Mastodawn

Please don't boost #aislop !

This slop graphic went #viral in my timeline on Mastodon. Commentators found the source in a FB slop page, and biologists in the comments tell the facts. Nevertheless, people burst into enthusiasm, so little do they know about nature. #AISlop sites on big platforms gather about 250k followers.

I did a fact-check about real snails.
You can read it here: https://steady.page/en/naturematchcuts/posts/28951404-a41f-4215-ab89-bc35dbc41233

#snail #snails #animalsave #NatureMatchCuts #biodiversity #reconnectWithNature #blog

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Santtu Sammakko Feb 26

@NatureMC So, your advice isn't for pet snails? Well, I had a pet snail as a kid (giant African land snail in English, I think). I had them for maybe two years, and used to grab their shell to lift them quite a lot. Well... over time, their body/foot/whatever started to detach from the shell. 😬 They liked to hang upside down from the lid of the 'tank' (a plastic box lol), but eventually their shell hung _considerably_ lower than before, which looked quite painful... (cont.)

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Petra van Cronenburg Feb 26

@Santtu_Sammakko Indeed, I write mainly about European garden snails (and slugs) because:
- I don't know anything about pet snails.
- These giant snails are very different (alone with their weight/food etc).
- These snails mostly don't live in natural conditions (your plastic box e.g.) and are not treated naturally (pets).
So it's better to ask a veterinary specialised in such species.

What I can say: yes, of course, plastic or glass is smoother than soil or asphalt! It could had helped perhaps

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Petra van Cronenburg Feb 26

@Santtu_Sammakko to get them retracted before. But it could have been also something about food, I am not a clairvoyant. 😉
It's sad that you've lost your pet. You were a kid: it's the adults who have to know how to keep a pet. My tip if you want to keep a pet, no matter what kind: familiarise yourself well with their natural needs and behaviour *beforehand*. And keep them as naturally as possible.

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Santtu Sammakko

@NatureMC Oh, I see. Well, I suppose it was mostly because I grabbed their shell like that... but dunno. I asked for advice on some forum, but don't remember the replies anymore.
It was my dad's idea to get the snail and, well, we both have ADHD... 😅 None in our family knew much about snails. I LOVED watching the garden snails as a kid, but that's pretty much it. I guess my parents just trusted the pet shop keeper on the food etc. If I ever get a new snail, I'll try to be more careful...