How to buy axolotl: Axolotls for Sale Buy Live Pet Axies Online

They do best in 20+ gallon enclosures and should live alone, as they can be territorial. Axolotls are native to Mexico and are considered a critically endangered species due to loss of habitat, declining water quality and urbanization. Thus, they should never be taken from the wild for the pet trade. The vast majority of pet axolotls descend from captive-bred animals that were used for scientific research. Dr. Nick Saint-Erne, DVM, is a highly accomplished veterinarian and writer who has treated zoo animals and exotic pets for more than 35 years. He has worked with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve pet store animal care among other endeavors.

Read our editorial process to learn more about How we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Plus, ammonia buildup from waste in the tank can be toxic. If this occurs, it can interfere with the respiratory process causing damage to the gills as well as result in neurological damage. Embora Pets is a website full of resources created for pet owners by pet owners.

Axolotl As A Pet: The Ultimate Guide To Caring For Your Axolotl

Another factor is whether or not the axolotl goes through a metamorphosis to gain a terrestrial form. Or if need be you can drop his food into the tank when he is hungry, but generally, you’ll want to leave them to themselves. If you don’t have a filter then you’ll need to manually change out the water and you’ll have to do it frequently as well. This is so frustrating, trust me and just get a tank filter.

It is also important to keep in mind the recurring costs of caring for an axolotl. This includes food, substrate, vet check-ups, and potential treatments for illnesses or injuries. Keep in mind this is only one part of the total cost of your axolotl’s care. Other likely costs include an enclosure, a water filter, substrate, vet visits, and food. Of course, this isn’t to say that beginners can’t necessarily keep axolotls as pets.

Many people find feeding their axies using tongs is an easy method. Our animals are double bagged in thermal insulated packages. Our boxes are marked “Fragile” and “Live Animals” to notify postal workers that they should be treated with extra care. Depending on the size of the axolotl, the animal may be fasted prior to shipping to ensure the water in the bag remains as clean as possible.

At these two weeks of age, they will start to search for food. It’s important that there is plenty around at the young and juvenile axolotls will eat each other. The biggest problems that axolotls will face are either digestive problems caused by them eating something they weren’t supposed to or problems caused by an undue amount of stress. At 5 inches, the axolotls are generally mature enough to get over their cannibalistic ways. Contrary to popular belief axolotls don’t benefit from socializing. In fact, due to the strong cannibalistic tendencies of the youth axolotls should be kept separate until they are at least 5 inches long.

This means that should your axolotl run into injury someHow it should be able to heal itself. Axolotls are often used for experiments since they have such an incredible regeneration ability, as such there is a multitude of axolotls that are kept in labs for testing. Because of this as well as a variety of other factors axolotls have a high mortality rate with about 97% fatalities.

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Be sure to spot-clean the tank daily for waste and uneaten food. In the wild, axolotls feed on snails, worms, crustaceans, small fish, and small amphibians. In captivity, they can be fed a variety of brine shrimp, small strips of beef or liver, earthworms, bloodworms, tubifex worms, otherfrozen fish foods, and commercial fish pellets. Do not feed any worms or fish you caught yourself, as they can carry parasites.

While axolotls are relatively hardy to slight fluctuations in their environment, they also have delicate, soft bodies with permeable skin. In fact, most of their body is made of cartilage rather than bone. That means they should not be handled unless absolutely necessary.

Why Choose an Axolotl?

Unlike most salamanders, they do not undergo metamorphosis from larval to adult form where breathing changes from gills to lungs. Thus, they are not pets you handle, but they can be quite entertaining to watch. They are relatively easy to care for and hardy, which makes them suitable for beginner pet owners. We take every measure to ensure your animal arrives alive and healthy and offer live arrival guarantee. We have shipped thousands of axolotls across the country to all legal states! When you first receive your animal, we recommend feeding lighter, easier to digest foods as its digestive system resumes its normal processes.

Axolotls come in many different colors and patterns, called morphs. Think of these morphs like dog breeds—they’re all axolotls, but each morph is unique and special. Some axolotl morphs are common, like a Wild Type axolotl, while others are extremely rare, like a Piebald axolotl.

Additionally, they are legal in New Mexico, but it is illegal to import them from other states. If you notice abnormal changes to your animal’s body, such as it starting to grow larger, have a veterinarian who specializes in exotic pets examine it as soon as possible. For a filtered tank, cleaning typically consists of a 20% water change each week, as well as siphoning waste from the bottom of the tank. If you’re not using a filter, you likely will have to do a 20% water change daily or every other day. Never do a full water change, as this can alter the water chemistry too drastically and stress your animal.

And second, you will want to have a little hideout for the axolotl to escape the sun. Since axolotls don’t have eyelids the sun can hurt their eye so give them a chance to hide from that sun. However, it is better for the axolotl to struggle than for them to ruin their digestive tract by eating something they weren’t supposed to. Axolotl’s eating gravel is one of the leading causes of them dying as the rocks they eat will clog their digestive tract and may eventually kill them. One of the biggest mistakes that an axolotl owner can make is getting the wrong size of gravel.

Axolotls are illegal to own in some states, including California, Maine, New Jersey, and Virginia. In New Mexico, they are legal to own but illegal to import from other states. Check your local exotic pet laws to verify that you may keep one. Axolotls are too sensitive to be pet without getting hurt. So if at all possible avoid petting them as you will likely hurt them. Additionally, the bodies are covered in slime to protect their body so they won’t be pleasurable to pet anyways.

However, this can greatly increase in price especially if a quality filter is going to be bought. Finally, there is some extra protective gear that you will want to have for your axolotl’s tank. The first is a necessity but still falls into the category of shelter, and that is a tank cover. When buying a filter there are two things you need to look out for. One, since the axolotl has a load of extremities you don’t want the filter somewhere that it will get caught and lose part of its body.

Frozen bloodworms are one of the most readily accepted foods by lotls that have been shipped. It is out of the ordinary even for the axolotl to arrive stressed to the point where they will not accept food, though if this happens it is not unheard of. If your axolotl is very hungry, other foods may be given, such as chopped up nightcrawlers or pellets.

Feed only what the animal is willing to eat, and do not leave uneaten food to rot in its tank or container. We recommend floating the unopened bag in your aquarium for 20 minutes if there is a significant temperature difference. The bag can then be opened and the axolotl removed with a net from the bag water and transferred to the tank. Your axolotl’s tank will also benefit from a slow-moving water filter. Changing the water completely can stress them out, so partial water changes weekly are preferable.

Some owners opt to leave the bottom of the tank bare, though others believe this might stress the axolotl if it can’t get a foothold on the smooth bottom. If gravel is used on the bottom, it must be coarse gravel that’s bigger than the axolotl’s head. The life span of axolotls will decrease depending on certain factors. One factor is if it eats anything it is not supposed to as this can majorly inhibit its life span.

Consult your veterinarian regarding the amount of food to offer, as well as How often to feed your axolotl, as this varies depending on age and size. In general, many adults take two to three feedings per week. One of the best methods to feed is by holding the food in round-nosed forceps in the tank near the animal. You also can simply drop the food in the water as close to the axolotl as possible. If your axolotl isn’t interested in eating much during the day, try feeding it in the evening when it’s typically more active.