How do you know if a snail is dead?

[Raimeiken]

I have like 8 black mystery snails and they haven't come out of the shell yet. i don't know if they're dead or not.

 

[TankGirl]

How long have you had them? If their "trap door" coverings are tightly closed, they are probably alive. When they are dead they don't hold themselves inside the shell tightly, and when you pick them up they don't retract into the shell. Why they might be closed up inside the shell is anyone's guess, depending upon how long they have been like that.

 

[captivereefs]

Smell them. Dead snails smell horrible.

 

[Sati]

I bought two large mystery snails and one didn't come out for about 6 hours. The other didn't come out for about 12 hours. How long has it been?

 

[Raimeiken]

i just got them for free in an asian market. They sell live ones for people to eat 8O . most of them are alive but the ones i got didn't go out of the shell yet. they've been like that for a day now. I tried to pry them out with a stick and see if they'll move but a couple of them weren't trying to close thier shells at all so i think those ones are dead. the others, i don't know, i can't pry them out because they're way in thier shells.

If they don't come out till tomorrow i'll whip out the hammer and get the out and feed them to my loaches

 

[Guest]

Dead snails smell horrible.

I second that, I found 2 dead ones oday and they smelled worse than death...

 

[ferret]

I must ask, why you felt the need to buy .. 8. A 29 gallon tank can easily be cleaned by 1, and a second might actually starve for algae if they're two larger adults.

 

[Raimeiken]

they were free, i didn't buy them. I got them so i can breed them and feed them to my loach.