# Snails and Loaches



## Ramenuzumaki (Sep 12, 2009)

So ive read a lot about them. apparently many species of loaches love to eat snails. Dojo/weather loaches in particular. however, what im curious is: how quickly will this work? i mean would i have to not feed my loaches for a while to make them want to actually use the snails as a food source or will they just simply say "oh im hungry. oh look a snack om nom nom munch sucky lump slirp yum!"

also i have a little five gallon tank with 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 snails
yep one sextillion snails [yes thats a real number]
not really that many but yeah a lot of snails
i was curious if i put one loach in their just temporarily to get rid of some of the snails would he/she go right into it within the next 24 hours and start eating them or should i just use the lettuce method of reducing the snail pop?

any comments would be appreciated


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## 1077 (Apr 16, 2008)

Actually, Another member here, Fishinpole,, suggested a quicker method. Just get a section of hose approx 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter. Place the bait in the tank (lettuce or algae wafers) and let the snails climb aboard. Then use the section of hose like a gravel vaccum and suck the little buggers up. The end of the gravel vaccum I have, is too big around but by pulling the end off that I stick in the tank to gravel vac,, It creates much more suction and quickly sucks em right up. May take several times to rid the majority of them.


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## kelly528 (Aug 31, 2009)

I just vacuum snails out of the substrate whenever I do a water change lol. I don't think one loach will eradicate snails at any sort of speed, however my Batik loach just goes nuts whenever I drop one in the tank... he wiggles around and lunges at it and sort of tosses it around. I call him the snail snarfer. Definitely handy for a nutritious treat.


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## teddyzaper (Aug 30, 2009)

my JD eats all my snails, at first i tried to put some in to keep the little bit of algea that was in there gone but i just gave up because no matter what i did they couldnt even reach the bottom.


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## Ramenuzumaki (Sep 12, 2009)

JD?


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## aunt kymmie (Jun 2, 2008)

Jack Dempsey


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## Ramenuzumaki (Sep 12, 2009)

oh
we dont have any here


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## Byron (Mar 7, 2009)

I would not suggest a loach in a 5g tank to eradicate snails. Loaches are social fish and should (=must) be kept in a group or they will be stressed and that means unhealthy. Some also grow large. There is no acceptable species of loach for a 5g tank because of the fore-going.

Snails appear if food is available. They won't live if they have no food. And removing them by the methods suggested by prior responses is preferable.

Byron.


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## Ramenuzumaki (Sep 12, 2009)

yeah i guess lol
i was going to keep him in there forever just until it eats most of the nail pop >


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