@Peaceuntou, Thanks sir for the call and I would be glad in receiving your call sir and have a splendid day ahead.

WEST AFRICA GIANT LAND SNAIL (EDIBLE SNAIL)
Three species of West Africa giant snails are;
Archachatina maginata (Commonly called Margies)
Achatina achatina (Commonly called Tiger Snail)
Achatina fulica(commonly called Garden Snail)
Archachatina marginata, Achatina achatina

Achatina fulica.

Archachatina marginata: They are commonly called margin. It is the biggest among the three specie of the giant land snail. The body is bulbous and the shell’s colour is generally brown with some striped dark brown. The tail end of the shell of Archachatina is blunted. Its foot colour is generally brown but lighter which sometimes varies in between the same species from brown to black. Life span is up to seven (7) years.
Achatina achatina: Its body is elongated. Background colour of it shell is light brown with zigzag streak are dark-brownish in colour. The tail end is pointed or v-shaped. The aperture is usually pink in colour which distinguishes it from other species. Its foot colour is neither brown nor black. It is grey in colour. It is commonly called Tiger snail.

Snail morphology
The West African snail is a gastropod. It is a mollusc with well-developed head and coiled asymmetrical shell and visceral mass the large internal organs in the abdominal cavity or system. The asymmetrical shell of the snail develops in conformity to a trophy growth of visceral organ. Tilting to one side of the organism usually left and usually causing growth in coiled pattern of the visceral mass. As a result of this growth pattern i.e. the visceral is compactly formed within the spirally coiled shell
Another important feature of is the foot of the snail which is fleshy and muscular in nature. Movement on land is by means of the fleshy foot which means moving forward is in an undulating waves during movement, the snail create a vacuum that enables it to cross the coiling, supporting its light weight when suspended from a rough porous surface
Furthermore, during movement two pairs of tentacles (the upper and the lower) are in erected position. The upper tentacles are longer and thicker than the lower tentacles which are close to the mouth. The mouth is flexible organs mostly used for feeding or sensation while on movement
Achatina fulica: It is commonly called the garden snail because it is usually found in the garden. Its body is also elongated like that of Achatina achatina. The tail end is also pointed. It has no streak and its foot colour is grey.

DISTINCTIVE FEATURES OF DIFFERENT SPECIES OF SNAILS

Archachatina marginata
Achatina achatina
Achatina fulica

Body structure
The body structure is bulbous
The body is elongated
The body is elongated

Tail end of the shell
The tail end of the shell is blunted or broad and it is U-shape.
The tail end of the shell is pointed and it is V-shape.
The tail end is pointed and it is V-shape.

Shell colour
The shell colour is brownish with white streaks
The colour is brown with brown zigzag streaks
Shell colour look like that of margies

Foot colour
Varies from black to brown
Grey with mixture of white and dotted which is seen at close range
The foot colour is grey

FEEDS AND FEEDING
Snails eat varieties of feed, which varies from leaves to fruit to flowers to tubers and to formulated feed.
Leaves
Green pawpaw leafs.
Green cocoyam leaves.
Green ugwu leaves.
Green cassava leaves.
Green goat weed (Tridax procumbens)
Fruits
Ripe plantain and banana.
Both ripe and unripe pawpaw.
Ripe mango.
Cucumber
Watermelon and melon fruit.
Tuber
Sliced cassava tuber
Sweet potato.
FORMULATED FEED
Layers mash
Flowers
Flowers from female pawpaw plant
Note: It is advisable to serve their food in the evening (around 7-8pm) because they are nocturnal animal.
PREDATORS (ENEMIES OF SNAIL)
Man.
House or bush rat
Ants.
Skink.
Monitor Lizard
Turkey
Duck
Crabs e.t.c.

