Malasian Trumpet Snails

[fvbump82]

I have finally been successful feeding my 3.5" long GSP Malasian Trumpet Snails (MTS). For those who would like to benefit from my experience, I offer the following: I purchased a half dozen adult MTS from my local (reliable, clean) fish store. They sell for $0.50 each. I set up a separate 2 gal aquarium for the MTS with a small filter and tap water. I did not put gravel in the bottom because I wanted to be able to harvest the young snails as they hatch (the MTS is a live-bearing snail). In the tank I also put a couple of clean small river rocks. These rocks will tend to grow algae on which the sanils will feed. Once a week I put an algae wafer (also available at your pet supplier) in with the MTS. After a few weeks I had quite a collection of small snails (harvest them when they are just a little bit smaller than a pencil lead point). Using a 6" long forcepts (tweezer) I grip the small snail by one end and hold it in the GSP aquarium for the GSP to come up to and begin taking it for food. My GSP is in a marine tank with a specific gravity set at full marine level. It may take a few tries for your GSP to get used to accepting food this way. I feed mine all its food using this forcepts so that excess food is not dropped to the bottom so as to contribute to phosphate levels. I typically feed snow crab meat one day and freeze dried brine shrimp the next. One other item of interest is that I do have tankmates with the GSP. It is very shy and not agressive as you typically hear. I have a yellow tailed damsel and an ocellaris clownfish in the tank with the GSP and they all get along very well. If anything, the puffer often heads away if approached by the other tankmates.

[Sara0229]

Do you have to crush them or does he suck them out? I have read that these snails can break the puffers teeth, I have f8's who are about 2 1/2 inches.

[Flutter]

GSPs will have stronger teeth than any of the FW puffers.

[purplecandle]

I would crush if they are big.

Using a 6" long forcepts (tweezer) I grip the small snail by one end and hold it in the GSP aquarium for the GSP to come up to and begin taking it for food. My GSP is in a marine tank with a specific gravity set at full marine level. It may take a few tries for your GSP to get used to accepting food this way.

Do NOT do this. Never let your puffer associate your fingers with food, do not put your hands in the tank water to give food. Either use a tool or drop from above the water. If you do let your puffer associate your finger with food, that is a very good way to get a chunk missing out of your finger (not a grazing wound, a chunk that will leave a scar).

[JRC3]

To add to what PC advises...

I've bought 12" tweezers before on Ebay. I just looked there to post a link for 12" tweezers and found these...These are a great deal.

http://cgi.ebay.com/3-Pc-Set-Large-TWEE ... 2eb2be5624

Good luck

[Flutter]

They very clearly said that they used tweezers and not their fingers.

What confusion am I missing here?

[Pufferpunk]

I think she might be confused.

[Mac Myers]

Well... it's good advice for me as I am beginning to run out of fingers.

[fvbump82]

I don't feed my GSP the large MTS becasue I want the large ones to be giving birth to lots of small ones. If you raise the MTS in their own small tank (2 gal or so) with no substrate on th h bottom (so you can sort and pick out the young when they are the right size) there should be no reason to feed them the adult ones. The large adults can't be taken by my GSP (it is about 3" long now) because its mouth isn't large/strong enough to crack the very hard shell. But when the young MTS get to be about the size of a pencil lead, my GSP takes them without my needing to crush them. In fact, crushing the snail by the GSP is part of the process necessary to keep their teeth maintained. Don't do it for them and lessen the effect of them eating the snail. Use the long tweezers people are talking about. Your GSP will soon learn how to do this. In fact, everything I feed my GSP, I do so with this tweezers so it associates the tweezxers with eating. As soon as it sees the tweezers enter the water, it comes right to it, no matter what food I offer.

[fvbump82]

To the person who said "don't do this", please understand, I do not hold the snail; with my fingers. I said that I use a 12" long tweezers to hold the snail. I never feed my GSP using my fingers.

[Pufferpunk]

We got that.

[xrayjeeper83]

ya im afraid to put my hands with any food in them into my puffer tank haha

[allycat]

Well... it's good advice for me as I am beginning to run out of fingers.

From your DP's? ?? WHAT WILL THEY EAT??
LOL One of mine (Tina) charged up and bit my arm when I was planting some Rotalis. It mostly just felt like she headbutted me... I bet she wishes she was bigger!