What will happen when...

[Jadore axolotl]

So the thing is i have a female axolotl (i think... still too young to tell) and i want to get her a wild type mate but i want to get it soon so they will both be roughly the same size. What i want to know is when they start breeding they don't seem to stop from what i have read (almost like guppys!!!) and i was wondering if when they breed and i already have juviniles can i just leave the eggs with the parents and let nature take its course? I presume the parents will eat all the young?
You see the thing is i want to breed them and i also breed fish so i don't have much room for loads of tanks and i am not sure what the demand for axolotls is and weather i can get rid of them easily.
I also wouldn't want to seperate the parents, but even if the axolotls wouldn't eat all the young i know my fish will eat them as they can eat tadpoles.
So basically what is the best sollution for when i eventually start breeding:
1) Leave excess eggs with parents and hope they eat all the young.
2) seperate the male and female when i don't want breeding.
3) feed the young to my fish.

 

[Darkmaverick]

Hi Jadore,

Some axies will eat up the eggs, however others would leave it untouched. This is not a guaranteed solution. You can try leaving the eggs there for a while and see if they are consumed.

I would say the best thing is to separate your male and female axies if you want to prevent breeding.

Its much more humane to cull them while they are developing eggs rather than when they grow into larvae. I really discourage feeding them to fish. (Can you resist those cute dark eyes of the larvae? i know i can't)

Another note, do not dispose of eggs or larvae into streams, drains or anywhere in the wild etc.

Cheers

 

[Jadore axolotl]

OK thanks for that, i wouldn't put them in the wild anyway!
I guess i'll see what happenes whenever i get a male and both axolotls are big enough to breed.

 

[blueberlin]

You can leave the eggs with the parents. Although they may not eat the eggs right away, they will eat the larvae. Eventually they will also figure out that they can eat the eggs, too, and from that point on, they will be egg eaters.

You are right in that a pair will breed like guppies. This is hard on the mother. She lays several hundred eggs, individually. Her body prioritizes egg production over most other functions - meaning that if she is small, she will not grow well, and if she is weak, she is much more susceptible to disease. Mine seem to be unusual but are the only example I have - they bred every three weeks, once even the day after the last larvae hatched, or 2 weeks after last laying - from the time I bought them until I finally separated them. I would recommend a boys' tank and a girls' tank and mixing them only when you intentionally want to breed young.

Good luck to you,

-Eva

 

[Kerry1968]

Can I just add a note to this?
If you're not sure if you can find new homes for the offspring of the axolotls and you don't have room for more tanks, it might not be a good idea to let your axies breed. Unless of course you want to cull a LOT of eggs or larvae, which kind of defeats the object of breeding doesn't it?
Just think about it really seriously first, there is a lot involved in rearing axolotl larvae. I know, I have 5 babies still waiting for a new home and if I don't find homes for them I will have to find room for more tanks!