Question: HELP! Axolotl eating problem.

Hi all,

I've got a 3 year old albino axie who has recently shown some issues at mealtime. I have been feeding him bloodworms for his entire life, and his current diet consists of two frozen cubes of bloodworms given to him once every two days.

Recently, he has either not been finishing all of the worms, or (I suspect at times) vomiting some of them back up.

I really do not know what is going on, his living conditions are all well otherwise. Is he too old to still be eating bloodworms? If so, what should I start feeding him, and how to transfer him over to this diet?

Thank you all for helping.

-Ian and Felix

At 3 years old he should have been off bloodworms. They lack the nutrition he needs. To transfer onto Earthworms, to do this, buy some earthworms, and let it wiggle in front of his face, he should go for it.

Also, feeding him once every 2 weeks isnt regular enough. You should be feeding him every day, or every second day.

Can you please post a picture of him?

Are earthworms the only option?

I feed him 2 cubes every 2 days, not 2 weeks.

It's not the only option but they are VERY nutritious and are not too hard to get.

IanK said:

Are earthworms the only option?

I feed him 2 cubes every 2 days, not 2 weeks.

Click to expand...

Water temp will effect how frequent your axolotl will eat. But at 3 years I can safely say that 2 cubes cannot be enough if my axolotls at 3-4 months were eating that much daily. Worms are not the only option but in my opinion are the easiest and are all the nutrition axolotls need. You can buy a pellet diet but that will require you ordering them online whenever you run low. Here's what you need to start a worm farm that can last you indefinitely:

buy a large plastic storage container (more room = more worms and more area for mistakes)
drill some holes in the lid (some people also drill on the bottom to allow liquid drainage)
add some top soil
add enough worms that will be fed and be able to breed for 4 months without running out
whenever you feed your axolotl (or every other day) turn over the soil to give the worms some air
throw in food scraps

the container can be anywhere from $10-15 or if you already have one is free
The soil is dirt cheap because its just dirt (mine was $1.50)
The worms should be bought in bulk initially and a good number to start at is 500-1000 worms. I started with 2000 and might have to order some more but I also have many more mouths to feed so 500 should be enough although 1000 is only $5 more online and you can never have too many...

so $40 for basically endless food is not a bad deal at all.


Here's where I got my worms
Live Worms | Uncle Jims Worm Farm