just add salt.......

[Jaded_Pulse]

I have a little apple snail in my 15gal tank. It's the 3rd snail I've had - the original turned out to be what we're fairly sure was a garden snail (went to a very dodgy lfs), he died a day after we got him; then I got a big apple snail who was fantastic, but unfortunately was a little too fantastic - tried to clean the outside of my tank even though he was getting enough food, cracked his shell & died So then i got this one, which is good, appears healthy, etc.. About a week after I put him in ("no, no need to quarantine it" ) my kribensis died. a week later, my scissortail rasbora died. a week later, one of my guppies; followed by my poor baby angelfish last week, and finally, my neon this week I now have left just one guppy, a colombian tetra, and a black skirt tetra, plus my snail, who all seem to be doing fine.

My question - could the snail have had something that he introduced into my tank that's killing my fish even though he seems healthy? Also, I've been told to add sea salt to the tank as it's a really good antibacterial, but I've heard that kills snails.....so, what are ur thoughts on that, & is there any safe level of salt that I can add? If not, would it be kinder to have my dad kill the snail really quickly & add the salt to HOPEFULLY save my remaining fish, or would salt not help anyways?? Thanx, sorry this is so long, hope it makes sense.

 

[crazie.eddie]

Did the other fish show signs prior to their deaths? If so, what? The snail could have brought something or maybe ammonia/nitrites could have started slowly building up until it became too toxic for the rest of the fish. What type of filter do you have on your tank? Is your tank already cycled? If so, how long has the tank ben running since after the cycle? Do you test for ammonia or nitrITEs? If so, what are the levels? How about chlorine?

 

[handsomeboy]

very likely yes, the snail did.

and yes, at least for me, salt kills snails. i put some in my tank, the doc whasisname salt, and they died, and all i could see was shells floating around. but snails are really a pest, imo. i started with an apple snail or two that came with a plant i was buying, and now i have HUNDREDS. i dont really see why you have to go BUY snails. i mean, if u live next to me, i can give you, easily, 50 or so apple snails. in fact, i'd pay you to take them. and ramshorns, dont even get me started about ramshorns. TWO different amazon swords, totally DESTROYED by them. grrrrr

 

[rollntider]

very likely yes, the snail did.

and yes, at least for me, salt kills snails. i put some in my tank, the doc whasisname salt, and they died, and all i could see was shells floating around. but snails are really a pest, imo. i started with an apple snail or two that came with a plant i was buying, and now i have HUNDREDS. i dont really see why you have to go BUY snails. i mean, if u live next to me, i can give you, easily, 50 or so apple snails. in fact, i'd pay you to take them. and ramshorns, dont even get me started about ramshorns. TWO different amazon swords, totally DESTROYED by them. grrrrr

botias love snails

 

[handsomeboy]

ooo...

 

[Jaded_Pulse]

thanx. lol well i see snails rn't too popular here. i only got him coz i didn't want algae & stuff building up but i never get algae so i actually have to make sure he gets food now.....as for the fish, no - no outward signs of illness, in fact they've died with symptoms ranging from none at all to acting drunk literally for less than a day then dying, to stopping eating & resting on the bottom for a couple of days. I really don't know what's going on but i treated for parasites at one stage, didn't help. my lfs isn't sure either but i suspect some kind of bacteria. nothing was going wrong before this snail. i use stuff that gets out chlorine, chloramine, heavy metals, adds electrolytes, slime coat etc etc etc.. my params r fine, just that they keep dying.

 

[glamermaid]

ooo...

if you want to get rid of them a clown loach will do the trick! my moms tank was over run with snails 1 clown loach ate them all! (they are just like botias, but with stripes arent they, they look like it and i think i read that) also dwarf puffers could handle it, but i think they are best kept in a species tank, they can be fin nippers i think.

 

[SirMinion]

...also dwarf puffers could handle it, but i think they are best kept in a species tank, they can be fin nippers i think.

Yep, Dwarf Puffers would wipe 'em out in no time.... but they are fin shredders.

 

[crazie.eddie]

if you want to get rid of them a clown loach will do the trick! my moms tank was over run with snails 1 clown loach ate them all! (they are just like botias, but with stripes arent they, they look like it and i think i read that) also dwarf puffers could handle it, but i think they are best kept in a species tank, they can be fin nippers i think.

Loaches ARE Botias. The scientific name for a Clown Loach is Botia macracanthus. Unfortunately, in order for them to be happy, they should be kept in small groups. A 15 gallon tank would be way too small for a group, even one, since they can grow up to 12". Although in captivity, they have been reported to get about 6"-8", still big for a 15 gallon tank.

 

[Jaded_Pulse]

Thanx for the replies. I did end up adding the salt, but was advised to cut back on the 1tsp/gal rule for my snail, so I put in about 10 or 11 tsps (it's a 15 gal tank). Wouldn't have been too concerned if he didn't make it through though lol. Anyways, thanx heaps all.