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Question: Axolotl Eggs or Juvenile?

Gangsterluff

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Okay I'm a first time axolotl owner, or soon to be that is. Anyway I got my tank last week and I'm letting it cycle right now. I'm wanting two axolotls, but the question is should I get eggs and raise them up from that, or should I get two juveniles? The eggs are by far a lot less expensive than the juveniles, but I know it requires a lot of work to rear them from eggs. The juveniles will cost a good hunk of cash with all of the shipping fees and such. So I guess my real question is do you think I would be able to raise them from eggs seeing that I have zero experience with axolotls (I have researched them extensively though), or do you think that it would be time well saved to just by them as juveniles? Any help would be appreciated.
 

Martin21114

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A well established juvenile will be much easier to care for than eggs. If you raise eggs you're going to need to get food for the larvae, either daphnia or a baby brine shrimp hatchery.
 

Alkylhalide

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I had 0 axolotl experience and im raising two juveniles and now 31hatchlings that i got as eggs.
If you want my opinion, the money youre saving getting the eggs you make up for with rearing them. Most people sell axolotls just to get money back from time/money spent rearing them.
Plus its very time consuming and takes a lot more dedication. Some mornings i wish i could take the 30minutes i spend in the morning before i get ready for school to sleep. But i know i need to feed/water change.
My juveniles are 3monthes now and if it were just the two, id be in heaven with the time id have! Its cheaper to feed and such as well.
If you feel like a challenge you can try rearing them from eggs. This forum is the only reason why i have been succesful. There is so much information here its unreal! But if you dont feel confortable you might as well get juvies, either way im going to assume youd spend about the same amount of money rearing eggs then you would to buy juvies
 

Gangsterluff

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Alright I think I'll just get the juveniles and forget about raising the eggs for now. Maybe after I've had some experience with them I'll try to rear a few eggs but for now I'm just going to find some well established juveniles and take it from there. Thanks for the advice!!
 

ZombieAxolotl

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Personally i'd do eggs.

Pros:
You can pick out with ones you want to keep color and personality wise.
You can make sure they are both the same sex so you don't end up having to seperate, or have sibling offspring.
You can sell the "extras" to the local pet shop, or exchange them for store credit to buy food.
Price is cheaper
Shipping is cheaper

Cons:
You will need to have cultures of daphnia. (you can get a culture of grindle or white worms as a back up food.
and if one of your local stores carries, or will carry blackworms.
You can order all on the internet.

I would buy more eggs then you want. if you are looking at keeping two.. i'd buy a dozen eggs, even 2 dozen possibly. If you can get them cheap or free.
Know that all the eggs will not make it, and don't let it frustrate or upset you.

Carrying for babies is extremely easy.
And even easier if you just don't use BBS hahaha


Juvies.
you are still going to have to source food.

Pros:
bigger and you are only getting the two

Cons:
Shipping more expensive
Price more expensive
If they aren't sexable, you have to seperate or have sibling's possibly mating.
 

snuggly time

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Alright I think I'll just get the juveniles and forget about raising the eggs for now. Maybe after I've had some experience with them I'll try to rear a few eggs but for now I'm just going to find some well established juveniles and take it from there. Thanks for the advice!!

I think that's a good idea. My first axie is a juvenile, I'd probably have struggled with eggs at first. You might not get to pick which ones you keep from your own raised eggs, but all axies are cute anyway! :D
 

Alkylhalide

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Personally i'd do eggs.

Pros:
You can pick out with ones you want to keep color and personality wise.
You can make sure they are both the same sex so you don't end up having to seperate, or have sibling offspring.
You can sell the "extras" to the local pet shop, or exchange them for store credit to buy food.
Price is cheaper
Shipping is cheaper

Cons:
You will need to have cultures of daphnia. (you can get a culture of grindle or white worms as a back up food.
and if one of your local stores carries, or will carry blackworms.
You can order all on the internet.

I would buy more eggs then you want. if you are looking at keeping two.. i'd buy a dozen eggs, even 2 dozen possibly. If you can get them cheap or free.
Know that all the eggs will not make it, and don't let it frustrate or upset you.

Carrying for babies is extremely easy.
And even easier if you just don't use BBS hahaha


Juvies.
you are still going to have to source food.

Pros:
bigger and you are only getting the two

Cons:
Shipping more expensive
Price more expensive
If they aren't sexable, you have to seperate or have sibling's possibly mating.

