New axie questions

hey all,

have just become the proud owner of a white axie. (a class pet for my students but probably more for me... its so cute) I've named it Pedro (even though it is probably a girl). anyhoo just a few questions.

I have heard to many different things about feeding them. The aquarium recommended pellets and an earthworm once a week. how do i get it to eat the pellets. i drop them straight onto its head and it just ignores it. should i use a skewer or something (the pellets are kinda squishy) and wiggle it in front of it? any other suggestions?

also how often do i feed it? on the pellets it says twice a day. is this too much? he is about 10-15 cm long.

how much water needs to be in the tank? i filled it right up as it likes to swim around. now i have read all of these threads about them jumping out of the tank and i am scared. the tank has a lid but there is a gap on each corner.

thanks, i love Pedro already and am worried i'm not looking after him right.

I feed mine 2 earthworms a day, they are a good staple. Some axies won't eat pellets as they dont move - i've only ever had sucess with one of my axolotls with that.

My tank is filled right up with no lid and none of my axies have ever jumped out, but i have heard stories. I'd say it'd be fine with the lid you have on.

I just named my fella pedro! Pics are in the gallery and he's white as well.
Depending on which pellets (purple jar with a yellow top? red little pellets?) then probably feed him every day or so. worms, black/blood worms, and so on are also good.
I haven't heard too many reports of them jumping out though?
Was your tank set up correctly - cycled etc?

now i feel really stupid.
they didnt tell me anything about cycling at the aquarium.

i just set up the main tank today and used water declorinator.

is he going to be alright??? what should i do??

Kate, there are a few other threads with questions about cycling so check out those and there is a good article in caudata culture. You can keep Pedro in the tank while it cycles, just do 30% water changes every day and monitor the water levels, you will need to purchase ammonia, nitrite and nitrate test kits to do this. If you follow these precautions your axolotl will be fine.

thanks so much.

have checked out the other threads, am still a little confused. do you have to change the water for a certain period of time or is that forever? how often do you clean out the tank? i have a filter with a spray attachment.

i wish the aquarium told me more. i purpously didn't but it from a pet shop because i thought the aquarium would be more helpful with information.

(Message edited by katis on February 06, 2006)

You'll have to change it around 30% a day until the levels settle down. Usually 3-6 weeks. After that its just a weekly partial water change and cleaning up whatever mess the axies leave, plus cleaning the tank when it needs it

thanks you guys have been great.

btw Charlie, checked out your Pedro. Very cute. looks exactly like mine.

sorry another question.

would it help the cycling process that the water that pedro came in from the aquarium was added with the new water?

also he lives in my class room. as i wont be there on the weekends can i change more water on mondays and fridays to compensate for the weekend or should i bring him home in the portable tank i brought to bring him home on school holidays?

i feel really stupid asking all these questions. i thought i was prepared as i read up on what they eat and how big a tank to keep them in before i brought him. i just wish i came across this forum earlier.

probably not, water doesnt really hold all that much beneifical bacteria in it, it grows on the decorations, in the substrate etc...

if you cant change the water daily id suggest just leaving him at home until the class tank cycles. you dont want ammonia spikes burning him!!

id feed your axie every second day at the moment, moving to every 3 days when he hits the 20 cm mark... those little red pellets arent all that nutritional for them, but you say yours a squishy? what brand and if it tells you, what ingredients? maybe starting up a worm farm at school would be cool, make the kids dig out the worms and feed them via chopsticks etc (much easier, dont have to get your arms all wet haha). have a read around the food part for some ideas of other things to feed.

what do you have for a substrate (on the bottom), if you have gravel remove this now, either leave it bare (may take a bit longer to cycle because of less surface area from the gravel? im not too sure on that one though). sand is a great substrate for axies because if they happen to eat a bit its not going to block them up like gravel does. we hear alot of stories about peoples axies who have eaten gravel and then die better to stop any problems before they start i figure.

filtration wise get something that will do 3x the tank per hour but make sure you can turn it down!! axies HATE lots of current, if you cant turn it down face it at the front of the aquarium.

axies need to be kept cool, so if the temperature gets above 24C you need to do something about it. i have kept my baby axie in a chilly bin (its big enough to hold his tank) for the last week with ice packs around it, keeps his water at around 19C. ice bottles used in rotation can work well too. if you have no other options then you can put them in the fridge in containers, as long as your fridge is over 5C though!!

well... i think thats all i wanted to say lol, sorry for the long post!!! and dont worry about asking questions, at least your on here looking to better his/her life!! our forum is a friendly place and everyone is more than happy to help

thanks sharn,

as for substrate i have largeish river pebbles/rocks. i did have gravel but i took it out before i put him in cos i read they swallow it.

the filter i have seems ok. i had it set on the bubble setting but when i put him in there seemed to be too much flow in the water so i attached a sprinkle tube thing. its under water and it seems much calmer. when i put him into the tank this afternoon he sat under it for a while and didnt seem to mind.

i've put the tank in a cooler part of the room. should i get a thermometre to check the temp? (especially considering it is summer)

thanks for the suggestion about the worm farm. the kids will love it.

would it be possible to take pedro home in the portable tank on the weekends? the kids have fallen in love with him as much as i have an will be so dissappointed if i take it home.

other than not knowing about this cycling thing i think i am doing ok. (i hope!)

everyone on this forum has been so nice and helpful. cheers.

(Message edited by katis on February 06, 2006)

yeah, a thermometer is a must have

i think it would be ok to take him home in the weekends, just try not to stress him TOO much with the travelling.

it sounds like you are doing great! just keep reading and you'll be sweet as, we'll answer any questions you might have if you cant find the answer. dont worry about the cycling thing, ill bet at least 75% of people who start with fish, axies etc didnt know the slightest thing about cycling and only after something went wrong or they went looking for more info did they find out about it, no biggie and its not going to hurt your axie if you keep up with those water changes

thanks