# Feeding a Tarantula snails?



## Miss Bianca (May 28, 2008)

Is this okay?? 
Not okay?? 
Sometimes okay?? 
Depends on breed?? 

I know all about avoiding feeding insects/animals that may have bee exposed to pesticides and quarantining any if applicable, BTW...

Need input.. thanks...


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## Mushroom Spore (May 28, 2008)

I've never heard of a tarantula eating a snail. I don't think they're physically designed for it; their fangs will at best be unable to penetrate the shell and at worst get broken. They have no way of getting a snail in defensive mode out of the shell either, unlike, say, dwarf pufferfish which can just suck the body out of the shell.

In short, I'm guessing you shouldn't do it.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## saminthemiddle (May 28, 2008)

Snails are usually full of parasites as well. I know most spiders don't like slimy things. Why do you want to feed snails anyway?

Remember, all wild caught food is dangerous!

Reactions: Agree 2


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## presurcukr (May 28, 2008)

snails are loaded with parasites and the T's will not eat them anyway

Reactions: Agree 1


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## crpy (May 28, 2008)

Remember, all wild caught food is dangerous![/QUOTE]

DONT TRY IT, YOU CAN THINK IT BUT DONT DO IT!!!!!!!


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## gvfarns (May 28, 2008)

Doesn't seem like it would be poisonous, but whether your T will eat it is a different matter.  My money is on no.  In fact, I have a hard time imagining otherwise.

If you feel comfortable with the safety of your source of snails, throw it in.   If it gets eaten it will be noteworthy and we will all be interested to know it's possible.


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## petshopguy (May 28, 2008)

As a Biology major in college, one thing I learned about snails in all of my invertebrate classes is that they are one of the major vectors of disease throughout the world. The question is - how important is it to you to feed snails to your T's?


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## crpy (May 28, 2008)

tortuga00 said:


> Is this okay??
> Not okay??
> Sometimes okay??
> Depends on breed??
> ...


It should be clear to you know...right.
If there is even a chance your "T" could be harmed ,would you still do it, do you love your "T",


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## anaconda19 (May 28, 2008)

snails have never and will never be on the menu for most peoples Ts, if you had to feed random things from the garden like a friend of mine seems obsessed with doing, then make sure you keep it and feed it or a minimum of 48 hours in quarantine, this way hopefully any nasties in its stomach is excreeted and replaced with what you feed it(which will be as nutritious as poss) and if it had any unnoticable diseases or heavy paracite infestations it should die wihin the 48 hours if its going to.      BUT there are MANY paracites which dont kill quickly and will infest your T, and being unused to these will kill the T quicker and is just not worth it...


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## Brian S (May 28, 2008)

saminthemiddle said:


> Remember, all wild caught food is dangerous!


Sure about that? I've been feeding wc food for years


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## Widowman10 (May 28, 2008)

Brian S said:


> Sure about that? I've been feeding wc food for years


me too...


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## Le Wasp (May 28, 2008)

aside from parasites (which are highly unlikely to be able to infect any exotic species of tarantula), tarantulas probably won't even respond to a snail.  They move too slowly to create the vibrations that excite tarantulas to strike and feed.


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## Sabatta (May 28, 2008)

I have a pretty big forest snail in the tank for my T Blondi.  I figured it would be a nice addition to my tank since I have a bit of a communal thing going on in it (staetoda borealis, isopods, agelenidae sp.).  I seen once where the two met and the Blondi left the snail alone.  But a few days later I noticed the snail laying on it's 'back' a little ways off from my T, and my T cleaning a mass of snail foam off her fangs.  It didn't take long to figure out my T got a little too curious about what the snail tastes like.  It took her a frustrating little while but she managed to clean all the foam off.  So, I don't think intentionally feeding snails to Ts works.  It's nothing more than a learning lesson for the T that snails aren't to be messed with.  And the snail seems ok, maybe a little traumatized though.


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## Staley (May 28, 2008)

Gotta be an idiot to catch food around your yard and feed it to your tarantulas. Pesticides and insecticides are all around. Its a very very dangerous reality.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Widowman10 (May 28, 2008)

Staley said:


> Gotta be an idiot to catch food around your yard and feed it to your tarantulas. Pesticides and insecticides are all around. Its a very very dangerous reality.


depends on where you live really. 

interesting story btw sabatta. bet the blondi didn't do that again.


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## Miss Bianca (May 28, 2008)

*Ty!*


Thank you all for the input. 

I was not excited or hopeful for a yes answer to this thread... 
I simply asked because I have a co-worker who's breeding snails 
and she offered me some, suggesting it may be a nice variation 
in my T's diet. 

I asked because of this, to get any insight on the subject, 
since I had never heard of a tarantula eating snails either.  
Will definitely NOT do it, and appreciate all the input.

Yuck! @ snails & their parasites...


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## Brian S (May 28, 2008)

Staley said:


> Gotta be an idiot to catch food around your yard and feed it to your tarantulas. Pesticides and insecticides are all around. Its a very very dangerous reality.


Oh really? Well I guess I am an idiot then coz I've been doing it for a loooooooooong time and have never lost a T yet. 