I agree with most except for the sexing part. OH an if you are like me who can only get BBS! UGHHH bbs! How I hate you so much! my babies are getting to big I'm having a hard time keeping up with them now. Literally to get anything shipped to me its 30+$ for shipping. no matter how much or how little I get. So BBS is all I can get for live food because I really cant afford the 70+$ for live food cultures online.
With juveniles yes you cant sex them until they are older however with eggs, I do not want to keep 12babies up till adulthood just to keep two of the same sex >.< I would not have the room for that.
I am however keeping two from this batch of eggs, however I will have two tanks so some end up being female/some male I will have a female/male tank :)

Really if the eggs are free why not!
I guess it is a hard decision. I wanted juveniles because I did not want to get attached to the babies and then have the one I want die on me or something like something got into the water and killed them all. The eggs came free with my juvies.
 

ZombieAxolotl

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You can sex Juveniles.... but most people seem to get "juvie" axies at 2-3" which is virtually impossible to sex correctly.

Cultures of daphnia,, even some large ones on ebay, With shipping, are only $14-20 on ebay.
though i'm not sure about shipment to CA. :confused:
The grindel worms and whiteworms are the same.
 

Alkylhalide

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You can sex Juveniles.... but most people seem to get "juvie" axies at 2-3" which is virtually impossible to sex correctly.

Cultures of daphnia,, even some large ones on ebay, With shipping, are only $14-20 on ebay.
though i'm not sure about shipment to CA. :confused:
The grindel worms and whiteworms are the same.

The cheapest with shipping ive found was like 50$ and i cant afford that. As much as bbs is a pain im paying a lott less :p
Thats true. I thought you could sex them about 6-8monthes? Thats still a long time for me. But i guess getting a dozen or two wouldgarantee sex BUT by then id probably be attached to all of them and end up being a crazy axolotl lady! Seriously mine are 18days old and i i am super attached to all of them and i think one is dying(he has started eating and pooping again and being active but there is fluid in his abdomen, i dont know what to do other then keep him comfy, its been 5days) and its making me sad :(
 

ZombieAxolotl

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Apparently I need to get my passport and drive up supplies to Canada haha

Have you tried seperating him?
I think you had a thread on this?
is he smaller then the rest? His poop eating could be because of not being able to get at food, and then just getting into the habit of it, like coprophagia.
 

Alkylhalide

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Apparently I need to get my passport and drive up supplies to Canada haha

Have you tried seperating him?
I think you had a thread on this?
is he smaller then the rest? His poop eating could be because of not being able to get at food, and then just getting into the habit of it, like coprophagia.

Hahaha yes you do :)

He has been seperated for three days since i really started to notice a problem
Yes i did. Pretty much just keep him comfy give him plenty of food and hope for the best. I thought he had an air bubble but it is definately not the case anymore.
I didnt mean he is eating his poop i ment he is eating and pooping fine! Lmao! Though i do see poop in all my babies bellies sometimes lmao. He is smaller then most of them but there are probably about 3that are as small as he is.
 

ZombieAxolotl

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Hahaha yes you do :)

He has been seperated for three days since i really started to notice a problem
Yes i did. Pretty much just keep him comfy give him plenty of food and hope for the best. I thought he had an air bubble but it is definately not the case anymore.
I didnt mean he is eating his poop i ment he is eating and pooping fine! Lmao! Though i do see poop in all my babies bellies sometimes lmao. He is smaller then most of them but there are probably about 3that are as small as he is.

unfortunately it could just be weak genes, sounds like you are doing everything possible.
 

Gangsterluff

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Ah man I'm sorry to hear about your little axie. Hope he (or she) gets better! Anyway I've got a follow up question. Do prices of axolotls vary through the seasons or do they stay pretty much even throughout the year? Just wondering when I need to get my axies.
 

Alkylhalide

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Ah man I'm sorry to hear about your little axie. Hope he (or she) gets better! Anyway I've got a follow up question. Do prices of axolotls vary through the seasons or do they stay pretty much even throughout the year? Just wondering when I need to get my axies.

Since they breed in the winter monthes predominantly you would be more likely to get eggs/small hatchlings or juvies in winter or spring. Summer and fall you probably would get bigger juveniles 6"+ obviously this varies and you could get juveniles year old and i guess one can surprinsingly breed in the summer if the environment they are in is just right.
Most people price axolotls based on what stage of growth they are at, eggs being the cheapest. So if that helps.
Right now and in the next few monthes would be your best bet. Ive seen a ton of threads on here on eggs that recently hatched. Mine even recently hatched! Lol
 

Gangsterluff

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Since they breed in the winter monthes predominantly you would be more likely to get eggs/small hatchlings or juvies in winter or spring. Summer and fall you probably would get bigger juveniles 6"+ obviously this varies and you could get juveniles year old and i guess one can surprinsingly breed in the summer if the environment they are in is just right.
Most people price axolotls based on what stage of growth they are at, eggs being the cheapest. So if that helps.
Right now and in the next few monthes would be your best bet. Ive seen a ton of threads on here on eggs that recently hatched. Mine even recently hatched! Lol

Alright that's what I was thinking, but you know, had to make sure first lol. I'll see what I can find. Thanks!
 
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