Beginner help

[Jennyontheblock]

Hi, new to the community. Researching before acquiring. We love the Kaiseri, Marbled and Axolotl, but unsure what the best choice would be for us.

I see a lot of problematic Axolotl - which is concerning. Im personally worried about the temps being cool enough without an expensive chiller. Do the fans really work?

Any advice on what species would be recommended? I keep reptiles in bioactive enclosures currently. Im OK with elaborate setups. My fear is having something that will remain hidden or very prone to sickness.

thanks.

 

[Herpin Man]

Don't let the frequent posts fool you- axolotls are pretty easy to keep. The reason that you see so many posts about axolotl issues is probably due to the fact that so many are kept relative to other salamanders. That, and that fact that they are often kept by people new to amphibian keeping, and are therefore going through the learning curve with them, which is often trial and error.
Marbled newts are also easy to keep. With either species, the basics are similar. Keep them cool and well fed, and pay close attention to water quality. Make sure they have places to hide, and resist the urge to handle them.
Doing so will minimize the majority of problems people encounter.

 

[Axolou]

Hello, don't be put off initially by the temperature issue. We have a tank in which we've attached second-hand computer fans to the lid. This dropped the temp by about 4 degrees (obviously depending on the airflow and the fan power, that might vary) but being in the UK it's never frequently boiling here so it works fine for us. Another option I have heard good things about requires a bit of DIY but is detailed in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5s8Cu59-NM whereby if you have a way of getting hold of a mini-fridge (second hand, freecycle, your friend doesn't want theirs anymore, etc.), you can feed piping through it as a makeshift chiller.

Obviously, these options are more hassle than just getting a chiller but can be, and certainly were for us, very inexpensive in comparison.

 

[Jennyontheblock]

Thanks!