holy shit leeches are one of my favorite animals (obvious) and i have NEVER seen anybody caring for them like you do!!!!! dude you are a blessing <3
I love them! They're so shape and so interesting to watch, and there is NOTHING out there actually publically detailing their care in full. Most of the information available is from scattered leech keepers who give their own opinions and experiences on reddit which is great! But it also means that I ended up hurting my boy squonch because of my own inexperience.
Everything from tank specs to whether or not to let them lay their eggs is up for debate. People say they can live in a jar, which, while not being technically Wrong, feels distinctly Cruel. I've been able to observe the changes in behavior since giving them a bigger tank and I won't say they're happier, but they've had so much more room to swim and have spent more time underwater and moving instead of just suctioned to the glass. They bury themselves sometimes! They love the lava rocks because they're big enough to have holes to squeeze between and feel safe and can actually stretch out. I just had smooth gravel pebbles before, and they wouldn't dig at all and wouldn't cling to the rocks because they weren't a good anchor. It's clear that giving them a more varied envorment is good for them. They have more to rub up against to shed and they have room to grow. So why isn't that standard?
They just didn't have ROOM to do these insane movements. And that's kinda fucked up!!!
Squinch alone is 7 inches fully stretched out and the 10 gallon gives them more room to get away from each other. Squinch has been harassing Squonch to mate, and he has the ability to swim away and go hide under a rock!!! It seems cruel, at that point, to follow what most people recommend. It's just a fishbowl or large jar. It's fine. They can absorb air through their skin so you don't have to keep the water oxygenated. Fuck that. Hell, there have been studies that show round glass stresses out animals, and we're cool just keeping them in it cause we can?? Because they can tolerate it?
And they have personalities. Squonch was mildly traumatized by me taking him out and trying to get him to throw up. And I know he was traumatized because his behavior!!!! Changed!!!! I'm not trying to personify them, and I wouldn't go as far to say they have emotions as we know it, but for the next week he stopped going anywhere outside of the rocks and I'm STILL more likely to find him there than Squinch. That points to possibly having a longer term memory. Which, ya know, means they're not a pet rock that doesn't have preferences.
And every. Public. Guide. Is MEDICAL. Meaning sterility is more important than the animal itself. No, I don't want to just throw my leech away after it's bitten me. No, I don't want to keep them in an empty plastic bin. How do I make them thrive!!!! How do I take care of them when they're sick!!!! I had to dig into a scientific paper just to learn that they shouldn't suck up air and that you should make them throw up immediately if that happens. Why isn't that public knowledge.
And listen. I know leeches don't need THAT much thought. If you discount the whole "eats blood" part, Leeches are maybe the easiest aquatic pet you could have. They don't need a filter, they don’t need to be kept at a specific temperature, they don’t need to worry about much else than wiggling they only need to be fed MAX 4 times a yeat. Those fuckers are practically bomb proof. They can be frozen and be fine. But if you're going to keep a pet that lives 8 goddamn years, why wouldn't you want to give it the best life possible?
Lot of words to say I'm giving you a mental fist bump and that I'm happy to have ya.
Here's a couple of pics of Squinch with a new lump I just noticed which means I fucked something up and need to go into investigation mode again.
