Fun facts
Axolotl
- they are the Peter Pan of the amphibian world. And by that they are one of the few salamanders that stay in their larvae form for their entire life. (That’s why they keep their cute Gil’s) This is referred to as neotenic. Regenerative properties
- They have the ability to regenerate any part of their body, that being said some studies say that 5 is the max amount of times th
ey can regenerate a single body part. Transplant ability
- Axolotls are able to accept any body part from another axolotl with out chance of rejection. Axolotl care
- They grow between 9-12 inches with a maximum of 14 inches
Tank Size
- 20 gallon long is ideal for an individual with an additional 10 gallons for each additional axolotl. o When housing juveniles together it is important to be aware that you may have to separate a male and female when they start to display gender.
Gender is displayed between 9-18 months
Males will continuously breed a female causing significant strain on the female potentially leading to death. So its best to just separate after gender is revealed. Substrate
- Axolotls are suction feeders, and are very unintelligent creatures they will potentially attempt to eat anything that they can fit in their mouths. It is imperative to not have gravel or rocks smaller than 3 times an adults head in their environment. Because if accidentally consumed they can die of impaction. o Sand
Is fine for axolotls larger than 4 inches
And bare bottoms for axolotls smaller than 4 inches
Clean, fine natural, Sand
• It’s inexpensive, and is smother with less chance of impaction. DO NOT USE SAND MADE FROM CRUSHED ROCK
Water Filtration
- Axolotls are terrible swimmers so low flow filters work best however they do have a high bio load, so what many suggest is to use bath luffa to disperse the current, sponge filters work well also. Lighting
- Axolotls have no eyelids and prefer no lighting, but if you would like lighting then use LED light sources to prevent producing heat. Temperature
- Ideal 60-65
- Temperatures above 74 cause stress and can be potentially fatal
Decorations
- Anything without sharp edges, but large rocks we get ours from home depot a 10lb bag of river rock is 11$, terracotta plant pots are inexpensive and work well, live plants can be a great addition but be aware that axolotls may lay in them or move them around so just anchor them well. Water quality
- It is always best to have your tank cycled prior to adding your axolotl, this is a pretty long process of adding an ammonia source and testing to makes sure your tank sustains ammonia:0ppm, nitrites: 0ppm, and nitrates between 20-40 ppm
- DO NOT USE UNTREATED TAP WATER
- Always dechlorinate your water, we suggest seachem prime its all we use and never have any problems
- Do not use anything that advertises slime coat protection because most those products use aloe and aloe is toxic to axolotls.
- If you choose to put them in an uncycled tank, please buy a product like seachem stability and add daily this adds beneficial bacteria to aid with uncycled tanks. Feeding
- Night crawlers from you local bait shop
- Redwigglers or trout worms for juveniles
- Pellets are great as well but make sure to remove uneaten pellets they can cause and increase strain on your bio load
- Frozen blood worms make a great treat but are not a staple
- Black worms are also an excellent choice but are often hard to fine.
