Do axolotls eat fish? The answer is yes. Axolotls are ruthless carnivores that feast on live food such as small fish, worms, insects, and mollusks.
However, it’s important to be careful when choosing feeder fish for your little friend.
Many axolotl owners simply don’t know what fish species they should choose for their axies. If you are one of those inexperienced axolotl parents, keep reading.
In this post, we are going to discuss everything you need to know about the best axolotl feeder fish. Hopefully this article will make it easier for you to care for your little dragon.
Contents
Best Axolotl Feeder Fish
Axolotls happily consume small fish. For these salamanders, the best feeder fish are guppies and their subspecies, mollies, goldfish, and other small and slow-moving fish.
Goldfish should be vetted to make sure they’re not carrying parasites. Of all small fish, guppies are the best option because they are nutritionally rich and do not carry disease-causing parasites.
Pros and Cons of Axolotl Feeder Fish
Your axolotl’s diet should include feeder fish, which provide proteins and fish fats. Axolotls need these nutrients to stay healthy.
While live fish are not the safest or cheapest, they benefit axolotls by fostering their hunting instincts.
However, there are some drawbacks of putting feeder fish into your axolotl’s tank. Live fish often carry parasites and diseases that can make axolotls sick.
If you are not careful, feeder fish can be a risk factor for your axolotl. Goldfish is rich in nutrients, but can carry parasites that are deadly for axolotls.
Medications given to aquarium fish often contain trace metals that can be toxic to your axolotl.
Feeder fish can also contain internal parasites and fungi that can have adverse effects on your axolotl’s health.
The same bacteria, parasites and fungi can also infect the eggs of axolotls. Therefore, if you’re breeding axolotls, you have to be very careful about what food you offer to your little friend.
If you are willing to feed live fish to your axolotl, consider breeding the fish in a separate tank.
This is the most practical way to avoid risks. Also, offer live fish only as supplemental food. It should not be the only source of nutrition for your axolotl.
How to Offer Fish to Axolotls
Axolotls love feeding on live things. Small, moving things attract both young and adult axolotls. Avoid frozen or dried fish because axolotls show very little interest in dead fish.
The fish you choose for your axolotl must be small, because too large ones may cause issues for your little friend.
As we have stated, fish can carry parasites or diseases. So, before you offer fish to your axolotl, make sure the fish is quarantined in a separate tank for a couple of weeks.
It may seem like a hassle, but it is the smartest way to ensure the protection of your axolotl from deadly parasites.
The process gets a lot easier if you can breed the feeder fish at home. Just find an average-sized tank in which you can breed some small fish.
We recommend breeding guppies because they are pretty easy to breed. A female guppy can give birth to 30-40 fry every month.
However, adult guppies are notorious for devouring their young, so don’t keep adult and young guppies in the same tank.
Visit your local fish pet store to buy guppies. You can also check some local classified ads or order guppies online.
How often should you offer feeder fish to your axolotl? Well, If your axolotl is consuming other types of food, once or twice a week may be enough.
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What Type of Live Food Do Axolotls Eat?
Axolotls love slow-moving smaller fish that are easy for axolotls to hunt.
Apart from fish, your axolotl should eat a variety of other foods such as salmon pellets, trout, earthworms, grasshoppers, crickets, and bloodworms.
Here is an article that explains the dietary needs of axolotls.
There are some fish species such as danios, tratras and other fast-swimming fish that should be avoided. While they are pretty small for axolotls to eat, axolotls can’t catch them.
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In Conclusion
Axolotls love fish, and get necessary nutrients from fish. However, it is important to be careful when choosing feeder fish for your axolotl.
Choose small, slow-moving fish that your axolotl can easily catch. To make sure you’re offering healthy, parasite-free fish to your axolotl, consider breeding small fish in a separate tank.
