Sticky Slug

Sticky Slugs are a unique breed of gastropods which range in size from 100-200 pounds. They are known for their breeding behavior, which consists of them trapping mammalian prey in their sticky slime and injecting their eggs into their wombs, which are incubated in the mammal's warm body until gestation, when the larvae is given birth, and immediately makes its way to the surrogate mother's teat for nursing, which it is attached to until puberty at about one year.

Climate

Sticky Slugs are found in moist, subtropical and tropical climates. Because their bodies must remain moist, they are often found near sources of fresh water, which they drink regularly to maintain their water balance.

Diet

Slugs are omnivorous, and usually feed on grass and grubs. They lack teeth, and thus their diet is limited to soft food, or food that can be easily digested. They must retain a lot of water, and will drink half of their body weight in water daily, excreting urine in the form of sticky slime trails.

Slime

Sticky Slug just as it spits its slime

The slime that is secreted is a very adhesive substance, capable of slowing down large animals such as cattle and horses. While treading in the slime is typically escapable, getting covered in the slime may trap one for a long time. The elasticity of the substance makes it stretch and pull against the skin much like a rubber band would. Removing the slime can be troublesome for this reason, as pulling against it strains one's muscles and as soon as they give up, the elastic strands pull the stuck body part back in place. If one gets stuck in the slime, it's best to struggle without tiring one's self. Typically freeing one's hands is relatively easy, but as more gluey slime covers the victim, it gets harder and harder to escape.

Reproduction

The Sticky Slug's mating pattern is unique in that it uses an external female mammalian host to incubate its eggs. The Sticky Slug produces a fertilized egg, which then gets injected into the womb of a mammal trapped in its gluey slime. The host incubates the egg for a period of time ranging from 3-7 days, at which point the egg hatches within the host's womb and is birthed. The host, presumably still caught in the slime, is then forced to nurse the baby slug until it is fully developed into an adult. Slugs are pack creatures, and thus the host will often be injected multiple times, and be the "mother" to multiple slugs simultaneously.

Trapped hosts are usually too weak after the sexual attack by the slug to fight back or extract themselves from the sticky slime. However, slugs often mate without a fertilized egg, in which case after the encounter with the slug, they are advised to escape out of the slime as soon as possible before they are attacked again.

Handling

Sticky slugs cannot be tamed, so human handlers must be careful to avoid their sticky attacks. They must be feed regularly, and by hand. Professional handlers safely do this by wearing latex clothing to protect their skin from the gluey slime, carry lots of slime removing solution, and avoid getting too mired in slime to keep themselves from escaping. Slugs must be awake to feed.

In certain cases, such as if a slug needs to be closely examined medically or if one is overwhelmed by sticky slugs in the wild, Gloodood Industries has invented a Salt Bomb which sends a burst of salt in a 15 foot radius. The salt temporarily subdues the slugs without causing any lasting damage to them.

Due to their being an invertebrate without any exoskeleton, Sticky slugs are very susceptible to severe internal bleeding and can be killed if struck multiple times with an object or even one's fist. Care should be taken to prevent accidental strikes to a slug's body, including keeping them away from high cliffs, or areas where falling branches or rocks may occur.