Suicidal Turbo Snail?

[andyaz]

Not sure if the fish discussion is the best place to discuss snails, but I seem to have one guy that's been acting kind of weird the last week. Now, I need to preface with my understanding of Turbo Snails, what was told to me by the LFS when I got them. I understand it that if they fall off the glass or rock and land upside-down, they can't come out enough to flip themselves over and will die if left that way for too long. If that's not true, then I won't worry anymore. If it is true, then I think I have a snail suffering from depression.
I have had these snails for about 10 months since I first started off my tank. In that time, I've had to flip one over maybe 3 times. In the last week, however, one snail in particular (I know it's the same one due to markings on the shell) has wound up upside down in the middle of the tank 4 times. I actually just had to flip him over again. Could he be sick and dying, or is there some other reason why he could be exhibiting this behavior?
Andy

 

[greymach]

mine are rolling all around all the time. I dont think that its a problem. they just flip themselves back over

 

[quaos]

I believe Turbos can flip themselves over. I know astreas can't. As far as flipping him back over, just keep doing so. I hate to sound cruel but snails are hard to know if they are doing well or bad. I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

[dina12]

I agree - just keep flipping him back over. I have a snail that will crawl 3/4 of the way up the glass and then just let go.....guess is it faster then crawling back down.

 

[cjml]

Originally Posted by dina12
I agree - just keep flipping him back over. I have a snail that will crawl 3/4 of the way up the glass and then just let go.....guess is it faster then crawling back down.

 

[ginarox]

dont worry about it,,i had the same problem , just worried my self sick over it, until one day i saw him flip him self over..have a great night,,,

 

[andyaz]

An update, he must have been sick. He flipped over, this time in an area that was pretty tough to get to, so I figured that he would flip himself back. The next day, there was another snail with him and I figured that he'd help him flip over. When I did a water change yesterday, I noticed they hadn't moved and now I didn't see the first snail in the shell. I reached in to take a look, and when I removed the shell the snail was gone. Did he get eaten? Grow too big for the shell and hiding in the sand now?

 

[chipmaker]

Snails gorw thewir shells to suit their size. They do not leave it like a hermit crab does as its a physical part of the snails makeup, unlike an add on with hermit crabs. Snails usually get abused from the day they get collected, and most are never acclimiated properly either, by the owners, or the lfs or the supplier/vendor as they are just too cheap....so the snails suffer. Its not unrealistic to get a sick snail.

 

[andyaz]

Well, I'd had these snails for about 9 months, so if he was sick when I got him he probably would have died off already, I would think. Of course, he could have been stressed which shortened his lifespan, who knows. Do snails eat one another? He was turned over in his shell one day, the next day another snail was next to his shell, and the next day the first snail was gone from his shell. Unless the Fire Shrimp pulled him out of the shell, I don't know what else could have happened to him.
Oh well, I need a larger cleaning crew for my new tank anyway, so I'll just add another Turbo to the list then.

 

[andyaz]

Another quick question, not important enough for a new topic. The disappearing Turbo Snail left a beautiful shell. Would a hermit crab take to that shell when it needs a larger one? Obviously, he'd have to be big enough to fill it and carry it around, but asuming that, no issues? I'll have a handful of hermits in my new tank, I might just leave that snail shell in there for one of them as a new house later on.

 

[yeffre kix]

Originally Posted by AndyAZ
Another quick question, not important enough for a new topic. The disappearing Turbo Snail left a beautiful shell. Would a hermit crab take to that shell when it needs a larger one? Obviously, he'd have to be big enough to fill it and carry it around, but asuming that, no issues? I'll have a handful of hermits in my new tank, I might just leave that snail shell in there for one of them as a new house later on.
Yes, a hermit will move into the shell if it's the right size. it's always a good idea to have empty shells around for hermits to move into when they get larger. If they don't have any available, they can kill live snails to get a new home.