It really depends on where you live. Where I live, I can drink water from the creeks. Where YOU live it may be different for all I know

Reactions: Like 1


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## Miss Bianca (May 28, 2008)

tortuga00 said:


> Thank you all for the input.
> 
> I was not excited or hopeful for a yes answer to this thread...
> I simply asked because I have a co-worker who's breeding snails
> ...


(( My co-worker has NO knowledge of Ts.. only knows that they eat live food.. )) :?


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## Staley (May 28, 2008)

thats true.  However even if you life in  the middle of no where. Things that are around your garage can get on a crickets exoskeleton and might not kill the cricket but will remain on it. (gasoline, antifreeze...ect)  I've found crickets in my dishwasher before. If there is something that they are not supposed to get in they will get in lol


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## Brian S (May 28, 2008)

Hell, I keep crickets in the garage for that matter. (cant stand to listen to the chirping). Anyway I have never lost a T in the last 8 or so years I have been messing with them. I have scorps even longer and never lost any due to WC food. Like it was said earlier, "it depends on where you live"


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## gvfarns (May 29, 2008)

Brian S said:


> Hell, I keep crickets in the garage for that matter. (cant stand to listen to the chirping). Anyway I have never lost a T in the last 8 or so years I have been messing with them. I have scorps even longer and never lost any due to WC food. Like it was said earlier, "it depends on where you live"


It's true that the riskiness of this practice depends on where you live, which is one reason I think it's silly when people have really strong feelings against WC bugs.  Anyone who does do it just needs to know that they are taking a risk.  Each person should decide for themselves if that risk is acceptable or not.  Most people here go with the rather-safe-than sorry approach, which is valid, but I think it's a bit inappropriate to push that view forcefully on others.

Though I haven't done it, I can see how the catching of a bug to feed to your T can be part of the fun of this hobby.

I'm inclined to let people who feed WC bugs do their thing as long as they know the risks.


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## saminthemiddle (May 29, 2008)

Well, there are more things to worry about in WC bugs than pesticides too. The real worry that I would have is nematodes.


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## Zeus9699 (May 29, 2008)

*food*

Snails are not natural diets of tarantulas. Why would you want to feed them that? Also, thier fangs can't penetrate a snail's shell


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## gvfarns (May 29, 2008)

saminthemiddle said:


> Well, there are more things to worry about in WC bugs than pesticides too. The real worry that I would have is nematodes.


And other parasites.  And diseases.


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## hairmetalspider (May 29, 2008)

Brian S said:


> Oh really? Well I guess I am an idiot then coz I've been doing it for a loooooooooong time and have never lost a T yet.
> 
> 
> It really depends on where you live. Where I live, I can drink water from the creeks. Where YOU live it may be different for all I know


Well, yeah.

Hate to burst your bubble for there are VERY few places in the United States where you can simply drink from the creek.

You're lucky to live in such a place but sadly, the US is a dirty place. Take a look at the statistics online.


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## crpy (May 29, 2008)

The run off from most ag fields could kill a freaken mule


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## Brian S (May 29, 2008)

hairmetalspider said:


> Well, yeah.
> 
> Hate to burst your bubble for there are VERY few places in the United States where you can simply drink from the creek.
> 
> You're lucky to live in such a place but sadly, the US is a dirty place. Take a look at the statistics online.


Ya know, I have been in Peru I think 10 times now and the water that is close to where the wildlife is has to be the nastiest water I have seen. You smell it before you see it!


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## saminthemiddle (May 29, 2008)

Brian S said:


> Oh really? Well I guess I am an idiot then coz I've been doing it for a loooooooooong time and have never lost a T yet.


A keen moment of self awareness.

If you live in the valley you have pesticides and other chemical nasties. If you live in the mountains you have diseases and parasites. *Nowhere* is it safe to gather feeder animals especially when you factor in the practically nonexistent cost of breeding (or buying) your own.

You're an experienced keeper and should know better. You, sir, deserve a face-palm.

I'm sorry, but it really angers me when I see people who should know better cutting corners to save a few cents at the expense of the well being of their animals. And feeding wild caught food is a *BIG* corner to cut.


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## the nature boy (May 29, 2008)

Brian S said:


> It really depends on where you live. Where I live, I can drink water from the creeks. Where YOU live it may be different for all I know


There's a 1970s movie about a place like that...kid plays a banjo, they don't like outsiders... 

--the nature boy


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## gvfarns (May 29, 2008)

saminthemiddle said:


> I'm sorry, but it really angers me when I see people who should know better cutting corners to save a few cents at the expense of the well being of their animals. And feeding wild caught food is a *BIG* corner to cut.


I don't think this is the right way to think about people who wild catch T food.  It's a lot harder to catch wild bugs than to grab some crix at the store and I certainly don't believe people would do it with the intention of saving money.  We all know feeder insects are cheap.  Accusing them of being ignorant cheapskates is just setting up a straw man to hate on, and I find such (I believe) ill directed accusations more annoying than people who risk their T's health by catching wild bugs.

