New Axolotl Owner - question on feeding

Hey folks!

I'm new, but have been reading this forum for a couple of weeks now. This past Sunday we purchased two Axies. That first day I fed them bloodworms, and it seemed to please them fine, but folks said that Nightcrawlers are better it seems. Plus, if the bloodworms were out of the food bowl, they'd get a mouthfool of sand, and spent more time spitting that out than eating it seems. Went and got nightcrawlers on Monday, and cut them into pieces short of an inch or so each. Used chopsticks to lower pieces one by one to each of the axies, while making sure they were done swallowing before the next one. I was told to watch their intake, and see when they spit the last piece out, but that didn't seem to happen, at least not with the Wildtype boy. The girl did spit out the last piece, so I went ahead and threw that one out. After work on Tuesday, I saw a neat little pile of worm pieces in one end of the tank, so I'm assuming one of them spit them out. The boy ate two one inch pieces, and the girl wasn't interested, but I left some in their food dish just in case.

Now for some stats:

GFP Leucistic girl
GFP Wildtype boy
Both around 6 inches long, I was told around 6 months old
First night each ate roughly 4-5 inches of nightcrawler, but one of them must have spit out most of the meal during the night.
The next day the boy only ate two pieces, and I didn't observe the girl eat any.

Am I feeding them too much/too often? Should I try something else if they don't seem to like the nightcrawlers?

Thanks for all the help guys!

I feed my own 6-month-old with nightcrawler pieces. The key to getting them to eat without overfeeding them is to cut the pieces so they're no wider than the axolotl's head. I usually feed him two pieces in the morning, and then one piece later at night before bed. I also feed him with shrimp pellets every couple of days. It's good for axolotls to have some variety in their diet, as I've heard some will get bored of the same food all the time. If you're feeding your axolotls from a dish, try to leave only as much food as they will eat. Four pieces should be okay, though you may have to watch to make sure one doesn't eat more than the other.

Mine kept throwing earthworms back up when I first fed them to him. Perhaps it's a little weird for their stomach if they're used to eating something dead, like bloodworms, their whole lives. Keep offering small amounts at a time and they will soon get used to them. If they're anything like mine they will be addicted to wriggly worms in no time.

Thanks for all the info. The boy took a little more food yesterday after the post, and in between my work hours, one of them ate one piece from the bowl. They look quite good when it comes to their tummy size, so I guess I'll have to learn their balance/size to get it right. Worst case, I can keep giving them bloodworms, as they don't have an issue it seems.

You'll figure it out - all axies are different. I have one who would eat 3 whole worms evey day (if I let her!) amd one who might take one worm every 2 or 3 days but only if I boil it first (fussy little monster). Feed them until they stop being interested, clear up anything regurgitated.

Oh, and don't bank on the genders being accurate - at 6" it's not always obvious.

auntiejude said:

You'll figure it out - all axies are different. I have one who would eat 3 whole worms evey day (if I let her!) amd one who might take one worm every 2 or 3 days but only if I boil it first (fussy little monster). Feed them until they stop being interested, clear up anything regurgitated.

Oh, and don't bank on the genders being accurate - at 6" it's not always obvious.

Click to expand...

(had a post, but closed the tab! Doh!)

The Wildtype has quite the bump in all the right places, and I'd say they may well be 6.5" -7" to be fair. I also confirmed with the seller (he's actually a long time member here), but we really didn't go into too many details, but based on the bump, it sure seemed like it.

I have lots of pics of them...not many from a good angle to show the bump. Lol.

OK small update. Seems they both eat roughly half a worm, 2-3 inches total and then loose interest. Came back down about an hour later however and inside their cave saw some bits again! But one was standing upright...I got to the bits, they had moucosy membranes and smelled quote bad...puke or poop? Some parts were tiny, one was just about an inch ...

Also, here is my setup:

It can take a few days for axies to adjust to new food, I wouldn't worry too much if they are spitting pieces back up. Keep at it.

On the subject of gender, I thought my axies were MMFF at 6", at 8" they appeared to be FFFM, but now at 9" I think one of the 'girls' might be a late bloomer boy..... as I said, don't take it for granted!