Help! Sick snails :(

[Loraina]

Help!
A few days ago I had a major catastrophe with my brigs.
At the beginning of the week my oldest snail pasted away. I was sad but figured it was her time, then a couple days later my second oldest died. Coincidence? Then when I changed their water I realized all of my other snails were acting strange - really sluggish (pardon the term), and some were just laying part way out of their shells. I contacted the breeder and she informed me that since I was keeping them in pairs, with a betta in 1 gallon unfiltered tanks they were probably suffering from ammo/nitrite poisoning. Upon further inspection I realized they ALL were suffering from mantle collapse. Since then I have been changing their water frequently, and tried to resign myself to the fact that all my snaily friends are going to die (everything I have read says that this condition is fatal). Surprisingly, they are becoming increasingly active and appear to be improving. Could they actually survive? There is no certain cause of this condition, from what I have learned. Could this be caused my poisoning? Also, I moved then into a new tank to care for them and they are eating all of the fuzz off my fake plant. Is this dangerous??
Any advice greatly appreciated!

 

[Cinder]

I can't help you with an answer but I can point you in a great direction: http://applesnail.net/. They know their stuff about snails and should be able to help you. Good luck.

 

[joannde]

Are you sure its mantle collapse ? Usually in mantle collapse the snail has become detached from the shell and is pretty much hanging outside of it.

 

[Loraina]

I am sure. THe top 180 degrees of the seal has become detached and I can see deep into the shell of each snail where I can observe their gills and/or lung. In the case of most of then they do hang significantly out of their shells. I've noticed that when at rest, as in not climbing around, instead of tucking into their shells as they normally would, they cling to the outside of each others shells. This must be an effort to be more comfortable. I have never noticed them do it before.

 

[Devilishturtles]

If they are out and clinging to each other, they seem to be bouncing back well! IMO, your contact was correct. Snails and inverts in general are very succeptible to ammonia, and overall poor water conditions. Your betta would have likely started suffering soon after. Keep up on water changes and monitor your parameters and see what it reads.

 

[plecoperson]

If your snails are still ailing, join www.applesnails.net; they really know what they are doing and will be happy to help!