Gill problem? Growth deficiency?

[ThisFish]

My axolotl Herb's gills are really small and always pressed back against his head. Compared to my other Axolotl and pictures I have seen Herb's are very strange. They aren't fluffy. They are tiny. They are also a bit more gray although I think that may just be his coloring. He is always gulping air from the surface as well. I have only had him a few weeks and he is maybe five inches. I feed him bloodworms although he did eat two zebra danio's that I used to cycle the tank. He is constantly floating at the top of the tank also, although he can swim down if he want's.

Could he be metamorphosing ?

 

[LSuzuki]

Probably not metamorphing, but can you post a picture?

Some axie gills are naturally small, Some have gotten nipped off, and if they grow back, they do so slowly.

We are much more likely to post pictures of "pretty" axolotls. The ones with short gills are under-represented in photo galleries everywhere. I have a short-gilled one too, and very few pictures of him exist ...

 

[ThisFish]

Probably not metamorphing, but can you post a picture?

Some axie gills are naturally small, Some have gotten nipped off, and if they grow back, they do so slowly.

We are much more likely to post pictures of "pretty" axolotls. The ones with short gills are under-represented in photo galleries everywhere. I have a short-gilled one too, and very few pictures of him exist ...

This is the only pic I have right now, I will try to get more tomorrow.

Also what about his constant air gulping? He is almost always floating and gulps air about every ten minutes.

 

[Skudo09]

Have you tested your parameters including ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and PH and temperature?

 

[ThisFish]

PH: 7.4
Ammonia: 4
Nitrate: 4
Temperature: 71 F

Im going to do a water change tonight hopefully. Any recommendations on how to clean the sand? Also how do I dechlorinate the water thoroughly before adding it? I have a siphon that hooks up to my sink and can suck water out and put it in. I have a sponge filter. Last time I cleaned my tank I took the axies out should I do that again?

Im going to buy a Nitrite test kit and some brine shrimp sinking sticks in the next week, as well as talk to the fish store I got my axis from.

Help is still wanted though so please comment what I should do.

Also a week ago the same thing was happening and Nitrate and ammonia where at zero, the temperature was the same as now and the ph was more like 6.8.

 

[ThisFish]

Could the gills have been bitten off? He does live with zebra danios. I have never seen the two interact so I wasn't worried.

 

[LSuzuki]

Ammonia is 4 ppm? Are you sure? If so, do the water change NOW!

Yes, danios might think gill filaments are a tasty treat. But if your ammonia/nitrite has been running high for a while, that could also be a problem. Were they short when you got him?

 

[Skudo09]

Ammonia is at 4ppm? Take your axolotls out and place them n a tub of fresh, cool, dechlorinated water now. Do 100% water changes daily in the tub using dechlorinated water the same temperature and use this time to rectify the water parameters and get your tank cycled before you return them to the tank. Use a fishless cycling method to do so.

High ammonia and nitrite are likely the cause of the gill damage although the fish may have also contributed. As suggested in your other threads, it could not be confirmed that your tank was cycled as you did not test for nitrite. As your ammonia is extremely high your tank is not cycled.

What test kit are you using to measure the parameters? Test strips of liquid? If test strips, it would be better to invest in a liquid test kit as test strips are notorious for being inaccurate.

Always add the dechlorinator to water before adding it to the aquarium. The dechlorinator you choose should have instructions on how much to use per litre/gallon of water.

Below is a link on fishless cycling

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...guide-and-faq-to-fishless-cycling-148283.html

 

[Skudo09]

To clean the sand, hover a syphon over the surface of the sand but not too close to suck the sand up. Most debris is light enough that it will be vacuumed up by this method. Be sure to give the sand a good stir regularly to prevent noxious gas pockets building up.

As you need to dechlorinate your water before adding it to your aquarium, you may need to reconsider the attachment syphon that takes water from the tap straight to the aquarium. You may need to get some buckets so you can dechlorinate the buckets of water first and then add the water to the aquarium.

Once the water quality is good and your tank is cycled, for regular water changes it is up to you whether you leave your axolotls in there or take them out. Personally I feel it is more stressful on them to take them out so I tend to leave them in the tank and work around them. They are pretty used to it. You do need to be careful using syphons around axolotls though as they can sometimes cause injury if they get sucked into the syphon. But if you are diligent and keep a close eye on where your axolotls are and keep a distance away from them with the syphon it should be fine to leave them in the aquarium.

However, at present your water quality is dangerous and the toxic level of ammonia will be harming your axolotls so for now, it is best to remove both of them and place them in a tub of fresh dechlorinated water as I have mentioned above with daily 100% water changes as suggested above.

 

[ThisFish]

PH: 7.4
Ammonia: 4
Nitrate: 4
Temperature: 71 F

Im going to do a water change tonight hopefully. Any recommendations on how to clean the sand? Also how do I dechlorinate the water thoroughly before adding it? I have a siphon that hooks up to my sink and can suck water out and put it in. I have a sponge filter. Last time I cleaned my tank I took the axies out should I do that again?

Im going to buy a Nitrite test kit and some brine shrimp sinking sticks in the next week, as well as talk to the fish store I got my axis from.

Help is still wanted though so please comment what I should do.

Also a week ago the same thing was happening and Nitrate and ammonia where at zero, the temperature was the same as now and the ph was more like 6.8.

