Newbie

Hi guys. So, my name is Syllvie (obviously) and recently I've been looking for a new little friend of my own. I love furry pets, but have three already, they're kinda messy (haha) and I have a decent-sized tank just sitting in my room. I decided to put it to good use. At first, I figured just a frog or two, or maybe a couple of interesting fish. However, I came across Axolotls and instantly fell head over heels.

I haven't had much time to read a whole lot about them, just their basic needs. My tank is a 10g tank. It is 19in. long, 12in. wide, and 11in. tall. The height and width might be flipped, I can't exactly remember at the moment. But it is for sure 19in. long. So, obviously, I'm only planning on purchasing one.

I also read about their diets, about the metamorphosis of only a couple of them. I did read a little about their genetics, as well. My brain is a little fogged since I'm just now coming back from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, so I'm having a hard time remembering.

Just wanted some extra advice and tidbits of info before I hit the hay and start dreaming of my new little Axie.

I feel like this is a stupid question, but since they do develop lungs, as well as gills, can they picked up? I've seen people holding them and such, I just want to be sure. Also, about what age would they have developed their lungs? And is it better to get eggs, a juvenile, or an adult?

Thanks for putting up with my newbie-ness, haha.

first of all, welcome!

let's start with the basics.

1. the tank

your tank will suffice for one axie, but you may want to consider upgrading down the track, axies can grow up to 8 inches and they are very messy. you must choose a filter that does not generate lots of current, as they prefer calm water. as for a substrate, you must use sand or not have a substrate at all, as axies have big mouths and can intentionally swallow gravel, and this can be fatal. they also don't like bright light so your tank must be dimly lit or if need be, natural light will do. you also need to provide a few hides. things like pieces of PVC pipe with sanded edges, old mugs, etc work great.

2. feeding
as for foods, live earthworms are the staple diet, supplemented with bloodworm and pellets. everything else should just be a occasional treat.

as for your questions, they do have under developed lungs that would have fully matured if they were to ever change to a land dwelling salamander, but this is extremely rare for axolotls to do this. handling is not recommended.

I would personally start with a juvi if possible.

have you had any previous fish keeping experience?

Hi Chris! Thank you for answering

I have had experience. I used to raise fan-tailed gold fish in my backyard in a little pond. I don't use the backyard pond anymore because a bird kept eating the fish... Not really sure how he could tell there were even fish, since we have two huge oak trees covering it, but... =/

I will probably upgrade once I can provide the money for it. Not even 'probably' lol. I definitely will. Is there a point where the tank might be too big?

Hi, axolotls can get up to 12 inches, occasionally more, a nineteen inch tank wont give it much room to move about when it's an adult and a small tank makes it harder to keep your water quality within acceptable parameters. Your tank will be suitable for a juvenile or two as long as you upgrade when they get bigger.

you can never have a too big tank when keeping axies! the bigger the better!

ideal construction for a axolotl tank is one that is wider and longer than it is deep as floorspace is more important.

as with keeping fish, avoid tanks that are unusual shapes. i.e. tall tanks, cylinder type tanks and such.

This post was a LONG time ago, but I just wanted to update anyways:

My grandfather is building me quite a large aquarium. 8-10ft long, anywhere from 3-6ft wide, and about 4ft tall. When it's all set up, I will put up pictures. We plan on buying two juvies (three if I'm lucky) next month. My grandparents are sort of deciding to splurge on me since I've been helping around the house after my grandmother got cancer - don't worry, she's doing amazingly, still her happy, albeit snappy, self.

Glad to see you decided to wait untill a bigger tank was a possibility! axolotls grow at an awesomely fast rate!!!

Aha, me too, Mr. Poseidon. I love spoiling any pet I have(can't you just imagine how misbehaved my dog must be?)

PS: (even though this doesn't matter) My dog is actually very well trained. He just gets a whole lot more than most dogs.

That aquarium sounds like a monster...pics are mandatory!

You'll have to wait a bit for the pictures, haha. It's almost literally a complete overhaul of my entire bedroom, so it's quite a big weekend job.

I'm thinking I might just put in a temporary divider, and then remove it when they're big enough. My younger brother wants fish, so I could also divide it that way; one side for Axies, one side for fish.