FAQ's about our products & services
Can I come and collect my order from you?
No, sorry. We are mail order only. We run a busy schedule, and simply don't have the time to arrange collections for customers.
How do you send your orders?
We use APC Overnight Couriers for all orders that contain livestock. We care about our animals and believe they should have a safe & comfortable journey to their destination. APC Couriers are known in the trade for their care and efficiency in dealing with live animal transportation.
All dry goods orders are sent via Royal Mail 1st Class Post.
Do you ship to the Highlands and Islands in the UK?
Yes we can send to these destinations, please contact us for a shipping quote before ordering.
Do you ship to the United States?
No, sorry. We cannot ship to the U.S under any circumstances.
When will my order be shipped?
We try our hardest to ensure that your order is processed within 48 working hours of recieving payment (please allow several days if paying via personal cheque.) However, during busy periods your order may take longer to dispatch. Please allow up to 5 working days for your order to be dispatched.
We only send orders during the week and they will only arrive on a week day (not weekends.) If you are at work, parcels will be fine left unopened at work, with a friend or neighbour until you return in the evening.
We may be able to arrange delivery for Saturday in special circumstances, but this would need to be agreed prior to purchase and will incur extra courier fees. Please contact us for details.
All other European orders are usually dispatched at the beginning of the week, to ensure minimal time in transit.
Question about Livestock in general?
Please visit the UKFISH forum for a fast & friendly response: www.ukfish.info
FAQ's about our Livestock
Do you artficially colour enhance your stock?
Absolutely not. All of the coloured snails you see on this site are natural colour variants, they are not dyed, injected or fed high pigment feed.
Your snails are amazing colours, do you enhance or Photoshop your photos?
No. We have never used Photoshop. All of our photos were taken using a normal digital camera. Most of our photos are taken under natural sunlight, so that the natural colour shines through.
Are your photos a good example of the kind of quality stock I will receive?
Yes, all of our photos are taken of actual stock at Snail Shop and are reflective of the high quality we sell. Of course, with any species, there may be slight variations of colour & shape between individuals, but these differences will make your snail unique.
We have strict quality control and will not send out any snails which have shell defects. The only exception to this is if the stock is wild caught. If defects are expected, this will be mentioned in the detailed item description. We only send out stock that we would personally be pleased to receive ourselves.
What Guarantees do you provide on livestock?
Snail Shop has a live arrival guarantee on all livestock orders, irrespective of postage choice. Please email us on the day of arrival if you have any problems with your order. Any dead on arrival claims will require photographic evidence, Snail Shop also reserves the right to request that the stock be sent back for post mortem examination. Snail Shop will issue a pro-rata refund, credit voucher or replacement at our discretion. Postage charges cannot be refunded under any cirumstances.
Do you sell any other species of snail, that are not listed currently on your website?
Yes, we usually remove products which are 'out of stock' from the website until they are back in stock. To be notified when we have new products in stock, please join the mailing list on the website. If you are after something in particular, please email us, we are always happy to see if we can find it for you.
Why Keep Aquatic Snails?
Here are the answers direct from our customers:
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"Snails are the best addition to any planted aquarium, not only do they do a sterling job at beating up any algae that exists, but they also provide an extremely interesting focal point. Whether its my Nerite's, or my purple Apple snails, each species carries its own character and huge attraction."
M. Holbrook-Bull
(Founding member of the UK Aquatic Plant Society)
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"Red, blue, pink, purple, white, striped, big, small, flat, round. It doesn't matter what you like, you can find a snail in almost any color and shape. Adding a few snails to the aquarium is the best way to prevent uneaten food and dead leaves from affecting water quality. They do a great job eating algae too."
Daniel Israelsson
(Competition winner)
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"I have only recently set up my first aquarium. It currently contains 4 pearl danios and 6 guppies. I recently added a purple apple snail who we have called "Bernard". He is facinating to watch and seems very happy in his new home."
Claire Sidebotham
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"Apple snails are amazing to watch as they move so smoothly across the tank and are very colourful. I love the tiny snails too as their shells are long and very cute."
Corinne Clark
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"I love my snails so much I have now got a tank especially for them! they are great for keeping the tank clean and are just so funny to watch they do make me laugh! Bert my brown is in with my fish which he enjoys as there are no other snails on his patch! Ernie is in what I now call my nursery tank which is just for snails! Ernie has the important job of looking after the babies!
I would like to thank you guys at snail shop as I had a problem with Ernie's shell and you pointed me in the right direction and he is doing lots better so thankyou your after sales help is great! Without you I would not have got into snails as a hobby, thankyou!"
Katharine Ransom
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"I think snails are fantastic because of the
immense character they have, as well as the ways in which they are perfectly
adapted to the world around them. Truly fascinating creatures, and thank
you to snail shop for starting my interest in them, as well as my collection!"
Tom Hutton
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"I bought MTS and these golden apple snails from you for my freshwater community tank. I simply could not be with out them now... they are the best at keeping me - or rather the tank algae free and the apple snails are so graceful to watch, balancing majestically on a single plant stem before launching
themselves to float to the gravel."
Kathryn Degnan
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"I have had my aquarium for over 4 months and I really enjoy it. I have got 6 guppies, 1 pleco, 4 snails, 3 red cherry shrimps and 2 algae shrimps."
Tomasz Ulman
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"I have one bumble snail and a Spixi Apple Snail. I like the snails as they are excellent at keeping the tank clean eating algae and any left over uneaten food. They are also always moving around loads and a lot quickly than I thought they would. I could spend hours just watching them moving around and looking for food. They are a great addition to my tanks."
Barry Hannah
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"These snails really are cool; not only are they the best clean-up crew for the aquarium, they are also fascinating to watch as they move so gracefully and swiftly around the tank, some of them like to ride in the current from the power-head, while others will avoid it; they really are quite different from
each other. The picture is of a Giant brown Apple snail."
Dave Cornish
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"Why I like snails....
I have 4 Ramshorn Snails and they're doing a great job keeping the algae down, I haven't had to clean the glass for 3 weeks.
Now they are laying eggs so more excitement in the tank. I just love them!!"
Wendy Yolland
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"I love aquatic snails because of their eccentricity and character! I keep Pomacea insularum with Nerite snails and the contrasts between both are incredible. The Nerites are very slow and purposeful; they seem to stick to what they know best, eating algae! The insularum however, seem to want to gather their food in any way possible. If its on the water surface, they will try and grab it with their foot. But if the food is under the sand, they will dig for it without any hassle. They truly are incredible animals!"
Neil Blake
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"Adding snails to the tank made the viewing so much more interesting. We have apple, trumpet and nerite snails and they have done an excellent job in clearing the algae and adding so much more colour and life to the tank. A very well worth while investment!"
Charles
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" I love aquatic snails because of their intelligence and grace when interacting with others. They are highly advanced evolutionarily, they have both lungs and gills; strong shells to hold moisture in when their pool dries out and to provide a hazard for predators. They interact with
humans, and after a little training, even massive adult Pomacea insularim will happily walk over your hand for lettuce. I keep over 100 snails, 20 of those are apple snails species and at not one moment have I ever found them
at all boring."
Max Blake
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If you have any other questions about our livestock or our service, please don't hesitate to contact me personally at
Thank you, Louisa :-)
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