Caudata.org: Newts and Salamanders Portal

Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!
Did you know that registered users see fewer ads? Register today!

Question: Worms

New to axolotl

New member
Joined
Jul 1, 2019
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
Location
Leicester. England
My little axolotl have been with me a week now. Apart from some initial stress at being moved into a tank, all is going well. They are eating bloodworms and pooping fine.
My question is about earthworms.
I was told by breeder that at 9/10 weeks old it is fine to start weaning them onto earthworms by chopping worm into small pieces and tempting axolotls by waving it under their noses with plastic tweezers.
Should I expect any constipation problems initially?
50 g of earthworms arrived today which I have put in a tub of damp substrate soil with some veg. Air holes in lid.
Am I doing this right ?
 

KumquatSquats

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2019
Messages
162
Reaction score
1
Location
WA
i started with red wigglers since they are smaller (and i dont like cutting the worms) but i didnt notice much constipation if any when they switched foods, if anything i think pellets back them up and worms must have the right fiber. worm poos are always solid (& easy to clean!) whereas with pellets i see a lot of "dust" but no solid poos and sometimes minor tail floating which can indicate constipation.
not sure about age but i switched from bloodworms to wigglers when mine were ~3 inches (7-8cm) long
 

New to axolotl

New member
Joined
Jul 1, 2019
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
Location
Leicester. England
Thank you for your reply. I'm also a bit uneasy about cutting up worms.
I've read that Axi also like black worms. They're still quite small so I think I'll look for some black worms and red wiggles you mentioned. Earth worms seem quite happy in the tub for a while longer. I tried the pellets and both Axi spat them straight out.
 

KumquatSquats

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2019
Messages
162
Reaction score
1
Location
WA
pellets might take a few days hunger strike before they take them. just be careful with black worms, ive heard leeches are sometimes mixed in so just keep an eye out
 

Locke

New member
Joined
Jun 27, 2019
Messages
25
Reaction score
0
Location
Memphis, Tn
Red wrigglers secrete a milky white stuff that can cause your axolotls to vomit them up. Mine aren't able to keep them down. Check out a company called Lou Lou's worms for some really good pellet food made from fresh earthworms.
 

Locke

New member
Joined
Jun 27, 2019
Messages
25
Reaction score
0
Location
Memphis, Tn
Good way to check a batch of worms for potential parasites is to put one of the worms into an high salt water concentration. If there are parasites present the worm will vomit them out and you will see. Worms coming out of worms is a trippy thing to see.
 

KumquatSquats

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2019
Messages
162
Reaction score
1
Location
WA
Red wrigglers secrete a milky white stuff that can cause your axolotls to vomit them up. Mine aren't able to keep them down. Check out a company called Lou Lou's worms for some really good pellet food made from fresh earthworms.

if you blanch the worms it helps, i boil a cup of water and then dip the worms in with my tongs, when they stop wiggling i drop them into a second cup of tank water so they arent hot when i feed them to my axys.
if you already have the worms might as well use them, pellets are good too though
 

New to axolotl

New member
Joined
Jul 1, 2019
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
Location
Leicester. England
Thx everyone for great advice. They are going to have their first red wriggle today so I popped back to check post ( glad I did.) Worms have come from a breeder. Are they still likely to have parasites? Breeder didn't mention anything. Blanching sounds like a good way for me at least until I get used to the chopping lol.
I will definitely check out the site for pellets even though the ones I currently offer (Nova Lotl M by JBL) are still being met with total disinterest
 

New to axolotl

New member
Joined
Jul 1, 2019
Messages
10
Reaction score
0
Location
Leicester. England
Btw, I've noticed that 1 off them has become quite dominant over food. It (can't see them yet ) seems to guard the dish from the other but luckily makes such a mess doing this that it actually ends up kicking a lot of blood worms and shrimp out of the dish which other axi hovers up. Should I be using 2 dishes at opposite ends of tank ?
 

Locke

New member
Joined
Jun 27, 2019
Messages
25
Reaction score
0
Location
Memphis, Tn
Btw, I've noticed that 1 off them has become quite dominant over food. It (can't see them yet ) seems to guard the dish from the other but luckily makes such a mess doing this that it actually ends up kicking a lot of blood worms and shrimp out of the dish which other axi hovers up. Should I be using 2 dishes at opposite ends of tank ?

I spread the food out so that they all get to it. My wild type does the same thing, thats why we call him chunkers lol. And i just use a turkey baster to suck out the uneaten food about 20 mins after feeding.
 

KumquatSquats

New member
Joined
Apr 17, 2019
Messages
162
Reaction score
1
Location
WA
Lol seems like alot of work, why blanch them?

if you dont blanch them they excrete a nasty goop and most axys will spit it back out, blanching kills the worm ( then cools them down) so we avoid that. its really not too much work, i pop a cup of water in the microwave for 45 seconds while im rinsing the dirt off the worms then use my tongs to drop them in the hot water before picking them back up and dropping them in the cold rinse water
 
General chit-chat
Help Users
  • No one is chatting at the moment.
    There are no messages in the chat. Be the first one to say Hi!
    Top