HOUSING SYSTEM FOR THE SNAIL
There are two types of housing system for snails which are:-
Small scale
Large scale

Small scale consists of:
Old motor tyre system
Locally woven basket
Earth pot
Movable wooden box
Hutch box
Large scale consists of:
Trench pen (which at least 7.67m X 7.67m X 0.76m; Lx B x H)
This trench pen could be made in two forms with the use of:-
Mosquito net
Wire mesh or chicken mesh gauge
IMPORTANT FEATURES OF SNAIL HOUSE
It must be well constructed and escape proof for snails
It must prevent predators from gaining access
It must have enough space to enable proper handling of snails
It must be constructed in a way that snails are not directly exposed to sunlight and heat since they are shade tolerant and nocturnal in nature
Direct water splash must also be prevented.

SNAIL REQUIREMENT THAT MUST BE MEET IN INTENSIVE SYSTEM
Soil - snail can be found in the loamy or top soil
Why is loamy soil important? It is because it has ability to retain water which is helpful in hatching of their eggs, Also, loamy soils are poor conductor of heat
The soil need to be sterilized either by sundry or application of insecticide
Mulching materials like dried banana leaves
Purpose of dried banana leaves
The banana leaf is used to cover the soil and the snails.
The banana leaf protect the snails because they are nocturnal animal
The banana leaf enrich the soil when they are recomposed.
BREEDING AND MANAGEMENT
Archachatina marginata matures sexually at the age of ten (10 - 12) months
Achatina achatina matures sexually at about the age of two (2) years
Achatina fulica matures sexually at the age of six to eight (6 - months.

CLUTCH SIZE
Clutch size refers number of egg that an animal can lay at a time.
Archachatina marginata lays eggs up to four to six (4-6) eggs at a time.
Achatina achatina and Archatina fulica have clutch size varies from fifty to three hundred (50-300) eggs.
TYPES OF PEN IN SNAIL HOUSE
Breeder pen
Nursing pen
Breeders pen
NURSING PEN
The place where babies are kept or being nursed for 3 months
GROWER’S PEN
Babies are moved from nursing pen when they are 3 months old to growers’ pen to spend another 7 months.
BREEDERS PEN
After the 10 months spent all together in the Nursing and Growers pen baby are then moved to the breeders pen.
HOW SNAIL LAYS THEIR EGGS
They use their head to push the soil and lay eggs through the anal pores, after they cover the eggs with the soil. The eggs must not be exposed to the atmosphere to prevent it from been unfertile.
Incubation period for snail varies from twenty-eight to thirty-two (28-32) days.

HOW TO ACQUIRE SNAIL
Snails can be collected both in dry season and wet season but in abundant during wet season. Sometimes the snail goes in to Aestivations (the process whereby snail cover their aperture with their apiphram until favorable condition is met. Snails can be either be acquired from the following means:-
Capture in the wild
Snail can be acquired from Road side snails’ seller.
Snail can be purchase from the village market
CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION OF SNAIL FOUNDATION
Snail with broken shell should not be selected.
Bigger snail must be avoided because they are aged or old and cannot last on the farm. The Snail should be of matured size of about 180g-400g in weight.
Stressed snail should be avoided.
Snail of the same species must be selected.
USES / IMPORTANCE OF SNAIL
They can be used for;
Curing constipation
For preventing asthma
To cure small pox in human being
To reduce labour pain both during birth and it also hasten the expulsion of foetus and placenta during parturition.

IMPORTANCE OF SNAIL FARMING
Snails are mollusc with soft un-segmented body widely acceptable as a delicacy in Nigeria. The importance of snail farming is appreciated far and wide for the following reasons;
Good source of protein
Employment generation
Source of foreign exchange
For medical use
Feed addictive
Domestic use
Market potential
One can sell in market life for buyers
Life span
6 – 7 years
Thanks and goodmorning to you all.

@dyoungforester, Hope you enjoyed the video on electric snail fence I sent you on whatsapp?

When am ready to establish my farm you'd be among the farmers I'd like to seek out.

I still need the feed composition for snail though.

@Cmax16, thanks so much for the video, I'm really grateful. Let me know sir when the time comes.Thanks

We'll done ,do u knw abt water rack system of snail farming ,that is d latest way of snail rearing

No, Mr Boluwasegun and please can you kindly share some information with us, if possible with picture pls. Thanks

Op
You are doing a great job here. More grease to your elbow

We'll done ,do u knw abt water rack system of snail farming ,that is d latest way of snail rearing[/quote]

Please share more info

dyoungforester:
See snails

How much will you give me 2000 pieces of this size?

boluwajokosegun:
We'll done ,do u knw abt water rack system of snail farming ,that is d latest way of snail rearing

Please kindly show us the pictures of it am really interested Thank you Sir.

