Axolotls sold in tropical countries

So I thought I will never get to see axolotls sold in my country, Philippines. But recently after my stay in the US, axolotls are now available in local petshops. They are not housed with chillers so the water is pretty warm around 25c. I'm worried we will have mass deaths of these salamanders but that doesnt seem to be the case. The axolotls seem to look pretty healthy with very fluffy gills. I'm enticed to purchase, but I I have to set up a tank first and would like to hear from you guys.

Axolotls cannot be acclimatised to tropical weather. The ones that look healthy in the shops may have been raised in chilled waters & in chilled water at the pet shop & that's why they look healthy. Once removed from chilled water they will deteriorate very quickly in water any warmer than 24degC.

Is where you live air conditioned so that its always cool (22degC or lower)? Or perhaps you could look into buying a chiller to keep your tank at a cool temperature & that would be ideal for an axolotl - if you can't afford a chiller or have a well air conditioned home I wouldn't advise getting one as they are easily stressed if always at high temperatures.

I would recommend that if you are going to purchase one, it would be a good idea to slowly climatise the axolotl to lower temperatures. Axolotls living in high temperature water will have have a very high metabolism, which i imagine would be quite stressful, and therefore not really good for them, possibly meaning it will grow too fast and possibly require more food. Lowering temperature to 18 and under would be far better, as they are cold water creatures, and maybe the axolotl will seem even happier. Hopefully somebody can add some info onto this thread regarding axolotls at high temperatures, maybe someone who has kept an axolotl at higher temperatures, or someone who knows the effects related to the axolotls health at higher/lower temps. Unfotunately, some pet shops disregard pets health and well being, and just care about selling and making money. Wish you all the best with your new axolotl, hopefully you can share some pictures with us all once you are set up.

Before you buy I would check you can easily source suitable food. I know having read threads posted by others in the Phillipines that this can be an issue. Perhaps you could set up a wormery first so you have a ready supply before you bring your Axolotl home?

I would agree that you will need to buy a chiller if your home does not have air conditioning.

Good luck :blob:

I was planning to get one too but It'll have to wait after I tested my own DIY filter inside a coleman filled with ice if water temp would go down, Usually its 27º in our location havent tried using our A/C. So yea pretty hot for axxies :|

Bubilog said:

I was planning to get one too but It'll have to wait after I tested my own DIY filter inside a coleman filled with ice if water temp would go down, Usually its 27º in our location havent tried using our A/C. So yea pretty hot for axxies :|

Click to expand...

Have you tried using a fan directed over the water surface? - or even better a tank fan like this...

They can bring temp down 3-4degC



<3 >o_o< <3

Nikki71 said:

Have you tried using a fan directed over the water surface? - or even better a tank fan like this...
View attachment 27753
They can bring temp down 3-4degC



<3 >o_o< <3

Click to expand...

I haven't bought the tank yet, but i was planning on using electric fan before xD
the temp i got was from my cherry shrimp tank

Unfortunately the healthy looking axies I saw at the petstore were housed poorly, they were placed in custom built betta containers. The container is very shallow, I'm afraid they might force morph if not transfered to a better container.

Anyway, I should be able to get acceptable temps easily with air conditioners and built in fans, but then my electric bill will sky rocket, considering our electric consumption is already high. Unless I have somekind of underground basement where it would be chilly, I think I could slap insulators at the sides of the tanks to slow down the rise of the temperature when the ac is off? Also what about water dispensers directly connected to the tank?

http://www.caudata.org/forum/f46-be...932-simple-water-cooler-dispenser-set-up.html

A cool DIY build.

I've been keeping axies in Manila for almost over a year now.

Seems like these guys can get hardy more than what we expect.

Somehow, I was able to influence a bunch of guys into keeping these beauties.

I've been using a cooling fan and ice bottles for my 30gal tank. (though it's a bit..yeah..stressful)

Although I must say that these guys really aren't well suited for the tropics. I've encountered 7 deaths out of around 50 axies I've had transactions with (2 of which happened for no apparent reason--so I guess it must be the temperature and stress)