Sure! And then I'd wash my hands afterward.

Absolutely NOT! I do not understand why you wish to do this? It is highly stressful for any creature which lives underwater, will see your actions as predatory, (something is going to eat me) and yes you might have something on your hands that would affect him, not to mention they do not live above water, and are uniquely equipped to live UNDERWATER although they lay their eggs above the water line. (avoidance of predators).

Within one minute or even less, does this action on your part, dry out his delicate membrane, mucus membrane which will perhaps cause his/her demise if repeated? I suspect he/her will withdraw into it's shell to protect itself, none the less, you will stress it unduly. These snails are underwater snails, meaning they will not do well in non water environments. One minute for a small creature has a great impact on its physiology.

Imagine you are suddenly yanked from where ever you are, dunked underwater and held there for a minute or more, until suddenly you are not? Stressful, and it is the same for them.

That is what fish, snails so on experience when out of their environment and it IS stressful. Even when I raised these wonderful snails, as with all my fish even, I do not use nets but plastic enclosures to reduce stress during transfers so on, never allowing them to be exposed to air, if it could be avoided.

I do not mean to be harsh sounding but if you wish to have a pet you can hold, get something that lives out of water. The snail is not a holding pet. I am sure you understand this and can enjoy his life and appreciate his uniqueness in his/her own environment - underwater. Best Sherry

Hmmmm.... I may have misinterpreted the question. When commercial snails are shipped (several hundred in a bag) to a wholesaler, the bag is "dry", as in slightly moist. We them place them in a couple of tanks and everyday they eliminate enough wastes that they require a water change. "Flushing the tank" is one of the approaches we use to clean their tanks (siphoning & adding new water at the same time). Sometimes I would use a 10" net and scoop them all out of the water and put them in a freshly cleaned tank. When gathering snails for orders, I pick the ones that I see adhering to the glass, as those I know are healthy enough to be shipped. So in those ways I have had them out of water and have handled them with my hands.

If you take a snail from a tank and cup it in your hand, the moisture in your palm will be more than enough to support it for the time it takes to transfer it.

Matter of fact; a wet palm is probably better than a net.

When I need to catch any of my Cory cats or Plecos, I use my hand as much as possible, to prevent damage to their fins, which tend to get caught in nets, even the soft, silky brine shrimp nets I prefer for all fish catches.

please don't hold your snail it will harm it more than it would do good . just put him a bowl or something while cleaning the tank or bowl.

I agree with Sherry. Adopt a cat or a dog.
Garbird

my snail has fallen/climbed out of his tank overnight. it looks like he was out for some time. I put him back in and he's moving a little, but i'm very worried. Can they make it overnight out of water?

Yes- They have a membrane that stays moist and can breathe. I once had a snail climb out of my tank and make its way a good 10ft. to my dining room, only to be seen in the morning. He stayed with us many years after that!

When properly cared for, some apple snail species can reach 15 cm / 6 inch diameter. Apple snails are in fact the biggest living freshwater snails on earth.

Yes you can to answer your question.I ship snails in wet paper towels as most have a lung to allow breathing out of water.i had a snail out of water for 3 days in 90* weather and he is perfectly fine after being through such a traumatic event.So yes it's perfectly fine to "hold your snail".

Just hold it! Ive help my water frogs, SNAILS, and once a fish jumped out of my tank when I was moving it and survived on the ground for 5 mins, about a year ago... and hes swimming aroung right now. My frogs have lasted 10 + mins out and snails even longer. Hold the snail for 2 minutes and watch it, then put it back. If youre worried about hurting it just dont scratch its skin or pull it or some stupid thing.
S.B.

I'm not sure how good of an idea it would be, but I see your problem because how do you get it out to clean the tank?

yeah it is ok to do that just be gentle by getting it cause it sticks in the tank and u can hold it also according to my research apple snail last weeks out of the water so it's fine but make sure to wash your hands cause apple snail has a parasite that can harm your health so make sure you wash your hands before touching your face or anything