Snails

[MobiTheVeildCham]

I found some snails under my school building. Can I feed these to Mobi?

 

[ashdavisa]

I wouldn't- snails are one of, if not THE, most common intermediate hosts for parasites.

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

Oof. I'd better remove them from his cage ASAP then.

 

[Fchamel]

Only helix asperas. But I wouldn't recommend feeding anything from outside in case of risk of something on them.

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

The snails were in the cage overnight, I haven't checked on him yet, but should he be fine?

 

[PoseidonTheChameleon]

The snails were in the cage overnight, I haven't checked on him yet, but should he be fine?

If he hasn't eaten them yet then take them out asap

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

Mhmm

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

What do I do if he has already eaten them???

 

[PoseidonTheChameleon]

What do I do if he has already eaten them???

Uhhh I'm not really sure if they are toxic or not but they could have parasites so maybe get him tested for them

 

[Kaizen]

I found some snails under my school building. Can I feed these to Mobi?View attachment 282988

Terrestrial snails are often relished by chameleons. Some say there is a risk of parasite transmission, but there’s an easy way around it. Keep a bin with the adults, allow them to lay eggs, remove the eggs and rear them separately. Then feed the babies.

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

OKay well I took them out, but I couldn't find one of them. I just hope it's hidden in the dirt.

 

[PoseidonTheChameleon]

OKay well I took them out, but I couldn't find one of them. I just hope it's hidden in the dirt.

I honestly think it will be fine just dont feed bugs from outside anymore, you can raise them like someone else said

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

Mhmm. I'll make sure not to do that.

 

[Kaizen]

So far as I know, the danger with wild caught bugs is from pesticides, not parasites. Snails can be a bit of a different story because of the whole lung worm thing, but I’ve already addressed that. Your Cham will most likely be fine, and there’s nothing to panic about.

 

[Kaizen]

Further to my last,

All my chams eat wild insects for 5 months/year.

 

[ashdavisa]

Like previously said, your chameleon is probably fine. There's not a 100% chance that snail had parasites, and there's not a 100% chance that even if it did, the parasite would continue its life cycle in your chameleon.
Any load of parasites, regardless of its life stage, can chip away at your chameleon's immune system, though- which is why it's recommended to have your chameleon checked for parasites anyway, regardless of whether its been munching on snails or not!

 

[MobiTheVeildCham]

Mkay, we'll try to take him to a vet soon.

 

[jamest0o0]

As mentioned, the worry is usually from rat lungworm, which seems to effect multiple animals and isn't as species specific as most. Still probably pretty rare though.