Question about snail behavior

Question
We just bought two snails for a 20 gallon long tank that houses 3 large fancy goldfish. We have a bad algae problems and have tried many remedies to no avail. The fish shop suggested snails.

We picked out two very active ones, and they truck around all over the tank. But wvery once in a while, I see them on their backs if they have fallen off a rock or something. Are snails able to turn themselves upright on their own if they end up on their backs? I have been picking them up and putting them upright and I feel a little silly.

Answer
Hi Kerri,

I had an apple snail a long time ago that would occasionally do this, I don't think there is any harm in just leaving it alone, but I couldn't find any information online about this. Do check out this site for lots of general information on caring for aquatic snails:
http://www.applesnail.net

Some people recommend snails with goldfish - knowing what I know now, I am a little leery of keeping snails with fish because they tend to nip at them. I had mine with blue gouramis and they did nip it. Goldfish love to explore with their mouths, and I can see how their tentacles do resemble little worms...while they can regenerate parts of their body, no creature can stand to be nipped too awful much, so be careful. When you see a snail with its "door" tightly shut, that usually means it's trying to protect itself from a perceived threat (such as an impending fish mouth!) but it may also be reacting to water conditions that are off, so get out your test kit and check for water quality. Ammonia and nitr*i*tes must always be 0 ppm.

If you ever see a snail "hanging open" take it out ASAP! Snails are incredibly polluting when they die. It happens, unfortunately. My snail lived somewhere between 1-2 years, as I recall.

You have probably already realized this, but your tank is overstocked. Goldfish are highly polluting, so they need plenty of space and ample filtration in order to keep the aquarium tidy. Algae thrives where there is a high nutrient content and plenty of light. Sunlight and too many hours of overhead light can trigger algae, but the main thing that causes algae to thrive is nutrient content. Uneaten food will definitely turn into algae, but even if all the food *is* getting eaten, the wastes from the fish still make usable food for algae.

Your tank is really only big enough for one goldfish. Goldfish are social so I always recommend at least a 29 gallon tank for two goldfish (fancy goldfish, not comets or shubunkins as these grow too large) so they can benefit from the company of their own. As they grow, you may consider upgrading your tank, in a year I suspect these goldfish will be too big to be housed comfortably in a 20 gallon.

Read this article about the special needs goldfish have:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/goldfish101art.htm
They aren't as easy to keep as people generally assume!

These pages will tell you all about food for your goldfish:
http://www.kokosgoldfish.com/food.html
http://wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/gldfshmalnut.htm

I strongly urge you to limit commercial foods to less than 50% of the diet, but at least 25% since it is a fine source of complete nutrition - just too many calories! Feed lots of veggies and "green" flake such as Spirulina flake. Wheat germ is another suggestion. At koko's you can look for some recipes for DIY homemade foods such as gel foods.

Feeding foods with a low protein content and performing frequent water changes (50% a week is recommended) will help with your algae troubles. If you can add fast growing aquatic plants (edible ones, such as Elodea, will be fun for your goldfish, but inedible ones, such as Hornwort, will be more effective) this will help too.

Enjoy your snails! Take care.
Nicole