IM SO SORRY GUYS!! I MEANT .4 :sad::nono:

Also I did take a water sample to the top fish store in my area, (That was rated highest on google at least) And got it tested. They confirmed it was a cycled tank.

 

[Skudo09]

It is good that it is not as high as 4ppm but the presence of ammonia stills indicates your tank is not fully cycled. You also need a test result for nitrite to know if the tank is cycled. Did the store actually give you the exact readings?

 

[ThisFish]

It is good that it is not as high as 4ppm but the presence of ammonia stills indicates your tank is not fully cycled. You also need a test result for nitrite to know if the tank is cycled. Did the store actually give you the exact readings?

Not exact but they said everything was zero except for the nitrate witch there was a bit of but not very much. I changed the tank and it was back to zero that afternoon.

 

[LSuzuki]

Was this test at the pet store before your axie went in the tank? I.e., with the danios there? An axolotl puts out more ammonia than a few danios, so even if your tank is "cycled", the ammonia levels probably exceeded what the biofilter could handle. (Yet another reason why fishless cycling is recommended.) So, ammonia and nitrite spiked even though the tank was cycled. Usually that resolves pretty quickly (a week, maybe), but you need to keep an eye on it and if it does go way up, follow Skudo's recommendations.

Back to the gills - where the filaments gone when you got him? I've lost track - how long have you had him?

 

[ThisFish]

Was this test at the pet store before your axie went in the tank? I.e., with the danios there? An axolotl puts out more ammonia than a few danios, so even if your tank is "cycled", the ammonia levels probably exceeded what the biofilter could handle. (Yet another reason why fishless cycling is recommended.) So, ammonia and nitrite spiked even though the tank was cycled. Usually that resolves pretty quickly (a week, maybe), but you need to keep an eye on it and if it does go way up, follow Skudo's recommendations.

Back to the gills - where the filaments gone when you got him? I've lost track - how long have you had him?

Looking back on some pictures it does look like he has some small ones



(He is the darker one)

 

[AxolotlChris]

The cycling process can take from 3-6 weeks. For your tank to be cycled, a beneficial bacteria needs to be present to break down the Ammonia and Nitrites into Nitrates. Ammonia and Nitrites are lethal to Axolotl and are produced from your Axolotls waste (or other ammonia sources) and decomposing food. Nitrates are a less toxic by product. During cycling the beneficial bacteria will colonize your tanks surfaces such as substrate, ornaments, filter, and begin to feed on the Ammonia turning it into Nitrites, then bacteria will break down the Nitrites into Nitrates. The bacteria is known as a biofilter, as it filters the ammonia and nitrites into less harmful nitrates.

You will need to start seeing Nitrites to know your cycle is about half way through, then NirAtes to know that your cycle has reached the final stage.
-You will see a rise of each toxin in this order: Ammonia will appear once produced from the Axolotl waste, this will then convert into Nitrites, and then the final out come is the conversion to NitrAtes you should eventually be left with 0 Ammonia 0 Nitrites and around 40< ppm of Nitrates which you can lower by doing 30-40% water changes.


Buy this liquid test kit: http://www.amazon.com/API-Freshwater-Master-Test-Kit/dp/B000255NCI

Test your Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates, and PH.

In the meantime put your Axolotl in a separate tub/container and change the water 100% daily with dechlorinated water, this makes sure your Axolotl isn't exposed to any of the toxin's that may be in your tank as it cycles.

If you get the test kit, provide a source of Ammonia and check your water for Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrates daily, you can follow your cycle until you know it is complete. Don't rely on the pet shop for anything.

If you haven't got to grips with how cycling works you should read these articles as well as the article Skudo shared with you.
Caudata Culture Articles - Water Quality
Caudata Culture Articles - Cycling

You must make it top priority to understand the Nitrogen (cycling) process, as well as basic care such as dechlorinating water, temperatures and housing, its vital to provide the best living conditions for your Axolotl.

Dechlorinator must be added to water before you put it in your tank, so when you fill up your buckets/containers of water add the dechlorinator to the bucket and then add the water, this allows the water to be properly dechlorinated and the metal toxins to be neutralized before you add the water to the tank.

Read these articles too:
Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity

If there's anything your not 100% sure about, just ask!

 

[LSuzuki]

OK, back to the gills - sorry, I can't tell which one you consider the darker one ... but let's see if I understand the situation.

1. The axolotl had some gill filaments when you got him. Now he doesn't
2. Since you got him, he has been in a tank with danios. (And the other axolotl is in a different tank, without danios.)
3. The tank isn't cycled enough to keep ammonia at 0 with an axolotl in there.

Is this correct?

Probably the danios are snacking on his gill filaments and the ammonia and nitrite are also causing damage. So
1. Get rid of the danios.
2. Monitor the ammonia and nitrite carefully. If ammonia and nitrite are not too high and are dropping, then no need to do a fishless cycle or anything. (I'm assuming your tank actually was cycled but couldn't handle the increase in bioload from the axolotl.)
3. Do regular water changes to keep the nitrates low.

For future reference, fishless cycling is much better. You can control the amount of ammonia in the tank so that you can be sure it is ready for your axolotl.

 

[ThisFish]

I was about to change the tank when my mom got a call from my dad saying Herb has sadly passed away. I don't know exactly what happened but Im very sad. RIP Herb