Painting Snails...

BRS
Jump to Last
andrew james

andrew james

Well-Known Member
View Badges
Joined
Oct 15, 2016
Messages
550
Reaction score
573
Rating - 0%
0   0   0
This is probably the dumbest thing I've posted yet, but I need to ask. I have some large Astrea Snails in my QT tank that I will be moving to my Display in a week or two. My daughter (7) wants to paint the shell of a particularly large snail. So I have some questions,
  1. Is this cruel?
  2. Is there a paint that will not hurt the snail or the inhabitants of my tank?
  3. What about glow in the dark paint?
I swear this is for my daughter and not me...
 
AS
For your daughter, sure....lol. I'm tagging along for this, I'm sure there's something out there that will be safe. I don't think it's cruel at all. I'm thinking after painting you would need some kind of reef safe clear coat like they put on the fake decorations for tanks.
 
Yes it is cruel.

It’s like painting your other pets such as a dog or cat. Would you do that to them so they glow in the dark?

People have gone to jail for such acts,as it is considered a form animal cruelty
 
Orphek OR3 reef aquarium LED bar
Fishmanz said:
Yes it is cruel.

It’s like painting your other pets such as a dog or cat. Would you do that to them so they glow in the dark?

People have gone to jail for such acts,as it is considered a form animal cruelty
Click to expand...
Really man? Give me a break. It's a shell, no paint is going on the actual snail. Going to jail, that's comical. Are you that bored fishmanz? So with your logic I guess we should do time for putting a dog in a Halloween costume! Lol.
 
Painting and costumes are completely different. I view all my tank inhabitants as “pets” and care for them as such.

There are plenty of cases if you research where people have been charged for spray painting animals. Yes it’s a snail, BUT it’s still an animal and should be treated with respect.
 
I believe so but here's why. To paint it you would have to take it out of water to paint, no while I know they can be out of water for a while I feel it shouldn't be done on purpose. Secondly, you would have to let the paint dry which would be an even longer time out of water, which is where I'm thinking that if you need to paint to dry then the snail might dry out also, which would kill it. Lastly, it would be near those fumes while your painting which could ruin its health.

How about a nice medium, let her paint a few empty shells, give them a week or so to dry out completely, then buy a small hermit crab and hope it moves into one of the shells

Edit: if you do the hermit crab option, don't paint the inside of the shell and uou will also want to do a lot of research into paint for the shells. You will want to find one that won't leak toxins, won't fall apart and is reef safe.
 
Last edited:
Using non toxic paint in no way is going to hurt the snail. Painting a dog or cat is seriously being compared here? It's making contact with the skin of the animal. This is too funny. I guess painting my daughter's nails should be reported. Get off your soapboxes.
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
Fishmanz said:
Painting and costumes are completely different. I view all my tank inhabitants as “pets” and care for them as such.

There are plenty of cases if you research where people have been charged for spray painting animals. Yes it’s a snail, BUT it’s still an animal and should be treated with respect.
Click to expand...
Because spray paint is what the OP is talking about. Lol. You know fishmanz, some people think it's cruel we keep our pets in a box with water......the horror!!!!
 
DSC reef said:
Really man? Give me a break. It's a shell, no paint is going on the actual snail. Going to jail, that's comical. Are you that bored fishmanz? So with your logic I guess we should do time for putting a dog in a Halloween costume! Lol.
Click to expand...

I gotta admit, I hate dogs in Halloween costumes! Jail time might be a good thing ;) (yes it was a joke... relax!)
 
ReefBot Lab, Automated Water Tester
reel reef rock is painted, so I'm sure there is something out there that can be used.
But as mentioned above, its likely to be difficult since the shell would need to be dry and the animal out of the water for a length of time.
 
Deltec
what if I glued a frag to a snails back? - please discuss.


* I should just say right here that this is all a joke. Like most people on this forum I care deeply for all the inhabitants of my tank. I literally spend hours everyday, not to mention thousands of dollars to make their life and their home as nice and as clean as I possibly can. I'm not doing anything to snails, just bored.
 
Last edited:
Do then cover it with superglue. Glue will harden under water while paint cures. Its just a snail. Mine get eaten by hermits. Is that cruel? Crabs don't care even if they eat it all they just want the shell.
 
andrew james said:
what if I glued a frag to a snails back? - please discuss.
Click to expand...
Just lost me, like glue a coral frag onto it? Minus the glue part, I imagine that happens in nature. I would just be extremely careful so that the glue doesn't jeopardize the snails health. Ie don't get it on the snail or too close to it. Technically, I wouldn't do it, but you get my point
 
BRS

IF YOU HAD TO TAKE A REEFING EXAM, WOULD YOU PASS?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 32 45.7%

  • Not yet, but I have one that I want to buy in mind!

    Votes: 9 12.9%

  • No.

    Votes: 26 37.1%

  • Other (please explain).

    Votes: 3 4.3%
See comments…

New Posts

World Wide Corals
Nutramar Foods
Chewy.com
Top Shelf Aquatics
Tidal Gardens
Deltec
Dinkins Aquatic Gardens
TCK Corals
New Posts
Back
Top