@)Yemmit90, each one goes for 20 naira, thanks.

dyoungforester:
@)Yemmit90, each one goes for 20 naira, thanks.

All right, already saved your no. 07066444540, i will call or chats you up later in the evening. Hope the number is correct one?

Have a wonderful day!

Yes @ yemmit90, the number is correct. Thanks

Could you believe that I had an escape from my farm yesterday night. 40 snails of Archachatina maginata got escape.

dyoungforester:
Could you believe that I had an escape from my farm yesterday night. 40 snails of Archachatina maginata got escape.

you have to find them drop fruits for them at night

Thanks, I will.

Benefits of Feeds and feeding in snails ( Achatina achatina)
Broiler starter diet seemed to favour growth in both juvenile and adult snails whereas layer mash favoured reproductive performance in the snails.
Papaya fruits can be used as a cheap source of feed to Archachatina marginata though they give lower performances than bananas. Ripe fruits are preferable to unripe ones.

Papaya peels and papaya leaves

Papaya peels and leaves fed to giant West African snails gave the best results in feed intake, weight gain and shell increment with no adverse effects when compared to other tropical fruit by-products (mango, plantain and cocoyam).

New eggs laid by some of my growers

New hatched snail

Archachatina maginata(growers)

Some of my hatchering...

Archachatina maginata

Snails move at an incredible slow speed. An average adult moves at a speed of 1 millimeter per second. While moving, snails leave behind a trail of slime, a lubricant they produce to allow them to easily move across any type of terrain without injuring its body. Land Snails aren’t able to hear at all but they have eyes and olfactory organs. They use their sense of smell to help them find food being their most important sensory organ.
Snail shell is made of calcium carbonate and keeps growing as long as the snail grows. They keep adding more calcium carbonate to the edge of the shell until the snail reaches adult size.
You will find that snails are the most active at night. They may come out during the early morning hours as well. Don’t waste your time trying to tell the males and females apart. This is because snails are hermaphrodites, meaning that they have the reproductive organs of both sexes on them, therefore they are able to produce both sperm and eggs. When they are mating they will both conceive and lay eggs.
The average life span of a snail is approximately 10 to 15 years in captivity. However, it is believed that some species can live up to 25 years this way. In the wild however, lifespan varies from species to species, but range from 2-3 in some cases to 5-7 for other kinds of land snails.

HOW tO MAKE YOUR SNAIL GROW BIG aND bIGGEr
Alternate a variety of choice greens with compounded feed
Don't feed snailswaterleafs
Greens that will make them grow well and fast: mulberry leaves, pawpaw leaves, matured and about to ripen pawpaw fruits, locust bean pods (the yellow pulp inside) and the young green leaves as well
For ur baby snails feed them boiled eggs, loyamilk (high in calcium), mashed young tender leaves of mulberry, ugwu, pawpaw, and spray them "liquid ultra cal D" once a week during feeding (their body/foot absorbs it well).

The sales of snails depends largely on the shell size. The bigger the shell the more expensive it becomes.this is were I come in. We are into pure calcium production for snails most especially and other animals at a very cheap price. All u need do is put it anywhere in there pens and they will run towards it. No be joke oh. It helps the snail grow faster than u imagine. Archantina marginata will be ready for sales after 5months at 200 each, cos of the shell size, archantina archantina 7months also. For more and rapid egg production all snails need calcium supplements, u could Google that urself to believe me. It comes for a give away price of 200naira a pack, that can take u for two weeks with 50 big snails. It's it not cheap enough. Also we are giving it free of charge for first order for everyone any were u are in Nigeria, do you know y, because we are sure of our product and that u will call back for it. Except ur motive of rearing the snails is not for sales. Call me or WhatsApp me at 08032512493.

@Snails market each one goes for 200

Same

Plz how much can one get snails to rear, reasonable price. Thanks