Keeping axies of mixed sizes

Kerry1968

Kerry1968

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Hello, I have a young axolotl of 5-6 inches that I would like to house with its mum who is around 9-10 inches, is this too big a size difference, do you think there's a possibility the juvie might be attacked?
 
Personally, i wouldnt.

I would leave them in their own tank, til they get a bit bigger

Its up to you, but I know i wouldnt risk it, along weith a few others on here
 
Hi Kerry,

I would advise against housing axolotls of that size difference.

You are right that cannibalism can occur due to size discrepancy.

However another issue is that different size (and thus different age) axolotls have different nutritional demand. Your younger axie would need to eat more frequently for example. This would render feeding a bit inconvenient considering you want to ensure both axies get fed but not too little for the young one and not excessive for the older one.

Also it might be difficult to sex your young axie at this stage. You would probably want to avoid a scenario of eggs adorning the tank in the event the juvenile is male.

Cheers.
 
Thanks for your advice, I pretty much knew the answer, just wanted to check because I'm impatient to get the biggest juvie moved! I'm going to wait until the juvie is old enough to be sexed then set it up with the appropriate parent for no eggs!
Whether it is male or female it's a lovely looking axie, it's already got lots of freckles on it's face and down it's back, at least I'll be able to tell the difference from the other adult axies when it's grown. I'll have to try to get a decent photo up at some point. I'm proud of my babies!
 
Excellent Kerry,

I know you already know the answer, you are always one of my favourite members ;)

Still, Its always nice to get the reassurance from others with similar opinions.

Cheers.
 
I was in a similar situation while I raised mine..I was impatient to get them into one tank so I could regain some space in my midget kitchen. In the end I used a divider in my main tank until he caught up in size.
 
Thank you for the lovely message Ray, I appreciate that.

Bella, I already have a divider in the adults tank as Mum is one side and Dad the other! I'll just have to be patient! Ah well!
 
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