Ø Benefits
of Snails
1. The
meat is very proteinous, and low in cholesterol
2.
It contains most of all the essential
nutrients required for healthy growth.
3.
The meat has high percentage of protein,
iron calcium.
4.
The meat contains some properties for
fighting high blood pressure, anaemia.
5.
It has no religion barrier.
6.
Snail lime is used as powerful adhesive
7.
Their shell are used as source of
calcium in poultry
8.
Snail slime can be sold as beverage
Ø Choosing Foundation Stock
It is
recommended to use sexually mature snails, weighing at least 100-125 g, as
first breeding stock. Farming should preferably start at the onset of the wet
season, because that is the time snails normally start to breed. Snails are
active at night and on cloudy or foggy mornings. During the day they tend to
keep well hidden, so it is best to collect them at night or early in the
morning, when the sun is low and the humidity high. Farmers purchasing breeding
stock from snail gatherers or from the market should expect a fairly high level
of mortality as a result of poor handling and the adjustment to different
foods.
The most reliable way of
obtaining parental stock is from known breeders, or from agricultural
institutes. Such parent snails might be more expensive than snails from other
sources, but they are better and safer because they have been properly fed and
managed from hatching, and have not been damaged during collection and
subsequent handling. Once the snail farm is established, farmers should
select breeding stock from their own snails. Breeding stock must be selected in
the wet season preceding aestivation, based on the following attributes:
Prolificacy
(expected number of eggs, based on numbers laid in previous seasons).
Hatchability
(percentage of eggs likely to hatch out of the total number laid).
Establishment rate
(percentage of snails likely to survive after hatching) .
Growing rate.
Shell strength.
Simple
records kept by snail farmers can provide the necessary information. As a
general rule, the fastest growers with the strongest shells should be selected
as breeding stock. The stronger its shell, the better the snail is protected
against predators.
I
often advise intending farmers to source for their first stock from reputable
farms. Do not buy from market sellers. Most of the stocks there have stayed
hooked without food for weeks or months in the market; they may have been
demoralized; hence this might affect their reproductive potentials. Don’t fetch
or buy baby snails for rearing; buy matured ones so that after they can start
mating and reproduce almost immediately they get to your farm.
NOTE: You can order for your foundation
stocks@ Ofaro concepts CONTACT: 08158105137@ affordable prices
Ø
The
Snail House (Snailery)
Snaileries
can vary from a patch of fence-protected ground, sheltered from the wind to a
covered box if you are breeding in small scale. A well glass or plastic ventilated
tank, condemn motor tyre for beginner or a well-ventilated wooden cage.
For larger population of snails, you
can dig a trench or make a concrete pen with soil deep of about 10 inches, and
cover it with screen or wire all around to prevent the snails from escaping.
Remember that snails can reproduce fast and become pests when their breeding is
uncontrolled.
Snails
love dark and cold places, but make sure the humidity does not drop to levels
harmful to the snails. You can use fresh banana leaves and dry cocoa leaves
that is regularly wet to regulate the temperature.
Ø Rearing System
The
following types of pens might be considered for simple snaileries:
• Hutch box.
• Concrete pens.
• Free-range pens.
·
Car
tires, oil drums.