Question: 10 mo. Old Axolotl Eating Less

Hi there! I've had my baby Mercury since last June. He was about 4 weeks old when I bought him and now I'm almost certain he's about full grown.

Normally he eats bloodworm cubes twice a day but lately he's been ignoring his food on occasion. His tank has been a consistent temperature and clean practically since I got him so my best guess is that with his age, he's starting to need less food.

Can anyone verify this for me? I pay very close attention to him and he hasn't shown any signs of being stressed/I don't think there would be any reason for him to be stressed. When should I expect my baby to start eating like an adult? If he is an adult now, how often should I be feeding him?

Have you got a photo of him?

Most people on here feed their adults probably around 2 - 3 times a week. This also depends on the water temperature too. If the water is hotter he will digest his food quicker.
Mine's a juvenile and I feed him every other day. If he looks particularly hungry I sometimes give him a little worm between his set feeding days. But, every other day seems to suit him fine.

Earthworms are the best nutritional food for axolotls. Have you tried feeding them? Most axolotls can't resist them too

Here's a recent picture of him on his castle!

Lol ..... Sorry, your photo reminds me of King Kong climbing the Empire State or Godzilla stomping through the city

Your Axie certainly looks healthy, I'm not experienced with adult axolotls, but have noticed the same eating problem with one of mine. He's around 8" long now and I think perhaps I'll start feeding him less often and see how it goes (maybe every 2nd day rather than daily).

Keep us up to date with how you go.

Yeah, he's probably just not hungry. Skip a day and see if he's interested again. You may need to skip a couple of days. He's not fading away anytime soon! Also, I'd suggest a change in diet (add some earthworms) as bloodworm is calcium deficient. goodluck

I have an axolotl around the same age & when i do what everyone is telling you, skip a day or two, he becomes much more interested in food

When axolotls are young they want to eat every day. As they mature they feed less frequently and it is also temp dependant. As another poster mentioned, it's a good idea to get it on earthworms.

Thank you all for your advice! It's so nice to have a community of support because even the exotic pet store in my town doesn't really know much about axolotls!
Where do I get earthworms from? How much should I be feeding him? If I have to chop up an earthworm, will the rest of it stay for a couple days?

I've cut my adult 11.5" axolotl back to one earthworm a week with a large pellet or two once or twice a week.

This was after he kept gaining weight even on three a week and two a week worms. I used to buy a thing of 12 worms a month to save money but now I buy just one for each week. He is still pretty round but I am happy with where he's at now.

If you can, earthworms are much healthier than bloodworm cubes.

If he is a boy, while adorable, he could stand to lose a bit of weight, haha, he is looking rather round. Generally you want to shoot for the body being the same thickness as their head - they can really pack on the fat if you let them, they usually aren't so go as to cut back on eating on their own (but perhaps since it's not live food he simply has decided not to seek it out instead of reacting to a moving thing).

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2