feeding
Food for Axolotls: What, When, and How Much
Although your axolotl seems like the cutest and sweetest thing in the entire world, it’s still a carnivore — its diet needs to be meat-based. Earthworms are known to be the best food for axolotls, but there are many other good food sources too, including some pellet foods.
Since every axolotl is different, it’s recommended to feed as much as your axolotl can consume within several minutes, every 2–3 days.
Acceptable Sinking Pellets
- Axolotl Pellets — A Lot’l Axolotls, available in our marketplace
- Sinking Carnivore Pellets — Hikari, available in our marketplace
- Soft Salmon Pellets — brand unknown
Nutritional Comparison of Live Foods
Table data compiled by Jennifer Macke (1).
| Food | Protein (% dry wt) | Fat (% dry wt) | Calcium (% dry wt) | Phosphorous (% dry wt) | Ca:Phos ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blackworms | 47.8 | 20.1 | 0.11 | 0.85 | 0.12 |
| Bloodworms | 52.8 | 9.7 | 0.38 | 0.90 | 0.42 |
| Crickets, adult | 64.9 | 13.8 | 0.14 | 0.99 | 0.14 |
| Crickets, pinhead | NA | NA | 1.29 | 0.79 | 1.63 |
| Cockroach, American | 53.9 | 28.4 | 0.20 | 0.50 | 0.40 |
| Earthworms | 62.2 | 17.7 | 1.72 | 0.90 | 1.91 |
| Nightcrawlers | 60.7 | 4.4 | 1.52 | 0.96 | 1.58 |
| Fruit flies | 63.9 | 19.5 | 0.10 | 1.05 | 0.09 |
| Fruit fly larvae | 40.3 | 29.4 | 0.59 | 2.30 | 0.25 |
| Maggots | 56.8 | 20.0 | 0.41 | 1.13 | 0.36 |
| Mealworms | 52.7 | 32.8 | 0.11 | 0.77 | 0.14 |
| Mosquito larvae | 42.2 | 16.1 | 0.79 | 1.07 | 0.73 |
| Tubifex worms | 46.1 | 15.1 | 0.19 | 0.73 | 0.26 |
| Daphnia | 55.2 | 6.6 | 0.10 | 1.17 | 0.08 |
| Waxworms | 42.4 | 46.4 | 0.11 | 0.62 | 0.17 |
| Phoenix worms | 45.3 | 32.4 | 2.33 | 1.53 | 1.52 |
| Leeches | 85.3 | 4.3 | 0.16 | 0.94 | 0.17 |
| Rangen soft moist salmon pellets | 44 | 18 | NA | NA | NA |
| Shrimp, raw | 83.3 | 8.3 | 0.22 | 0.85 | 0.26 |
| Squid, raw | 84.2 | 5.3 | 0.47 | 2.03 | 0.23 |
| Salmon, raw | 63.5 | 34.2 | 0.039 | 0.75 | 0.05 |
| Codfish, raw | 93.4 | 4.56 | 0.084 | 1.07 | 0.08 |
| Anchovy, raw, whole | 74.0 | 18.5 | 0.544 | 0.644 | 0.84 |
| Beef heart, raw | 76.9 | 20.0 | 0.030 | 0.92 | 0.03 |
| Beef liver, raw | 69.0 | 13.8 | 0.017 | 1.33 | 0.01 |
| Beef sirloin, raw | 79.4 | 16.1 | 0.081 | 0.756 | 0.11 |
| Chicken breast, raw | 92.0 | 4.0 | 0.044 | 0.784 | 0.06 |
| Chicken, whole, 1-day-old | 64.9 | 22.4 | 1.69 | 1.22 | 1.39 |
| Mouse, pinkie | 64.2 | 17.0 | 1.17 | NA | NA |
| Mouse, whole adult | 55.8 | 23.6 | 2.98 | 1.72 | 1.73 |
| Frog, green | 71.2 | 10.2 | 4.80 | 1.87 | 2.29 |
| Toad, southern | 61.0 | 14.0 | 2.94 | 1.79 | 1.64 |
| Quail, whole | 71.5 | 31.9 | 3.43 | NA | NA |
