When people get a new axie, they start out with best of intentions (a bag of sinking pellets)… But within a week or two, many will notice that their salamander loses interest. It can be easy to assume that they’re picky eaters. However, more often than not it’s just a matter of keeping things simple: They’re bored.
Axolotls are ambush predators that hunt by sensing vibration and motion in the water, rather than relying on smell or sight alone. They don’t rely on vision and scent alone to hunt; they feel for the motion and vibration of prey in the water. By dropping static pellets into the tank, you’re asking them to completely go against all their evolutionary wiring.
How to Feed Your Axolotl Correctly
How do we fix this? The answer isn’t always to switch brands; instead, we need to make feeding time a bit different than usual. Variety is more important then quantity. As you can see in the graph above, specific types of food trigger those innate predatory tendencies. So while it may not be surprising that live worms are most effective, the key is rotating through various food categories to maintain their hunger and provide them with adequate amounts of protein from multiple source rather than one.
At the top of the list? Nightcrawlers. Not only are they nutrient-rich, but their squirming motion triggers the suction-feeding response in adult axolotl, too. It’s not so much that they has to eat something; it’s more of a mental exercise that engages the animal and stimulates their digestive system. This, in turn, results in improved health and digestion long-term.
Most well meaning owners make an expensive mistake due to pure enthusiasm: portion control. The golden rule illustrated above in the infographic couldn’t be simpler: don’t feed them what’s wider than their heads. Why? Because this head-width guideline avoids bloat. One of the most dangerous (and common) problems with these guys. Their digestive system isn’t built for big banquets; it’s meant for small, regular meals of high quality protein. If you are wondering if one last worm will do any harm, the answer is nearly always no.
Happier amphibians mean clearer water; less is more. It feels counterintuitive, especially because they look so darn eager but restraint is important for their long term care. Because these animals are active at dawn and dusk, timing is also important to feeding success. They tend to be more receptive to eating at these times than other times of day because it coincides with their natural circadian rhythm. Often you’ll notice your axolotls don’t eat food presented during the bright middle of the day. Not necessarily because they’re full, but because they’re resting.
Briefly turning off the filter while feeding can also assist. The suction from a running filter can pull away small prey items before the axolotl gets a chance to snap them up which wastes food and frustrates pets.
Their metabolism is also tied directly to the water temperature. The warmer it is, the higher their metabolism will be, and the more often they’ll need to eat. Around 16 degrees Celsius, they slow way down on digestion and don’t need to eat as frequently. They should of not being eating at all if the tank exceeds twenty degrees because this puts too much stress on their system. Don’t ignore that bit of biology! Doing so means you have rotten food accumulating on the substrate. This spikes your ammonia level and clouds up the water in just a few hours.
That’s what the fifteen-minute rule is all about. No matter how fresh that food appeared when going into the tank, remove anything uneaten immediately. It will turn dangerous very quickly and can cause damage to your fishs gill tissue sooner than you think. This is probably the leading reason why so many captives die prematurely: they’re overfed. You’ll know this if you see signs of bloat/bloating, constipation, or persistent poor water quality that needs constant attention.
Underfeeding is less frequent. You would know if this is happening because it won’t regrow missing limbs well, if at all, and you will see the ribs. There isn’t an exact formula to finding the right balance; instead, observe your individual animal’s relationship to eating, identify what it readily eats, and go from there. You want them to grow steadily while still providing a wide variety of nutrients. You don’t want them to balloon from excessive calorie intake.
At the end of the day, keeping an axolotl is all about making them safe in our home but honoring their wild nature. These are old animals suited to particular environments, and what they eat reflects this. Feeding with movement is a key way to take things from mere survivability into the world of thriving. Paying attention to temperature, portions, and movement-based feeding helps create a healthy lifestyle for your pet that will reward you with interesting behavior and glowing health over many years of ownership. Know that it’s motion that incites the chase, and restraint that preserves the water.
