Axolotls over feeding

[dandywilson]

Can you over feed axolotils? I have got some worms, red worms which my 2 are going crazy over but im not sure if they will stop eating what they are full or if they will just eat until they burst?
I would be really grateful for any advise..

 

[jcj57]

Axis can be little piggys........... try what they can eat in 5 minutes.... abdomen should be about the same width as their head.....

 

[yellowpebble]

Welcome to the forum!

They will not eat untill they burst, they do get full at some point and will refuse the food. But that does't mean you can't overfeed them. I find everyday feedings make my axolotls fat (the body wider than the head like stated above) where a feeding is as much as they can eat. Mot people feed their adults as much as they can eat in a few minutes or untill they refuse the food, once every 2-3 days. They should stay a regular weight then unless you are feeding a high fat food like animal muscle or heart, which are only recommended as a 'sometimes food'. That or i find a small amount of food every day will keep them stable. So one or two worms maybe. I think its best to find a routine that suits you the best as long as they are not starving or obviously eating too much.

a stable weight adult axolotl can survive months without food, they are built to be opertunistic feeders. so dont worry if you forget to feed them once in a while

baby or juvinile axolotl have to eat a lot more because they are growing. So if your axolotls are under 6 inches feed them as much as possible!

good luck

 

[Kaysie]

Some will literally eat until they barf. Nothing like cleaning up half-digested worm first thing in the morning!

 

[yellowpebble]

hahah... gross

 

[Jellybean]

So if i feed my 6 inch axie 2 medium sized worms everyday he'll be fine right?

 

[narny101]

that's what I do, some food when I get home= 1 happy lotl

 

[xxianxx]

Feed them as much as they will eat. Just make sure they are not spitting the worms out when you are not looking, they will mess the water quality up.

 

[Mama Mia]

My 2 guys will eat 5 small rd worms every day but I have cut them back to just 3 a day now, the worms I am getting now since it got cooler are much smaller

 

[snuggly time]

Some will literally eat until they barf. Nothing like cleaning up half-digested worm first thing in the morning!

That would be me yesterday morning!

 

[sp1ke]

I found that if I don't feed them every day, then they start taking bites out of each other - I have a 29 gallon tank (20 long) and 3 adult axies (2 males and 1 female), and I'm feeding them a staple diet of fish pellets (similar to Cichlid pellets). Unless they just like biting each other regardless if there's food there or not...just a trend I noticed that they wouldn't fuss with one another if they were regularly fed, instead of every other day.

 

[auntiejude]

I found that if I don't feed them every day, then they start taking bites out of each other - I have a 29 gallon tank (20 long) and 3 adult axies

Your problem is that your tank is overcrowded - 3 axies will need about 40 gallons - that's why they are biting each other.

 

[sp1ke]

Your problem is that your tank is overcrowded - 3 axies will need about 40 gallons - that's why they are biting each other.

These particular axies were studied for research, were kept individually in tupperware containers just large enough for them to turn around, and I acquired them after they had fully developed (>6"). I was told the tank would be large enough for them to live together without much problem. My space is limited (small apartment), so my question is what do you recommend besides a larger tank?

 

[auntiejude]

so my question is what do you recommend besides a larger tank?

Axies in close proximity will tend to snap at each other, 3 axies need 40 gal tank as a minimum. The only thing you can do other than get a bigger tank would be to separate them - but one axie needs a 20 gal on its own, but smaller axies could manage in a 10-15 gal.
So your options are:
1. Get a bigger tank
2. Get 2 more smaller tanks
3. Rehome 1 or 2 of your axies
Personally I'd go with number 2, you'd have to separate males and females eventually anyway.

 

[Axiegel & Edgar]

i gave my axolotl like 5 worms and he is fine but
he is eating bloodworms and mine is a chonk

 

[oliviavandev]

Some will literally eat until they barf. Nothing like cleaning up half-digested worm first thing in the morning!

My axy did this the other day. Is this something I should be concerned about? I fed him three small night crawlers, (he's eaten 3 before and seemed fine with eating 3 the other night) and he threw them up. I cleaned it up and fed him one worm a couple of hours later, and he seemed fine.

 

[tenorguy]

i am also worried about feeding. my buddy "Rosie" gets fed red angler worm every other day. she can eat two, but occasionally she will reject one so i stopped that. in these photos she was not fed that day. she has a big belly but a small neck. is that normal?

 

[Autistic Catholic]

Can you over feed axolotils? I have got some worms, red worms which my 2 are going crazy over but im not sure if they will stop eating what they are full or if they will just eat until they burst?
I would be really grateful for any advise..

If they're adults, you should feed them 2-3 times a week whatever it is they can in a 10-minute span. Amphibians have slow metabolisms. If they are younger, they have a mechanism that will cause them to spit up when they overeat and they should be fed on a daily basis, each feeding should end when they spit up.

 

[Autistic Catholic]

i am also worried about feeding. my buddy "Rosie" gets fed red angler worm every other day. she can eat two, but occasionally she will reject one so i stopped that. in these photos she was not fed that day. she has a big belly but a small neck. is that normal?

The aerial view of Rosie looks good. The body is the width of the head. Neck always seems skinnier because most of their weight is collected in the head. When they're bloated, that bloat will go all over. So she looks healthy. Unless it's a boy, then he looks healthy.