A Beginner's Care Guide
Keep your axolotl happy.
The right tank. The right temperature. The food that actually keeps them growing. Honest care notes from real research, not pet-store fiction.
A Beginner's Care Guide
The right tank. The right temperature. The food that actually keeps them growing. Honest care notes from real research, not pet-store fiction.
Why this site exists
Pet-store articles miss the basics. TikTok shows the wrong tank, the wrong food, the wrong temperature.
The real expertise lives scattered across Reddit threads, breeder Facebook groups, and a handful of exotic-vet papers. This site collects the right information from the right sources.
Start with the complete beginner walkthrough, then browse the food safety database or your morph guide.
If you're new
Ammonia poisoning is the single most common cause of death in new axolotls. Tank cycling takes four to six weeks and must happen before the axolotl arrives.
Axolotls are cold-water amphibians. Above 70°F they stop eating, become vulnerable to bacterial infection, and die quickly. Sixty to sixty-eight is the working range.
Live feeder fish carry parasites and thiaminase. The dramatic videos online of axolotls eating fish are dramatic because the axolotl is being poisoned.
Axolotls swallow their substrate along with food. Anything larger than fine sand causes impaction. Bare bottom or fine aquarium sand are the only safe choices.
Cannibalism is normal for axolotls. They will bite each other's gills and limbs. One axolotl per tank.
"Cycle the tank right and keep the water below 68°F, and you've already done 80% of the work."
Food safety
A quick-answer database covering 15 foods, ranked safe, caution, or avoid. Built from veterinary sources and the axolotl Reddit consensus.
Open the databaseBrowse by topic
Decide
Are they right for you? Cost, lifespan, suitability, the full pillar guide.
Care
Daily, weekly, monthly. The four pillars of keeping an axolotl alive.
Setup
The 10-step walkthrough from empty tank to cycled and ready.
Setup
10, 20, 29, 40, 55, 75 gallon — what works for axolotls.
Food
Pellets, earthworms, blackworms, bloodworms — what to feed.
Colors
Leucistic, melanoid, GFP, copper, piebald. Every color explained.
Buying
Vetted breeders, marketplaces, and the red flags to avoid.
Tankmates
What axolotls can (and cannot) live with. 12 species ranked.
Legal
US state-by-state. Illegal in 4, permit-required in 2.
Reproduction
Sexual maturity, courtship, eggs, raising juveniles.
Behavior
Why is my axolotl floating, hiding, gulping? Normal vs warning.
Fun
Mochi, Yoshi, Xolotl. Categorized name ideas.
Newsletter
One honest care note, one Amazon find, one beginner question answered. Every Sunday.
Written by someone who actually reads the research, not the marketing copy.
