Paranoid and freaking out.

shiney spots on head


rounded little belly at the back-end. doesn't go away even after a poo


transparent end of tail

Ok so I am freaking out and inspecting evertying I have. I have a lot I lost my first fish (RIP-Mister Fish, the coolese delta-tailed pet-store betta ever!)ever due to a disease last nite (i been keeping water-animals for 15 years)

So upon insane inspection of my older axolotl he has what the pictures show. Everybody got a new home 2 days ago and the axolotl family is getting used to each other. The tank is cycled. It has been established since september. Ammonia reading is at 0. All out of Nitrite test. Water is approx. 18-19C. He is gulping air like every few minutes and looks kinda fat. At least he isn't floating anymore. I am so paranoid right now I can list every imperfection on him. Left back leg has only 3 toes, been like that since I got him 3 years ago. He has a white spot on his left side, pigmentation. He has a black spot near his left back leg, this seems to be pigmentation also. Tank has filter. Did 10% water change 2 days ago. Its a US 20 long.PH is slightly alkaline. Lives with some java moss, java fern, c. wendentii, riccia, little duckweed on the top and some tall plant that the shrimp like. But yet gills are flicking and air is gulping for both. I am just hoping they are just being stressed meeting each other for the first time. New roomate syndrome or whatever.

This guy has been a good friend and he recognizes me. He also knows how to beg me for food and he likes to look at me. Plus he is King of the Rock Pile! I don't want him to go the way of Mister Fish.

AM it may be stress from the move as it was so recent and may settle down in a few days.

Is he a melanoid, he's a gorgeous colour, or wildtype?

Did you have them on gravel or pebbles before, if so, could the lump be gravel? I'm assuming you're talking about the slight dip in his stomach before his rear leg. Or are u talking about directly behind the back of his leg, his cloaca, then that is normal for a male axie.

I see the bulge y'mean - personally, it looks like a chunk of gravel. Not a right lot you can do about that really, but you said he's pooing ok.

The shiny patches - are they whitish blue and catch the light at the right angle?
Spyyk has some across her head - I think this is normal pigmentation too.

Try popping a small bubbler in - it'll entertain him, and it might help with the bubble-gulping.
Gill flicking is pretty normal too - axolotl are too lazy to move the whole body to get fresh water to the gills, so swish them instead.

ah....it's beautiful pictures, your axie looks so cute and with beautiful gills.
At the same time, do you think my Olive's stressful? Since she got a very different gills than the others, it's a bit curve, or do you think her gills has been reborn, so it's in strange shape?

talking about the slight dip in his stomach before legs. It cant be gravel, they never had gravel. used to have barebottom and river rock, now they have sand. lump was there before sand. when they decided to eat sand, they spit it out and the ones ingested are in the poo.

I increased the flow on my filter, which made a slight current, but they do not seemed to be bothered much, I think they had indigestion from feeding, cus the bloating is down and they take air les freaquently. It seems back to normal. SOrry for the long freaking out post. I had a bad day the other day...

As for Gills, Morrissey, no idea, my guys gills get large and smaller curved and straight. I guess it is just depends. Gills are one thing in the axolotl world i still do not know much about...

Not really sure if it is melanistic or just a really cool wild type. belly is silver he is very dark like the black river rocks, but not pure black, you can see dark brown in his tail. I know he is not bure black because he was one spot of black near his rear leg. I would say my axolol is dark chocolate. MMMM dark chocolate...

(Message edited by mantighoul on November 08, 2006)