded)
• Carrot or cucumber (fresh or dried);
• Tansy and other herbs (carefully);
• Aloe Stimulator. Feed the pulp of leaves, water (bath) - Juice.
• Blue iodine (a stimulant) with caution.
• Beer (or brewer's yeast)-bait and vitamins.

It is better to treat the snail at temperature above 27C for 10-14 days. At lower temperature it would not act properly or the treatment would take too much time. You can use the mixture of effective fine grinded herbs (1/4-1/2 of total amount)  with the addition of mushrock (50%) and mashed sunflower seeds (soaked for few days in water or beer), additional grind seeshells (5-10%) will improve  the mix. When all ingridients are mixed you can form  little pillswith the help of beer oof fresh egg.

To cook the snails balls (powder mixed with beer or beer balls) one-day dose for a week, infusions and decoctions of. the following daily dose of dry drug collection: up to 1 month. - 1 / 2 tsp to 2 months - 1 tsp up to 3 - 1 teaspoon, 4 months, 1 tbsp. Spoon over the age of 6 months and adults - 2 tbsp. spoon collection. Sometimes the mixture should be reduced for the adults and  increased for the youngsters (inverse proportion because of the rapid assimilation of fry) or, what's more common, to give them and with the slowdown of the dose for the adults. In addition, you should remember about possible accumulation of toxins in the body of the snails above 4 years.).
You should let the snail drink weak infusion  (with  addition of beer-1/3-2/3 from the amount of liquid) and wash it with herbal infusion every day. Ill snails should get beer medical balls (1/4-1/8 daily dose),  egg (protein) and Ca * (not food or food-limited 1 / 4). Transfere them onto the new substrate (wet napkin) and clean terrarium every day (you shoul have reserve plastic boxes). Every snail should be kept separately. You must start the cure  with half of a dose to test the response of the snail on the drug. You can try to give the cassette with different  herbal powders (or mixtures), so that they can choose the right treatment themselves (first, without beer and then, after the choice, with).

Folk remedies expulsion of worms can be used in combination with other drugs (pharmacological preparates). Be careful with beer (delete gass or let it stand open for a couple of days).
De-worming medicine "for fish" (not all).

List of toxic drugs for snails (should be never given):

-Malachite Green (used to treat ihtioftiriaza (white spots) and fungal diseases odinoza).
-Various organophosphorus pesticides and formaldehyde,  used against worms, worms, crustaceans and other parasites.
-Metaldehyde (used as a poison against shellfish)
-Various copper-containing drugs to treat diseases caused by protozoa and fungi.
-Parricide D (di-n-butyl tin oxide) used for de-worming, acanthocephalans, trematodes and other worms and parasites

Infections: Bacteria, viruses: disinfectant (weak - pale pink - a solution of potassium permanganate, Frc, etc.), pentsillin, streptomycin, chloramphenicol, neomycin, циклогексимид.Хлоргексидин (gibiskrab, gibitan, manusan, chlorhexidine bigluconate) - antiseptic and disinfectant. Depending on the concentration exhibits a bacteriostatic and bactericidal action. Bacteriological effect of both water and alcohol working solutions is manifested in the concentration of 0.01% or less; bactericidal - in concentrations greater than 0.01% at 22 ° C and exposure time for 1 min. Fungicidal action - and at a concentration of 0.05%, at 22 ° C and exposure time to 10 min. Virucidal action - seen at a concentration of 0.01-1%.

Tumors: spontaneous, benign or malignant (black soil of the yard for "slum" houses of ill-plastic (unwashed Terra, low-quality plastics additives or supplements for dry territorial or product nesmytye oil (oil for casting Terre) on the surface pesticides, aromatic amines, aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, dioxin, petroleum products (encapsulated in a container previously)), prion diseases through food or supplements in the diet), infection, perforating shells (algae, sponges, polychaetes, gastropods, blistering, galls, blisters, grooves ; from shellfish).

Snail dormancy

Achatina, kept in the cage get into "hibernation" under adverse conditions in the Terre. the snails do  have special glands that produce mucus, proteins and grains of lime and form a protective film – epifragma with the help of them. This film when dries closes securely openning of the shell.

The main causes of falling in sleep: low humidity, lack or absence of suitable food, the period of acclimatisation to the new place – a snail has  to change the habitual diet, the change of the soil and, in general, changes in conditions, with strong shocks (short sharp overheated to 60 ° C or hypothermia (2-4C), injury, poisoning), a decrease of air temperature.

Awakening: It is enough to hold sleeping snail under low-warm running water from the tap for a  relativly short time (about a minute) and it will crack the protective film and appear. If there is no particular hurry, spray the snali with water, put it in the terrarium with a normal (for Achatina), humidity and temperature and wait for some time (till few hours).

During long hibernation snails go gradually deeper and deeper into the shell, any time making the new valve. Snail checks periodically the state of the environment and making sure that moisture or food is not enough for normal existance, gets sealed again, getting itself deepper and deepper into the shell  because of the loss of water and nutritions from its body (protein, lime).

Hibernation: Fill  the snail terrarium with a thin layer of oven-dry soil, do not feed the snails and do not spray them with water. Gradually decrease the temperature. You can not allow large fluctuations in humidity and temperature during hibernation. You should keep in mind that the lower the temperature is, the longer yhe snails  can stay dormant at 16C- 2 months, at 4-6C is already up to 12 months. But that is true  if the snail is healthy and was in very good condition before hibernation.