Snails/Pesticides!!

[Pumpkincrab]

Since you've come to the emergency forum, we know you want a fast answer to your question. In order for us to figure out the problem as quickly as possible, we ask that you answer the following questions as best you can. Some of them may seem odd, but they're all designed to give us the information we need to give you a good solution for your problem. The things in the [ brackets ] are there to make this post easier to read once submitted. Thanks!


1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it?
Play sand/ EE, 7 inches.

2. Do you have gauges in the tank to measure temperature and humidity? If so, where are they located and what temperature and humidity do they usually read?
AcuRite gague. Middle of tank. Heat usually 80-82, humidity 90+.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
2 heat pads. One long one, all across the back wall of the tank. It's the main heat pad.
2nd heat pad is on one of the sides. I only turn it on during the winter, when needed.

4. What types of water are available (fresh or salt) and how is the water treated (what brands of dechlorinator or salt mix and what ratio is used to mix it)?
Both fresh and salt. Deep enough to fully submerge in. IO for salt, and dechlorinated for fresh.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced?
A heck ton of foods from various sellers on Etsy. I feed a very fortified diet consisting of protein, calcium, fruits, veggies, fats, chitins and plant/leaf litter.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known?
N/A

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen?
N/A

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing?
29G tank. 6 crabs. Glass lid.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they?
6 crabs. 1 tiny, about 5 small/med and one getting a bit large. Planning to upgrade tanks to a 75 g in the coming months.

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any?
More than 30. Can't tell for sure.

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently?
Not sure- I'll describe in detail below.

12. How often do you clean the tank and how?
I don't deep clean unless I need to. Usual cleaning is just removing moldy food, replacing water, putting moss back in moss pit (Pumpkin loooooves to just knock it all out).

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned?
Nope.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently?
Forages from CrabStreetMarket. But this was over 2 weeks ago approx.

15. Is there any other information you would like to share that might be helpful (anything that is regularly part of your crab care, playtime, bathing, etc.)?
No.

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail.
Well over a year ago I decided to keep some snails from outside. I had them in their own little container. I soon released them back into the wild.
When I had them I had a piece of cork in their habitat. When they were released, I put that cork in the crab tank. I know. Without cleaning it at all.
Looking back on this I regret it. I was very new then. Like extremely new. It horrifies me. I removed the cork recently- yesterday, in fact- after remembering this. I'm moving on the 22nd so I'm taking that chance to deep clean everything. New substrate, baking the cork, ect. Not fully because of the snails, just because, come on, how often do I get to deep clean a tank? xD
It's been well over a year that the cork's been in the tank. The crabs have been fine- molting, eating, activity ect.
Is there a chance that there's pesticides in the tank? Anything to be worried about?
I'm worried sick. Thank you for helping.

[curlysister]

If it was in there for over a year, and didn't cause any troubles, I can't think of any harm that could come later from it.

[JoeHermits]

I highly doubt that you caused any harm in any way.

Could the snails have picked something up? Perhaps if their host plant was treated (though I imagine any molluscicides would have killed the snails if used correctly), but even so they wouldn’t be carrying much, and even less would be on the cork, which would have broken down anyways (the pesticides, not the cork).

Also, baking may help degrade residues but it’s not effective for removing pesticides. If there were significant amounts (which there aren’t) it’d be better to throw the whole thing away.


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[Pumpkincrab]

Thank you both!