Food Options

I'm not a big fan of live foods just because it's harder for me to keep up with so I'm looking for alternatives for shelf stable axolotl foods. I came across these carnivore sinking pellets and was wondering if they'd be an acceptable food to give? Hikari Tropical Sinking Carnivore Pellets at PETCO

I feed my axolotl similar pellets, just not tropical so I cannot tell you how those are, but if you can find the Hikari sinking carnivore pellets that don't say tropical then I know those will work. I found mine at a smaller LFS. If you're not opposed to buying online, you can get sinking pellets at Eds Fly meat and I believe a member here, Michael, also sells them (on the classifieds). They're the Rangen pellets used by the axolotl colony.

What kind of live food have you used? I find earth worms to be pretty easy to use/feed if your axolotl will take them. I haven't had much luck all though I'm trying again. I keep my worms at the bottom of the fridge and they stay for months. Then just rinse the worm out, I let the worm warm up a bit and feed it to the axie.

I haven't used live foods yet. I'm having a hard time finding them and I don't want to culture my own as I'm sure I'll kill them. Shelf stable foods are just easier for me to manage. That's why is all my fish get ?

so i could be wrong but tht says its for bottom feeding fish. axolotls look like fish but i sure u know tht they are amphibians, very very closely related to salamanders and newts. this means their nutritional needs would be much closer to a salamander or a newt than carnivorous fish. before i switched to earthworms i used sinking newt pellets. sinking salamander pellets are good too.

securing live food wise, i get my red wigglers from petco. they sell 35 in a small plastic container for like 4 bucks. tht should go a long way for an axolotl. if ur axie is a juvenile u probably will have to cut the earthworm atleast in half. mine prefer 1/4th pieces.

in the beginning if u use live worms it can be hard to cut them because they wiggle and as compassionate humans instinctually seeing tht we are causing pain is not easy. it took me couple of days to start cutting worms while i could actually look at wht im doing and not cringe.

lastly i dont think there is anything wrong with the use of proper pellet food as a stable diet but i like to think tht axolotls probably enjoy live meals and worms better. thts wht they eat in nature, live organisms. i feel like as pet owners our job should be to simulate as realistic of a "natural environment" for our axies and i can assure u tht there is nothing cuter than the excitement on my axies face when he sees the worm enter the water. ultimately wht u feel comfortable with and wht u can find in ur area is wht matters but these are just some thoughts. good luck!

I appreciate your input. I'll have to ask the petco here if they sell the red wigglers. Cutting the worms doesn't bother me much. If I can put them on my fishing hook I better be able to chop then up for my aquatic friends LoL! I was looking for salamander/newt pellets the other day when I bought my fish's food but didn't see any. The turtle pellets were low quality. Full of wheat meal and such with low protein. That's why I was asking about the pellets I linked above. Out of all pellets I've seen they seem to have the best protein and ingredient list. How long does a container of red wigglers last for you? How many lotls are you feeding?

If you can't find them at Petco I found red wrigglers at Petsmart and was told you can find them at Ace hardware if they're near you. You can also get live worms at the bait section of Walmart. I got the canadian nightcrawlers there, just make sure there's no additives to attract fish added.

Thanks for sharing more places to look Cacique I have an Ace just a few minutes away but they're a pretty small store here. It would be great if they do carry some worms. What's the better food to give, red wigglers or night crawlers? The additives you mentioned; would garlic be one of them to avoid?

I'm not sure about garlic. I know garlic is good for fish, at least some, but I don't know how it would affect an axolotl. I think technically any bait shop will work for getting worms, and I believe any earth worm will do. As for additives, I know some people have found worms that have some kind of green coloring to them, it's supposed to attract fish while fishing.

Red wrigglers do better in our climate here in US, while canadian night crawlers are a colder climate worm, so it all depends. If you want to start a compost or small worm farm, red wrigglers. If you just want a worm to buy and keep in your fridge, either works but canadian night crawlers are more readily accepted. Good luck!

This is great! Thank you! Night crawlers sound like a good way to go. To bad my neighbor sprays for bugs. I'd be able to get a load of them from my backyard otherwise. I've bought them from Walmart (gag) in the past so if I have to I'll get them from there.

i currently feed 2 juvenile axolotls everyday and 1 little container has lasted me about 18-20 days.