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Giant African Land Snails need to be kept fairly warm (room temerature and above) and also fairly humid. To warm up a tank a heat mat should be placed on one side of the mat, or a light bulb suspended over the tank. A a ceramic or red light bulb is preferable as this will not disturb the GALS. The GALS should not be able to reach the heat source, as they could burn themselves. Humidity can be raised by spraying daily or placing a shallow bowl of water in the tank with the GALS. Be warned however, that most GALS will excavate beneath it and unless it is really heavy they will tip it over! GALS love to dig, and need to dig to bury their eggs, so a substrate of peat should cover the floor of the tank to a depth of the height of your largest GALS. When the GALS are adult, the substrate should be regularly checked for any eggs, that should then be destroyed by freezing. An upturned flower pot, plastic piping or plastic box are all cheap hiding places for GALS. They are easily cleaned and if the snail falls on it, it will not damage it's shell. Rocks and other hard ornaments like the type you use for aquariums should not be used in the tank for this reason.
There are lots of different types of tank you can keep your GALS in. Here are a few ideas:
But mainly, use your imagination. As long as the tank is easy to clean and safe for the snails, more or less anything goes!
I will end the page on a Do Not. One person a few years ago asked me what sort of cages I kept my GALS in, as his kept escaping. I asked him how the lids were fastened and he said they were folded over. Confused, I asked what type of tanks his GALS were in. His reply? Cardboard boxes!!! After I had explained to him that snail mucus will make the cardboard go soggy and deteriorate, and that snails will eat cardboard, he went out and bought a proper plastic tank for them. There's no excuse for not using your common sense!
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