It's also not as safe to shoot a wild deer as it is to just buy some beef at the store.  And I think most people think it doesn't taste as good either.  But people don't hunt because it is safe or because it tastes good.  It's a recreational experience, as is feeding T's WC bugs.  You may dislike it, as many people dislike hunters, but don't pretend it's something that it's not.


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## Miss Bianca (May 29, 2008)

gvfarns said:


> I don't think this is the right way to think about people who wild catch T food.  It's a lot harder to catch wild bugs than to grab some crix at the store and I certainly don't believe people would do it with the intention of saving money.  We all know feeder insects are cheap.  Accusing them of being ignorant cheapskates is just setting up a straw man to hate on, and I find such (I believe) ill directed accusations more annoying than people who risk their T's health by catching wild bugs.
> 
> It's also not as safe to shoot a wild deer as it is to just buy some beef at the store.  And I think most people think it doesn't taste as good either.  But people don't hunt because it is safe or because it tastes good.  It's a recreational experience, as is feeding T's WC bugs.  You may dislike it, as many people dislike hunters, but don't pretend it's something that it's not.



and so... LOL just some input since I started this thread but by no means started this WC bugs discussion... it seems its just better left to be an opinion thing. It is a risk but whether or not to take it is a decision any owner can make.
Also, I believe it would be fun to feed your T something you just found in your garden or something... in the wild they don't discriminate...

and also, I wanted to mention.. if a person's been feeding their T WC bugs regularly or aLways, and one day it dies, trust me, they aren't going to think "oh maybe that bug ystrdy had pesticides or parasites"... they'd blame it on something else...   I mean I think so...


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## sylverbullit (May 29, 2008)

tortuga00 said:


> and so... LOL just some input since I started this thread but by no means started this WC bugs discussion... it seems its just better left to be an opinion thing. It is a risk but whether or not to take it is a decision any owner can make.
> Also, I believe it would be fun to feed your T something you just found in your garden or something... in the wild they don't discriminate...
> 
> and also, I wanted to mention.. if a person's been feeding their T WC bugs regularly or aLways, and one day it dies, trust me, they aren't going to think "oh maybe that bug ystrdy had pesticides or parasites"... they'd blame it on something else...   I mean I think so...


I agree. I'm too paranoid to feed mine wc bugs, but if there were soooo many harmful pestisides every where how come the wild T population isn't dying off faster?

I can't feed my T wc bugs. where I live, Just outside of Edomonton Alberta Canada, we supposedly have the highest cancer rate per capita in all of western Canada,due to air pollution from the power plants, I couldn't imagine how contaminated out bugs are.


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## Euronymous (May 30, 2008)

the nature boy said:


> There's a 1970s movie about a place like that...kid plays a banjo, they don't like outsiders...
> 
> --the nature boy


...gonna make you squeal like a pig boy...:clap:

Reactions: Funny 1


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## DaMoi (Sep 20, 2017)

Put a regular norwegean garden-snail (we don't use a lot of pesticides and the suchlike in our gardens) with my young L. Klugi. It attacked and is now consuming the snail, within about 10 minutes. So it clearly depends on how agressive the species is.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Swede Baboon (Sep 23, 2017)

Here in Sweden we got tons of snails without shells in our gardens..

My B.Vagans eats tons of bumblebees
during the summer. Gonna try snails next summer for sure


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## TownesVanZandt (Sep 23, 2017)

DaMoi said:


> Put a regular norwegean garden-snail (we don't use a lot of pesticides and the suchlike in our gardens)


It's not pesticides from people's gardens that would concern me, but from the agricultural areas (which are pretty much everywhere in Norway except for Svalbard)


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## DaMoi (Sep 23, 2017)

Swede Baboon said:


> Here in Sweden we got tons of snails without shells in our gardens..
> 
> My B.Vagans eats tons of bumblebees
> during the summer. Gonna try snails next summer for sure


Yeah, my Klugi is still happy and possibly entering a pre-molt phase after that meal, there were only negligible remains of the snails shell, so her enzymes dissolved much of that too. It is not so dissimilar to other types of exoskeletons, only a bit thicker  larger snails will probably be more risky, young ones should be fine.

When it comes to pesticides and contaminants, I think most of what is used where I live is organic fertilizer (manure), and certainly none is used in the gardens around my living area, possibly with the exeption for calcium and chicken-manure. But I will report back if my little friend changes in any significant way

Reactions: Agree 1


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## alvinpoi2 (Jun 18, 2022)

There is a species of tarantula that eat snails, might be recently discovered and was not yet known when this thread started :>


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## arthurliuyz (Jun 18, 2022)

alvinpoi2 said:


> There is a species of tarantula that eat snails, might be recently discovered and was not yet known when this thread started :>


That would be _Phormictopus cochleasvorax.   _


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## Arachnophobphile (Jun 18, 2022)

You pulled a 'my move'. This original post is from 2008. Which I'm guilty of replying to extremely old post.


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## alvinpoi2 (Jun 25, 2022)

arthurliuyz said:


> That would be _Phormictopus cochleasvorax.  _


Yeah


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