Question: Did I overfeed my juvenile axolotl?

[honeydew]

Hi all! This question may seem a little paranoid, but I can’t help but always worry about my little baby. My axolotl Peepo is a little over 3 months old and a little less than 4 inches long (I have pics of him in the albums on my profile.) Since he’s growing so fast, I thought I’d switch up his usual diet of frozen bloodworms and see how he likes earthworms. I got a cup of Canadian nightcrawlers last night and chopped a piece around 1cm long to feed him and he loved it, but I fed him 4 of these pieces before I realized the size of his stomach probably matters just as much as the size of his mouth. It’s been around 24 hours since then and he still hasn’t pooped. He’s being more active than usual, but not doing anything that looks too concerning, though his tummy is plumper. Is it possible I overfed him, and if so is he in danger? Or would he have thrown some of it up if that were the case?

Thanks so much for any advice and hope you all have a great day!

 

[Hayleyy]

I wouldn't worry too much, if it was too much food they usually wont accept it. Watch for floating as that is a sign of constipation. If the back end particularly starts floating then you will want to fridge to help it along

 

[honeydew]

I wouldn't worry too much, if it was too much food they usually wont accept it. Watch for floating as that is a sign of constipation. If the back end particularly starts floating then you will want to fridge to help it along

Thanks so much for the quick reply! He actually jut pooped so I’m feeling relieved haha. It was a huge mess though, should I have gotten all the dirt out of the worms before feeding them? Also- do you think that amount of food is appropriate for the future? He certainly didn’t refuse it!

 

[Hayleyy]

I just clean the outside of the worm, but there are ways you can get them to poop out the dirt from their insides. I'm not sure exactly what the method is but it's something like taking the worm away from any dirt so they can expel it, so it needs a day or so prep.
Each axolotl is different but mine usually eat a worm every day, every 3 days or so they get 2 worms. They seem happy with this amount. Once he eats one worm wait until he has finished it and offer another, if he doesn't take it right away then stick with one worm. Unless they are small worms you don't really need to feed more than two in a day.