Fixing a mystery snail's shell?

[Jan]

One of my gold mystery snails decided to take a stroll around the room,
and broke its shell in the process. The hole is about 1/4' diameter,
and is in the area of the snail's head. When the snail is tucked in,
its eye is visible through the hole.

The snail has been living like this for several weeks. The hole was
eventually covered by a thin membrane. Yesterday I noticed that the
membrane has disappeared (it was probably punctured).

The problem now is that the snail is defenceless. The fish can (and
occasionally do) pick at it through the hole in its shell. Now, my
question is, how can I fix its shell? Is it possible to attach/glue
some sort of membrane to it? Is there such a thing as an animal safe
adhesive? I was watching on tv the other day how they fixed a turtle's
shell. Can something like this be done with a snail?

Thanks.

Jan

[Daniel Morrow]

Bottom posted.
Jan wrote:
> One of my gold mystery snails decided to take a stroll around the
> room, and broke its shell in the process. The hole is about 1/4'
> diameter, and is in the area of the snail's head. When the snail is
> tucked in, its eye is visible through the hole.
>
> The snail has been living like this for several weeks. The hole was
> eventually covered by a thin membrane. Yesterday I noticed that the
> membrane has disappeared (it was probably punctured).
>
> The problem now is that the snail is defenceless. The fish can (and
> occasionally do) pick at it through the hole in its shell. Now, my
> question is, how can I fix its shell? Is it possible to attach/glue
> some sort of membrane to it? Is there such a thing as an animal safe
> adhesive? I was watching on tv the other day how they fixed a turtle's
> shell. Can something like this be done with a snail?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Jan

If you still had the piece of the shell that broke off you could use reef
glue most likely. You can order it from www.thatpetplace.com if you want. I
guess you wouldn't even need the lost shell piece actually, but it is hard
to say for me right now what else you could use as a membrane. Good luck and
later!

[bettasngoldfish]

http://www.applesnail.net/content/faq.php

Maybe you can find help here : )

[Mean_Chlorine]

Use superglue (gel type, not the runny type) to glue a piece of
plastic or ceramic over the hole. The snail will repair the damage if
left alone, and the superglue will dissolve over time. Although the
ceramic/plastic may get stuck in the new shell.

Yes, superglue gives of noxious vapors during curing, so do this in a
well-ventilated spot and don't use enormous amounts of glue, but is
after that harmless. In aquaristics it's used to e.g. glue plants to
driftwood, and to fix cuttings of living coral to rocks.

[Jan]

Thanks to everyone who replied. I'll try to get some superglue to fix
it. I am planning to use a piece of plastic binder divider as a
'membrane'. This is the best material that I have for this purpose.
It's a flexible semi-transparent plastic (polyethylene, I guess). Does
anyone know if this is safe for underwater use?