Question: My earthworms died! Why?

ladygodiva35

ladygodiva35

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I bought two packs of 25 earthworms and stuck them in one of those small critter keeper containers and stuck them inside the fridge. Most of them died and were all gross looking. So I thought maybe they froze to death so I cleaned the container out and put back the 6 earthworms that survived and stuck the container in my room near my axolotl tank.

Tonight is feeding day and all the remaining worms are DEAD! Lucky for me I have frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp cubes stashed away. The soil was wet and didn't dry out so what the heck am I doing wrong for them all to die? Each earthworm pack is 5.99 and I can't afford to keep buying them if they are just going to die before my axolotls get to eat them.
 
What kind of worms were they? And what temp is your fridge?
 
I've had this problem before, with Lob worms (Lumbricus Terrestris, I think that's the spelling) within a few days of arrival a load of them "burst". It was like the had just kind of ripped open and died. I just threw the whole tub away.
 
The problem is that there are several worms that are known as 'nightcrawlers', and not all of them should be kept in the fridge. Canadian nightcrawlers/lobworms/ lumbricus terrestris should though, which is what I'm guessing you got. if they cam from the fridge in the first place.

Did you feed them? Did they get too wet or dry? How long did you keep them for before they died?

I wouldn't expect worms bought for food to last more than a week or so, they may have been treated or cleaned, and are usually intended for immediate use.

If you had them for only a few days I'd go back to the shop and complain.
 
I think I had mine for about 4 days, but I didn't know they should be kept in the fridge. I don't think I'll be allowed to keep them in the fridge lol :0 I guess I'll get some from WormsDirect.com Do dendro's need fridging? I didn't feed them and a made sure there substrate wasn't too wet.
 
I would suggest taking some pictures of your worms and posting them up
Help to identify the worm and the trauma as well

earthworms are not "treated" or "cleaned" before being sent to the stores to my knowledge...

what did your earthworms look like?
were they small, maybe an inch or two long? kinda red and really wiggly?
or were they more of a pink and gray, fat and log earthworms?
there are just so many different kinds we cant know until we figure out which ones you had

most likely they were canadian earthworms, theyre very common
if so then 55 degrees is too warm, they need somewhere around 45 to 50 degrees
My fridge is around 35 to 40 (havent actually read a thermometer) and mine do just fine
When earthworms die they release gas that kills other worms, so in a confined space it could take them all out pretty fast

If you get more open the container regularly to find and remove dead ones
best food for worms will be mashed potatoes but any old vegetables should do just fine for the couple weeks you might have them

I also hope youre not keeping food in that fridge, 50 to 55 degrees is much too warm for food storage, should be 41 degrees or lower
 
auntiejude said:
Did you feed them? Did they get too wet or dry? How long did you keep them for before they died?
Click to expand...

I believe they were canadian night crawlers. They look like it when I did a photo search. I didn't think of taking photos of the nasty dead mushy mess.
I had a pack that I bought to first try out and they lasted about two weeks but once I brought in the other pack and mixed them all together then they all died within a week.

They looked really pale white when I found them all dead. Some had mucus stuff coming out of their dead bodies and pieces of the body was falling apart. A real nasty mess!

I had kept the original pack of worms out of the fridge and was misting them twice a day. But the dirt was getting dried out so I soaked the dirt (maybe a little too much with the running water from the faucet) then stuck them inside the fridge.

I didn't bother to feed them.
 
mackinthebox said:
I also hope youre not keeping food in that fridge, 50 to 55 degrees is much too warm for food storage, should be 41 degrees or lower
Click to expand...

Maybe the fridge readings are wrong. Because my tea was in back of the fridge and it's partly frozen! No way it can be 55F! Then again it's an older fridge and the apartment complex management won't replace the fridge and the good for nothing stove we keep complaining about.
 
It seems like we're having the same problem. But I didn't keep mine in the fridge.
 
The lobworms (canadian nightcrawlers) I can buy here in the UK are advertised as 'cleaned' which I think means they have been milked of their digestive tract contents i.e.earth and worm poo. I found they die quickly, which is why I switched to a dendro worm farm.

@Ladygodiva - The chances are you old worms died and possibly caused a problem for the remaining ones. Can you buy them weekly or fortnightly as you need them rather than lots at once? If you are keeping worms in the fridge and not doing anything with them they could starve, you could try feeding them a little cooked potato to keep them going. You should be using dechlorinated water or rain water to keep them damp too.

@Jaffacake - if you're buying dendrobaena Yorkshire Worms are cheaper - keep them in a bucket with a lid in the shade outside with some compost and mash. They don't need fridging.
 
Lady Godiva, When I get my worms I bring them home and toss them in the fridge right away. Within a day or two I toss about a teaspoon of coffee grounds and and half a tsp of water in the cup they came in and I mix it around a little. After that I just keep an eye on them and if the substrate gets dry or they run out of coffee I toss more in. I have had them last nearly a month this way (they may have lasted longer, but they were fed to the Jacks.) I get my worms at a bait shop, but I have also gotten them at Wal-mart in the sporting goods section when I'm in a bind. The ones at wally world are Canadian Nightcrawlers.
 
I'm gonna see if wal-mart has the worms out yet since it's spring and fishing is getting popular once again. They are a bit expensive at petco.
 
I too once bought from a pet store, either Petco or Petsmart. They were in a styrofoam container and all died within two days, even after putting them in the fridge.
So now I use a local bait shop for my Canadian nightcrawlers and have yet to have a problem. They were cheaper also.
Maybe look for one of them in you area? Hopefully you will have more luck.
 
auntiejude said:
The lobworms (canadian nightcrawlers) I can buy here in the UK are advertised as 'cleaned' which I think means they have been milked of their digestive tract contents i.e.earth and worm poo. I found they die quickly, which is why I switched to a dendro worm farm.
Click to expand...

that sounds horrible, lol
all the worms I get are from a local walmart, they come from DMF Bait
 
ladygodiva35 said:
I'm gonna see if wal-mart has the worms out yet since it's spring and fishing is getting popular once again. They are a bit expensive at petco.
Click to expand...

they finally got some in at the one by me, they have been out for most of winter, from about november til last week lol
good luck
I like the worms from walmart, theyre usually very large and very fat!
 
For me it all depends on where i buy them from. I've bought from petco and they all died within a couple of days so now i buy from a local fish store that gets their worms locally and they last a month or more in my fridge.
 
Wal-Mart finally has some canadian night crawlers and are $2 cheaper than Petco! I know where I'm getting my worms from now.
 
ladygodiva35 said:
Wal-Mart finally has some canadian night crawlers and are $2 cheaper than Petco! I know where I'm getting my worms from now.
Click to expand...

I did the whole walmart nightcrawler food option. Make sure to open and check that the worms are alive before buying. Also I found that just starting a simple worm farm is cheap, easy, and can be a reliable supply of food for your axolotls. It also ensures that your worms are clean and healthy. I bought 2000 worms from jims worm farm and still might have to buy even more because I underestimated the appetites of my pets lol. But for one or two axolotls 500-1000 should be a good starting number. Its like $20 for 1000 and that will last you a lifetime with proper care. I believe Auntiejude posted a thread about worm farming and that should give you some great advice. Basically a storage container with dirt and a lid, poke some air holes, put in a few table scraps and you're in business. 1 square foot of space can house 1000 worms.
 
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