We had 2 Ramshorn snails in our fish tank and all was well until 1 shell was found floating in the tank with no snail inside it. There was no sign of a dead body floating, the shell was intact, no sign of damage but what has happened to the snail? Has it shed its shell to grow a new one? Do they do this? We have searched tank but there is no sign of the missing snail! Can you help?
Karen :unsure:

If there's an empty snail shell, that snail is dead. Its body may have been eaten. Or, if it died, the body will rot and fall out of the shell. What other animals do you have in there?

We only have 1 goldfish and a couple of the smaller water snails in the tank but there was no sign of dead body (would the goldfish eat the whole snail overnight?) he just disappeared leaving his shell floating in the tank. I even searched the tank looking for some form of body, dead or growing new shell variety but nothing. One minute alive touring the tank, next, floating shell and gone! What would have caused such a quick death? I am mystified but we love our snails and would hate to think we aren't looking after them properly. We were hoping for the slither of tiny baby Ramshorns, what went wrong? :(
Karen

Goldfish sometimes eat snails. Even if the goldfish did not kill the snail, if the snail died, the goldfish could easily eat its body which naturally falls out when the snail dies. How big was the snail? How big is the goldfish? When the snail dies and its body comes out, it can disintegrate rather quickly. If not eaten, it could have been sucked into the filter or simply broken into unrecognizable parts. A snail's shell is part of its body. A snail cannot leave its shell alive. The shell grows as it grows. Sorry the little snaily didn't make it but snails are pretty tough. If you add enough of them, some should do ok. Normally, ramshorns (unless they are huge, fancy tropical ones) are so prolific that at least as many are born as die, even with fish that might eat them.