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Baby Axie Floating, Can't Get to Bottom

CrazyCritterGal

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Hi guys,

I'm a first time axie owner and I got my two little babies about three weeks ago. I was having issues with their water being too warm, but I've fridged them a couple times and they have seemed fine. However, a couple days ago, I noticed one of my axies was floating as he does when his water is too warm. I fridged him, but he didn't change his behavior. I decided that maybe he was just acting strange and tried to feed them last night. But as I watched, he tried and tried, but he couldn't get to the bottom of his little tub. He just kept floating back up to the top and hanging out kind of sideways. Then he'd swim around the edge of his tub as fast as he could and then push himself down to try to get to the bottom, but he only made it about halfway down before he floated again. It was only about three inches of water in his tub. I've emptied the tub so that he has enough water to swim around in, but if he tries, he can reach the bottom, and he ate ravenously. I also left enough water in there to cover his little moss ball for the most part. I'm not sure what else to do and I'm getting very freaked out! Please help!
 

Tarabull

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He could just have an air bubble caught in him. I notice that when they eat it helps the air pass. You could always put a plant by him to rest on near the top or lower the water so his feet are almost touching. This will keep him from getting stressed out.

If you have trouble with your water temps, have you tried putting a fan on the tank or using frozen water bottles? By moving them a lot and switching their temperature often they can get stressed. I'll admit with my first axolotl I fridged for everything I though could be wrong with it. They are really hardy creatures though and rarely need to be in the fridge.
 

CrazyCritterGal

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He could just have an air bubble caught in him. I notice that when they eat it helps the air pass. You could always put a plant by him to rest on near the top or lower the water so his feet are almost touching. This will keep him from getting stressed out.

If you have trouble with your water temps, have you tried putting a fan on the tank or using frozen water bottles? By moving them a lot and switching their temperature often they can get stressed. I'll admit with my first axolotl I fridged for everything I though could be wrong with it. They are really hardy creatures though and rarely need to be in the fridge.

I did lower the water level, but he still can't quite touch. It's low enough he doesn't have to be on the bottom if he doesn't want to, but if he tries, he can reach the bottom to eat and such. He just can't stay down there, because he floats back up. Should I lower it more? I only have them in the little containers they came in, so I can't put water bottles in there yet - they won't fit. I'm at uni right now, and I know I have bigger tanks at home that will allow me to put water bottles in that I plan on grabbing when I go home in the next couple of days. I was planning on just rotating a couple frozen water bottles every 12 hours or so to keep it cool. I can also grab my fan there too if I need it.
 

axolover703

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It could be that he swallowed an air bubble while floating, in which case fridging wouldn't be necessary, just wait it out. If he doesn't stop floating in a few days, he could be constipated, if that's the case then try fridging him for about 5-6 hours. Hope I could help :)
 

CrazyCritterGal

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It could be that he swallowed an air bubble while floating, in which case fridging wouldn't be necessary, just wait it out. If he doesn't stop floating in a few days, he could be constipated, if that's the case then try fridging him for about 5-6 hours. Hope I could help :)

Poor guy was done floating for a bit, so I gave him some more water. He stayed on the bottom for a day or so, but then he was back to floating. I had to feed him directly off of the tip of the butter knife I use to cut his food with, and then I lowered his water level again so that he could eat on his own, which he did. I've been doing about 90% water changes almost every day. Do you think that that's stressing him out or something and making him float for some reason?
 
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