Pets for the kids

Kelinik

pavlovs_dog wrote:

ive also had ginat african landsnails, and they are very easy to care for. they will eat most veg and fruit (which most of us have in the house).

they need cuttlefish for the calcium for their shell (about 50p a pop) but also enjoy washed egg shells.

the peat/soil in their tank needs to be kept moist, but other than that they are quite low maintenance.

as for cleaning the slime off the tank, good old fashioned vinegar and elbow grease does the job :beer:

That's great info, thanks for that pavlov.

pavlovs_dog

you're welcome. you thinking of getting one?

i must warn you, nothing will prepare you for how small they are (and hence easy to loose :eek: ) as babies.. think smaller than the nail on your little finger/toe.

its magical to watch them grow, see the pattern on their shell develop as they turn less see through, the slimy kisses, the crunching sound as they chow down on some cucumber, the way their poo changes colour depending on what theyve been eating

i really miss my snail but OH is a big girl, and is absolutely terrified of slugs and snails :rolleyes:

greengrass

My husband had garter snakes as a kid and he desperately wants to get another one for our daughter he says!! They do make nice friendly pets though.

Jay-Jay_4

EEEEUUUUWWWWW!!!!! Snails make me go ..._pale_

I have to do that flappy arm dance if I go anywhere near one

Kelinik

Do you think my choice of pets might act as a burglar deterrent?

Beware of the rats, mice and snails! nailed on the front door lol!

Sexy_Em

I have two Giant African Land Snails...and they are awesome.

clean them out fortnightly, feed them lettuce and cucumber, and they dont need walkin or make a noise!!

they are lovely!!

saintjanet

Think VERY carefully before considering a parrot,i have had one for 15 years,he is an amazon and while they can be very endearing,they also make a hell of a noise at times and often screech loudly enough to perforate your ear drums!!:D.

The African grey is a better talker but my mate had one and that was really vicious and would attack anyone who went too near!!

I still love mine but i dont know if i can stand him or another 25 years or so:eek:

Idiophreak

Miss_Money wrote:

Any animal, be it mamal, reptile or fish will need to be looked after when you go away!

Err, I used to have fish and when I went away I'd just leave them one of those slow-release feeding tablets and they were fine. Was I being neglectful?

pavlovs_dog

Jay-Jay wrote:

EEEEUUUUWWWWW!!!!! Snails make me go ..._pale_

I have to do that flappy arm dance if I go anywhere near one

yep, thats the one my OH does too :rolleyes: who'd have thought it, a fully grown bloke afraid of slugs n snails :rotfl:

Miss_Money

Idiophreak wrote:

Err, I used to have fish and when I went away I'd just leave them one of those slow-release feeding tablets and they were fine. Was I being neglectful?

i used to have over 8 tanks of marine, tropical and african Chiclids
, i personally wouldnt have left them with a slow release food that they help themselves too because they were big fish, and needed feeding regulary(also things can go wrong very quickly in a marine tank when it decides to, so i left my salt water aquarium in the hands of the local marine specailist shop ) imagine a large oscar Chiclid ( a foot long) being left with a slow release food it just doesnt happen, he needed worms and l\rge pellets every day. Thats not to say a small tank of tetras wouldnt be fine with a slow release food over a week it all depends on what fish you keep. I wouldnt call you neglectful.