Hey everyone! So my understanding is that the axolotls need to be seperated at some point because they will start to bite at eachother or cannibalize eachother. I thought that they were supposed to be seperated when their back legs come in, most of mine have theirs now but they aren't showing any signs of nipping or anything so I'm not sure? 5 of them are about 2 inches, the other two are about 1 1/2 inch. Right now they are split into 3 groups - the 2 small ones are together and then the three biggest are in their own holder and the two medium sized are in their own holder. Should I leave them like this unless they start to nip, or does it always happen so might as well split them now? They are all still eating BBS, although last night I tried frozen brine shrimp for teh 5 bigger ones and they were taking little bits here and there. I read somewhere that to get them to take dead food, you shouldn't feed them for a day. I don't really wanna do that, I would feel bad. Is that the best way? Thanks all - I'm sure some variation of this has been asked before but couldn't find it in the search.
Emily
Cannibalism is dependent on how hungry they are. I had to leave a 3 week clutch alone for two days and lo and behold there were missing legs. I find it's easier to monitor feeding and cleaning when they are in separate containers. It allows you to provide individual care. I lose very few and usually no axolotls doing this.
I would separate immediately. My current clutch is two inches and they have definitely displayed signs of cannibalism. It's not their fault! When they are hungry (practically always) they are going to snip at movement - which unfortunately can be their siblings! Extremely well-fed axotlotls probably won't bite each other, but it's still a risk.
Forcing a fast is nothing to feel bad about, animals in the wild often starve. Since you have no intentions of letting them starve they're fine! The fast will move them onto the next food and thus actually supports their well-being.
I prefer moving to bloodworms next, they seem to be a much cleaner feeding. Just let the bloodworms defrost (if you buy frozen) and then put them in a shallow amount of water in a cup. Angle the cup and go mad with scissors to cut them into more bite sized pieces. Let them fast for a day, but then make sure to squirt the bloodworms into their general direction so they make the reactionary snap and start to realize that it's a food source. It may take a few days, but since you only have a few you can monitor which ones are eating the new food. Then give the ones who are too picky another chance until all of your axolotls are eating like champions! You can use the same fast-feeding strategy with the frozen brine shrimp, but live baby brine shrimp are much more nutritious for them.
I think I covered everything, sorry I get to be a little long-winded. I really love hatchling care!
And don't worry that wasn't longwinded, it was very helpful!