Feeding Taco the axolotl (trouble with the worm)

sammie68

sammie68

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Happy Axi !
I would say this is probably not the best way to feed poor Taco, I was a bit worried when TJ picked him up to move him ( we don't handle Taco as a rule) but he dropped the worm and somewhere along the line the worm broke in half.

Anyway I think his getting better at it now, this was the very first attempt at feeding him !


Trouble with the worm - YouTube
 
Try getting some tweesers and actually wriggling the worm, they react much better to movements as their predatory instincts kick in...
 
You could also try feeding a bigger worm, an axolotl can easly eat a worm half its own body length.
 
I use yellow tweezers, they recognize the yellow of them, although i don't know if they see in colour! lol. It's much easier to hold the worm and allow the axie to see it, otherwise they think they are eating your fingers!
 
My axies recognise both my fingers and tweezers... even if there's no food there my fingers are target! Ever had an axolotl stuck on your finger trying to swallow it? :p
 
Once again great advice guys, thank you so much guys. "Tweezers" such a simple solution !

Alex, lol what does it feel like to have an axie trying to swallow your finger ? The mind boggles !!
 
My axie is around 5 inches, so far Ive only given him small earthworms, would he cope with bigger ones at his age?
 
Lol @ Alex, my girl attacks everything, e.g my hand as I grab the air stone to move it, the air stone as it moves, the pipeon the airstone, my fingers, my fingers, my fingers ect. LOL! She actually gets over my finger and you can pull her for a joyride around the tank before she decides to let go. I feed large earthworms with my hands, mealworms we feed with toothpicks. Much easier that way! Good luck!
 
Mine get whatever i give them, i judge how they cope, if they cant eat a bigger one they will just spit it out, just judge yourself, my 3.5 inch axie has small - med worms for fun :) sometimes 2 or 3
 
sunchyne231 said:
My axie is around 5 inches, so far Ive only given him small earthworms, would he cope with bigger ones at his age?
Click to expand...

If they are too big he will spit them out, if you give him a worm he cant eat break it in half.
 
Another good reason to use long tongs to feed your axolotls: By not sticking your entire arm in the tank, you are at much less risk of introducing contaminants.
 
I must say, you've got one happy and content axie there. and what a brilliant colour s/he is!

I use a pair of stainless steel reptile tongs to feed my 2 monsters, as kaysie said it eliminates the need to put your entire arm in the tank and they recognise them instantly and snap at them even if there is no food in them, I use them to lure them out of hiding at feeding time.

Mine will also snap at my fingers, my golden will do this more often than my melanoid though. my golden is pretty aggressive when he attacks too, he latches on and thrashes about.
 
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