New axolotl won't eat

[theblondie616]

Hello. I was given a new axolotl over a week ago and he has only eaten a little bit of worm in that time. This was on the first day. He's in a tank with my other bigger axolotl. I know this is not ideal but he was a gift and I don't have another tank to keep him in. I literally gave my smaller tank away the day before. My water P's are fine and I made a bar to lessen the flow of my filter. There's no fighting going on and no signs of stress. Any one know of anything I can do? He looks a bit thin but other than that he seems ok. How long until I should get worried? Also the tips of his toes are pale, is that normal for a black axolotl?
Any help would be great
Thanx

 

[Loobylou]

How big is the bigger axolotl? If he is a lot bigger than your new addition, you might need to think about making a tank divider to keep them apart before the new one turns into a snack!

Live blood worms might encourage the newbie to eat, if he is underweight it might be a good idea to try something like wax worms as they are quite fatty and will help him put weight back on.

In future though, please do not add new axolotls into a tank with existing lotls without quarantining them first! They should be kept quarantined for at least a month to avoid anything being passed on. Even if an axie looks healthy it could still be carrying an illness that could effect your other axolotls.

 

[theblondie616]

I'm a fool, I didn't think to keep them apart to see if the new one could be ill. The new one is not a baby but again is not as big as my white one. I think he's to big to be eaten. But he could be picked on. If it comes to that ill have to give him to a pet shop or something. I popped in to my local pet shop and he seemed to thing fridging him may help. Any thoughts on this?

 

[Loobylou]

I'm a fool, I didn't think to keep them apart to see if the new one could be ill. The new one is not a baby but again is not as big as my white one. I think he's to big to be eaten. But he could be picked on. If it comes to that ill have to give him to a pet shop or something. I popped in to my local pet shop and he seemed to thing fridging him may help. Any thoughts on this?

I wouldn't fridge him, especially as he hasn't been eating. The fridge will lower his metabolism and he'll be less likely to eat at the lower temperatures. They don't really 'pick' on each other, most injuries are caused by mistaking another for food. A week isn't all that long, just keep offering him a variety of food and he should start eating again soon!

 

[snuggly time]

Hi,

I hope he starts eating soon. I got my axolotl a week ago and he's just started to get an appetite and becoming more lively. Hoping for you he's a little like mine and just taking time to adjust to a new environment... .

 

[theblondie616]

Update. Hes finally eating. He's on these little packets of blood worms in a paste. Loves them

 

[Mortimer]

My understanding about your toe question: if he's dark with pale tips of his toes, that means he's sexually mature.

 

[SapphireTigress]

You dont have to keep them in a tank, you could probably get away with some kind of temporary container with clean water set-up like you would a tank? Somebody correct me if I'm wrong though.

Other ideas are looking for a new tank on Craigslist, or you may have a local Freecycle group in your area to get a free tank! Also try thriftshops!

Glad hes finally eating for you though!