On an unrelated note, I have recently become the parent to a garden snail which I have named Abeba with the help of my biology professor. On 5/1/25, she was found by some of my biology classmates in the pea plants we were using for some hormone and chemical experiments. That's scary for a snail to be in that situation! They're sensitive creatures!
Abebe quickly caught the attention of most people in the room, including me, who was very excited to get a close look at the cute creature. One person joked that someone should take it home, which led to my teacher suggesting that I care for the snail. Without putting much thought into the situation, I agreed, and was given a small plastic tub and a leaf from one of our control plants to feed the snail, and took her home.
But as I was on my way home, the reality that I had a creature's life in my uneducated hands set in, and I began to panic. I know nothing about raising snails! What was I supposed to do? I can't let this thing die, the guilt would stick with me forever. Along with that, I can't just release the snail because everyone back in class was expecting pictures, and the snail was an invasive species that I didn't have the heart to kill.
So, I quickly went to the best and definitely most credible resource I could think of for snail care, Reddit. I was quickly informed about the different types of soil I could use for my snail. But I can't just dig up a bunch of dirt from my own yard, I would need untreated topsoil to ensure there were no parasites or pesticides hidden in there. I need a larger enclosure, coconut coir to retain moisture at the bottom, sphagnum moss for something soft in the tank, sticks, a hide, cuttlebone, fresh vegetables, spring water instead of tap or distilled, and so on. I ordered my terrarium as soon as I got home, along with the moss and cuttlebone. Next, I went out to find the dirt, coconut coir, and water that would ensure the safety of my snail.
If my snail could survive the next 12-ish hours, she would be living the dream...
And so far, she has!
I'm definitely not an expert on snails or anything, but I feel like I've learned a lot over the past couple of days! I feel as if I'm being brought back to my freshman year of high school, where my Building Life Skills class was given these very realistic robot baby dolls to take home and care for over the weekend. It was the worst weekend of my life. The cries were so ear piercing, and I was so scared of messing up that I hardly ever lifted the baby in case I would not properly support the neck, and be subjected to its wails. I kept it laying on my bed, and I didn't leave my room for the entire weekend, not even to take a bath. The untreated anxiety disorder was probably the cause behind all of my unnecessary panic, but even now that I'm getting the care I need I still feel like its coming back! Even after reading that snails are nocturnal, and also not very active creatures I panic that I've somehow killed him after he's been still all day; only for her to wake up at night and begin moving around and eating her vegetables. Then that cycle repeats in the morning.
Despite all the fear that I've been experiencing, I'm very happy to now be the friend of a snail. I think he helps me reflect on and appreciate the smaller things in life. I hope it doesn't lay any eggs though because I would hate to have to crush them all, or later find all of the baby snails and kill them then.
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