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Stompsy

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Hi guys. Just wondering where everyone sources their snails from? I'm hesitant to feed with snails from the garden due to pesticides but the only idea I've had so far is Asian grocers.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks. :)


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If there are any neighbours who don't use snail bait I'm sure they would be happy to help. If you want a snail colony it's pretty cost-free to run:

Get some adult agapanthus and plant them next to a wall and either wait for snails to come or add some, that's how I "farm" my snails for Lizzie.
 
Can't find any in the Asian grocer I just went to. Kinda didn't want to pay what they usually ask in pet stores but I may have to.

Aren't you worried that they may have picked something up from neighbouring properties [MENTION=41799]BredliFreak[/MENTION] ?


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Snails wouldnt travel too far, so would most likely be from your own yard. They eat and travel a bit at night,then hide away somewhere dark and moist during the day. Remember that 2 m for us could very well be their 2 km, and they aren't exactly Usain Bolt.
 
Pet shop only had tinned snails and I refuse to pay $9 for a tuna tin sized portion.

Next stop is the supermarket but if all else fails, I'll be snail hunting in my backyard.


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Maybe you can find more than you need a give them away to others who need feed! Think of how much you will be saving them!
 
I'm not even sure how many I'll find yet!!!

And the supermarket had nothing.

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Good time to be looking for snails if you live on the east coast. That's if they haven't floated away.
 
I'm in Melbourne and the weather is cold and rainy so it's kinda perfect timing!


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I found a few good agapanthus patches while I was walking the dogs, so I take a collection bag when it's been raining and top up the snail tubs. I keep the snails for at least month before using them. I bought snails from a snail farm at the hunter valley before that, they deliver to your door.
 
I've googled but can't find anything close to me and everything I've looked at so far caters to escargot dinner parties and such.

Going to have a hunt around in the morning to see if I can find any little guys.

Thanks for all the suggestions. :)

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I had trouble finding snails a couple of years ago during the drought,searched high and low.
Now I carry a tub in the truck and check gardens while doing my deliveries,if they are still alive 2 weeks later it is safe to feed.
 
Personally I believe the issue of snail baits is overstated. Try as I may, I cannot find direct reference or actual details of the oft quoted incident of a bluetongue having died as a result of eating baited snails. The reality is that these are quick acting poisons and any snail or slug with them in their system would be dead with a few hours. So if you can keep your snails alive for a day, then they will definitely not contain any poison from baits.

Of possible concern might be some of the toxins that occur naturally in some garden plants. I really don’t know. If this possibility worries you, then simply keep you snails for a week or so while what is in their system passes through. Snail purge what is in the intestines within two days, hence commercially they are starved for three days (to be on the safe side) prior to cooking.

I’ve found the easiest way to collect them is from people’s front yards, as they like to feed on lawn grasses. Front lawns with a shrub border are best, as the snails can shelter and get protection amongst the shrubs during the day and, being nocturnal, move out onto the lawn area to feed at night. The best time is in the early morning light before sunrise, while it is humid. They can also be collected by torchlight in the evening. On very overcast days, particularly if it rains, they come out earlier and stay out longer.

There’s many different ways to keep them. For me, they were they were most easily stored in a plastic tub or bin that can be firmly sealed shut and is well ventilated. You can use a soldering iron to make lots of holes or, alternatively, melt a piece of metal flyscreen into the lid. Don’t use plastic screens as they can eat their way through it. Include a shallow saucer of water and always keep in a cool spot out of direct sunlight.

If not fed, most will go into ‘hibernation’ sealing themselves up and becoming inactive. Or you can feed them on green lettuce leaves, apple, bran, carrot and the like. I used get my snail food from the ‘throw out’ bin at the local supermarket. I’d simply ask if it was OK to “take a bag home for my birds” ( saves on lengthy explanations) and was never refused. Active snails produce lots of wastes, so they require regular cleaning. A gentle spray with water followed by tipping out of wastes does the trick. To reduce the frequency of the need to clean you can include layers of newspaper covering the bottom of the container. I sometimes added crumpled pages from glossy advertising magazines to provide more space for the snails to occupy. They seem to like eating the starch used on the glossy pages.


 
Fantastic info! Thanks heaps. I'll definitely get something like this going soon as it seems the cheapest way to go. :)


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It's perfect weather for snail hinting here in Melbourne right now! Go out and find some haha. It only just stoped raining at my place (I live out near the Tullamarine airport) after nearly a day of non-stop raining!
 
All of what blue tongue says is true but I would like to add something I read about and have seen in my attempts at snail farms,DO NOT use tap water as the chemicals and heavy metals are not good for them.I always try to keep some rain water specifically for the snails
 
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And he loves them. :)


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