Please help me.

Hello. i'll introduce my self first, My name's Adam and i'm new to this Axolotl buisness!! my fiancee has bought me one as a pressie because i've always wanted one. He's called Steve and he is the cutest thing in the world!

But i'm really really worried!!
We got the tank a week before steve went in, and based on what the pet shop have told us, we set the tank up.

We've got gravel as a subtrate, i'm using a Fluval filter that attaches to the inside of the tank, and i've got a couple of live plants in there too.

The pet shop told us to fill the tank and add Aquasafe and Easybalance, then leave the tank for a week for everything to settle in before going and buying an axie.

This is the bit i'm worried about!
He's eaten some gravel allready! i need to swop it for sand or large pebbles.

I hadn't even heard of cycling (other than with bikes!!) so that hassn't been done!!

So i need to swap subtrate and cycle my tank, but whats the best way to do this without upsetting steve?
Do i just need to start again and if so where does steve live while this is going on?

Please please please help me, i really don't want anything to happen to him, i would be heart broken!

Has he passed the gravel or is it still bouncing around inside him? How big is your tank? I would get like a couple rubbermade or icecream buckets just plane and put Steve in there (this is what I was told to do until my tank was cycled) or (What I did) was take two empty tengallon (small really)in the same room, even eaiest when right next to each other tanks and just swap Steve back and fourth so that there's a 100% water change, but the water is the same temp so little stress. After the swap empty the used tank and fill it back up and dechlor it of course and then it's ready for the next day. Then you can set your perm tank up (NO GRAVEL) and let it cycle and when it's ready move Steve in. Mine took like two weeks but I had a couple fish, a frog and plants in it and that helps speed it up. They were 10cent feeders so I was willing to make them scarcifice their lives in the name of the tank. They made it though and have actually grown quite a bit since I got them.

I don't know if he has passed it yet. how often do they poo? i've only had him a day!
My tank is 60 litre (24' by 12') its like a mansion to him, he's only a baby (about 3' long).

So if i move him into temporary tubs, do i need to do anything other than dechlor?

Any other suggestions or tips on how to speed up cycling would be helpful!

Cheers.

Adam you can't speed up cycling, but if you are able to get some used filter media or decos from an established (ie more than 8 weeks old) tank then you can put it in yours and it will aid your tank in cycling as it shud have some good bacteria established on it. See my other post on your other thread too.

thanks for the help kapo, don't worry i did read your other post and i appreciate any help. just thought i'd put a thread here as well so more people would find it.
i'm getting testers for amonia nitrite and nitrate tomorrow. i'll test steve's water and decide what to do based on the results.
he seems really happy at the moment. hes eating and swimming and seems to really enjoy sitting high up in some of the plants!!

as for the gravel situation i think i might just put a layer of larger pebbles over the top of it. i feel that if i remove the gravel i might also remove any good bacteria that has already developed. what do you guys reckon?

anyway i'll let all know how it go's.

cheers again.

Well, as you've only had him in there about a day or so, it's not enuf time to establish any good bacteria so would be okay to move. Do you have a cave/log for him to hide in, you can still remove the gravel and bacteria will establish on your filter media and decos. (the cycling establishes the good bacteria). Gravel/pebbles will trap a lot of gunk/waste in even if ur handfeeding - (axies poo and regurgitate if overfed and then they snuffle/bury their mouths in the substrate trying to find food).

with the cycling - because we had to do a 100% water change for a lil one the aquarium had this stuff called cycling additive (i think its the good bacteria already menioned) you just have to be carefull it isn't poisonious to them there is a list of that stuff on axolotyl.org
and we put river stones over our gravel and its seems to work - the gravel holds her cave and stuff in place and the river stones cover up the rest - we have a larger size gravel vacuum witch works on the stones as well
hope this helps

hello.
haven't been able to get hold of water testing kit so far. i think steve should be alright for another day or so before i take him out to start a proper cycle.
went to the local hardware store and got him two nice sized tubs with lids on for his temporary homes (100% water changes every day while the tank cycles). also bought a turkey baster!! its fantastic for cleaning!!!!
i'm hoping that while he's in the tubs he'll get used to me and hopefully i can start hand feeding (want to start when he's young).
We're going to lodge an official complaint with the pet shop where we bought him for not giving correct advice on axolotls. if steve had been bought by someone who didn't have the initiative to research about axolotls he could have had a very short life.

again, if anyone has any hints and tips please let me know! its a big step going from guinea pigs for 16 years to axies!!

right, test results are in!!!!
Drum role please..............
ammonia- 0.4 mg/l
nitrite- 0.5mg/l
nitrate-50mg/l
ph broad range- 7

What do you guys think?