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Question: Better late then never

Shedeivl

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Just to let you know this is not a happy post ....

I had two little axo babies that both died yesterday and so I'm on here trying to find out why ?

ok day one got the axo in there eggs we planed to only get one as we had not hatched axo from eggs before but the egg was attached to another egg so we got both 1 hr after picking out our eggs they hatched

the axo set up was a plastic container tap water and water ager i left in over night
they were feed on a diet newly hatched brine shrimp

got home set up the brine shrimp hatchery and waited for the eggs to hatch for 48hrs b4 we tried feeding the babies.. the hatchery was two plastic water bottles a air pump and salt water from a established salt water tank

basic routine the axo would be feed every 2nd night per breeder instruction for 15 mins
then most of the brine shimp water was disregarded and axo was placed back in there container that had a 20% sometimes more water changes

water change was tap water just made 10mins to 1hr b4 with water ager

the axo's were doing great until 3 days ago when one of them got a air bubble in his tummy the only thing we had done differently was we started aging the water for a few days in a bottle at this stage we were hatching new brine shrimp for each feed

event though it was a day that we went meant to feed them he was sick so we thought a feed would do him well we were right we feed him and 1hr later he was fine

so we put him back in with his mate oh sorry i forgot to say when he was sick we separated them oh and we had made morebrine shimp then nassary so we wernt making fresh stuff we had used this batch for like 3 days

then next day they were fine and then the day after they both had air bubble so we deiced to stop aging the water change water over a few days and go back to only leaving it for 10mins to 1 hr again we feed them and 1hr later they were ok desprate we decided that we would feed them every day as they seemed to get sick on the days we did not feed them this worked for two days then we feed them chaged there water like normal and we went to bed they where swimming around and seemed fine we when we sore them last please help i don't want there death to be for nothing

RIP Gusto and Tiny
 

Morrison

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Re: Beter late then never

What I've understand is that when baby axies have air bubbles it's mostly because they aren't fed enough. It's better to feed them every day, sometimes even twice a day.
I had two hatcheries. The first one turned on at 12 am, the second on 12 pm (just an example) so that I'm sure I always have brine shrimps ready for them, every day.
 

Neil C

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Re: Beter late then never

Sorry to hear about your babies but they are quite tricky when they first hatch. Firstly baby axolotls should really be fed twice a day and not every two days. You can get away with once a day but they grow slower. The air bubbles in the babies stomachs is a sign of not getting enough food.

The only reason I could imagine your babies died was you forgot to add the water ager or the temperature difference between the old and new water was to great?


Regards Neil
 

iSuzie

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Re: Beter late then never

Newly hatched larvae require daily 100% water changes of the exact same temperature. The after needs to be de chlorinated and the tubs need to be washed daily, the baby's needs to be feed twice daily until they reach 15cm or so then they can be feed once daily.
The fact you were not feeding them as much as they needed to be feed is what would of killed them, now this is not your fault as you got the wrong information from the breeder. Who ever you got the egg's from I would go back and let them know they were completely wrong and if you paid any money for these id ask for a refund.

Here is an amazing site that tells you how to raise larvae. Its such a shame you didnt find this forum until they died. :(

But here is the site for you anyway. Let the person you got them from know they were in correct and maybe try and tell them why and how so they dont give the wrong information to others again. Sorry for your loss.

Axolotls - Rearing from Egg to Adult
Axolotls: The Fascinating Mexican Axolotl and the Tiger Salamander
And also here is my care sheet on axolotls for beginners
- Home
 

Bellabelloo

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Re: Beter late then never

I agree with Morrison. Newly hatched larvae need to be fed twice daily. You can potentially leave them a day or so after hatching as they should still have the egg yolk to support them. I would feed mine rinsed brine shrimp morning and night. After both feeds the water needs to be changed as the shrimp will die and pollute the water.
Have a look at these links :-
Caudata Culture Articles - Why Larvae Die
Caudata Culture Articles - Raising Newts and Salamanders from Eggs
 

Shedeivl

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Re: Beter late then never

Ok thanx twice a day feeding how long for and whats the best way to feed them what method do you use i really want to get my info right so next time if there is a next time we have more success
 

iSuzie

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Re: Beter late then never

Have a look at the sites that have been linked, they will give you the info on how to raise larvae. Also read some threads on here, there's lot of threads that you can find helpful info in. :)
 

yellowpebble

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Hi, it i hard to determine exactly why they could have died, but there are a few things that could have been done differently.

Baby axolotls need to eat at minimum once a day, if not twice. They are growing and are constintly hungry. Feeding them once every 2 days sill result in much slower growth rate and waker babies, especially if they are fed like this from the moment they hatched. I know everyone does it differently and it varies between breeders, but i think you were given some poor advice. They will live on once every second day feedings, but not thrive.

The water needs to be changed once a day minimum if you are feeding brine shrimp, because the water goes bad very quickly after they die.

Also leaving the hatchery for more than 2 days will increase the risk of disease for the babies, because the longer you leave the brine shrimp the more they will die off, which is why they hatchery starts to smell after a few days.The dead brine shrimp create ammonia which makes the baby water bad, which again is why you need to do regular water changes.

I'm sorry your babies died and you have been doing most parts right, you might have been given some dodgy advise though
 

iSuzie

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How warm is it where you live?
If their water gets over 23° it can be very dangerous for newly hatched larvae causing stress and weakness. Anything over 24°-25° can kill them outright. The best temp for baby's is the lowest you can keep it. 18° is about perfect for a healthy axolotl larvae.
Hotter temps can lead to and cause stress, fungus and other illnesses. With axolotls they can live in very low temps below 5° and still be fine, so it is always best to kept them at the lowest temp you can. It is also very important to kept their temperature stable any fluctuation in temperature can cause stress and lead to diseases as well.
 

Shedeivl

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How warm is it where you live?
If their water gets over 23°
ok i think thats the answer they would have room temp 23° but where we live it's hot in the day and cold at night i think this might be the main reason they died then cause the temp would be all over the place :eek:
 
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