all about snails

I just might know more about garden snails than anyone else I know; now, I know that's a blunt statement, and it's a little unrealistic, but I can tell you with confidence that after studying the daily lives, behaviors, and basic sciences of these common and oftentimes 'pesky' Gastropods, I know more about them than most definitely everyone I know. Snails are very fascinating creatures, and as humans, we oftentimes try to categorize them solely based on how their relationship with us stands. Most of the human population views garden snails as pests, eating their crops and destroying their hard work. Others view them as a delicacy, something they'd like to taste when visiting France. I would tell you that at Wanderlust, we see them as pets, like a dog or cat; but that would be a lie. Here at Wanderlust, we view snails as what they are: living creatures, with essential needs and care requirements. They are animals over anything else. They require food, water, a source of safety. They sleep when they are tired, hibernate in winter when in the wild, and every spring, sometime between February and July, they reproduce. Whether it be asexually or with a mate depends on their circumstances, but either way, they fulfill their duty of producing offspring, which they will stay with for one month before leaving them on their own. The snail is a simple animal, and there is one fatal flaw in their design; every winter, they die, leaving them with a lifespan of only nine months in the outdoors. In captivity, however, they live for up to ten years. This is why we decided to initially take snails into captivity; they are amazing companion animals with promising lifespans and temperaments, if only they were ever given the chance. Their care is low-maintenance, their emotions are simple, and they provide a sense of responsibility, as well as an easily achievable bond between pet and handler. Snails are not the next dog. Snails are not the next cat. Snails are snails, and they have always been, but nobody has bothered to give them a chance.