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New Axie

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wendy

Guest
I have just purchased my very first axie, I'm think by what I have read here that its a boy and we have named him 'Gilly' hes 14 cms in lengh. He seems to have deformed front legs, I wondered if anybody could tell me if they will always be like this, although it doesnt seem to stop him getting around. He was sold as a 'gold' axie, although from looking through the site I would have said he was an albino, although he does have a little gold on his head. I have also noticed that he has some white patches on his tail and body - Is this just colouring or something that I should be worried about? I have also read that people feed 'earthworms' are these just dug up from the garden, or from a bait shop? He was being fed catfish pellets, which he loves, but it does tend to make the water cloudy. Gilly went straight into his new 68 litre tank when I got him, which has a filter and airstone and on sand, with a nice hiding place and I also purchased him a moss ball yesterday. I did treat the tank water with water conditioner to remove the chlorine and also an aquarium supplement to mature the tank and filter, but understand from what I have read that I should have cycled the tank, should I now be doing 20% daily water change? I dont want to stress my new little friend. Any advice I would be grateful of. Thank-you.
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M

morrissey

Guest
Hello,

I only got my first axie home for no more than a month as well, and they are really one of the cutest creature in the world! And my axie's similar to yours size.
I think the deformed front leg's due to the fighting between axies when they were very young, and when they reborn the legs, it didn't grow naturally...it's what I guess so far!

Gilly looks really cute! I wish to buy a similar one as my axie's bf soon!
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W

wendy

Guest
Thanks Morrissey!
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I have only had Gilly for 6 days, but love him, I've spent hours already watching him. Once he is settled, another month or so, I was thinking of getting him a 'friend' also!
 

kapo

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When you get them another friend, please make sure you quarantine the new axie for 30 days. This is just in case he passes something onto your healthy axie and makes him/her sick. You won't tell just by looking at him; the new axie could have some parasite or something that doesn't a/effect him but will affect your own axie.

Also, the white patches that you see is colour pigmentation, which is common on gold/white albinos.

As your tank is just cycling (regardless of the "maturing aquarium supplement") you will need to test the tankwater for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. If you don't have the freshwater test kits for these then take a sample of water to your petshop and get them to test it and give you the no.s If they are high/unsafe do a 20% waterchange. Testing will need to be done on a regular basis, every couple of days, while your axie is in there, as will waterchanges.

See: http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cyclingEDK.shtml

Also, s/he may be a bit young to tell age at the moment. Usually you can tell if age known, for a male at about 9 months, female 11-18 months; otherwise a male when mature will have a large cloaca behind his rear legs.

One of my axies has an extra toe, and other 2 axies have webbed feet rather than individual toes. That's normal with regeneration if a limb is damaged.
 
L

lorie

Guest
AWW THTS THE CUTEST AXI IVE EVER SEEN! It loks like a little triseratops hehehehe!
 
A

amber

Guest
*laughs* That's just sweet...
Yea, when little guys fight, they tend to take off limbs. Most of the time the limb sheds, and regrows from scratch - but sometimes the new leg grows back - as does the old!
Voila - your odd chappie!
 
A

annmarie

Guest
Looks like two front legs, pretty neat. One of my axies only has 3 toes on a back leg. He came like that, he is 3+ years old now. I am sure he will do just fine. Plus hey~ you have a one of a kind axie, how many here post pics of a pet axie with a intersting front leg? Take good care of your Gilly, he is a pretty interesting lookin guy, colouration and all.
 
N

natashja

Guest
ive got little shade who has two joints on her right front leg, it looks really weird when she walks.

you will stress your little baby more if you dont change the water.
 
W

wendy

Guest
<font color="aa00aa">

Thanks for all the comments and advice. Glad to know that his colouring is down to pigmentation and nothing else! I'm going to be purchasing test kits on my next visit to the fish shop, but in the mean time, is 20% water changes enough every other day, or should I be doing this everyday?</font>
 
W

wendy

Guest
OK, my tank has now been cycling for a week, I'm doing daily 20% water changes. I have just purchased a testing kit and these are my results:

Ammonia - 0
Ph - 8.0
Nitrate - between 20-50 (colour was somewhere between the two readings)
Nitrite - 0.1 - 0.3 (again colour was somewhere between although a little closer to 0.1)

Could someone please tell me if this is ok? And if not what I should do to correct/help. Thanks.

I also bought Gilly some bogwood today with some plants growing on it, and also changed his airstone for a little 4cm bubble wand - which he seems to love, he keeps trying to eat the bubbles and then rides up on them.
 
C

cinnamon

Guest
Hey All! I've just bought my first two axolotl (leucistic (white with black eyes) 5months old) and they'll be coming to me on Tuesday. I have a 10 gallon tank that has been running for about two weeks with two feeder fish in it
*The tank was empty since Katrina and I set it up and threw the feeders to make sure things were good. They've been around for over a week now so everything seems to be working* I plan on buying a bigger tank soon and upgrading the filter but right now I have a 5-15 filter that pours like a waterfall. Big smooth rocks on the bottom and a curved piece of pvc pipe for a place to hide. I plan on buying a water tester tomorrow to make sure it's good before I actually put the little fellows in. I've done a lot of reading and I think so far that I'm doing everything alright. But what is this 'cycleing' the tank thing? Also, how does the salt bath thing work? Any information that you have would be greatly appreciated
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I am so excited but I want to make sure I do everything right
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Welcome to contact me though regular e-mail
nomoremind@hotmail.com
Cinnamon
 

kapo

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<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>Quoting Wendy on Saturday 21 October 2006 - 14:03 (#POST109204):</font>

Ammonia - 0
Ph - 8.0
Nitrate - between 20-50 (colour was somewhere between the two readings)
Nitrite - 0.1 - 0.3 (again colour was somewhere between although a little closer to 0.1) <!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

For a tank that's been only running a week, your nitrate has kicked in pretty fast, mine took about 3 weeks to start. You're not adding anything else to the water are you?

I know what you mean about the readings, I usually have to double and triple check with hubby esp. with the nitrate ones (colours are so close sometimes its hard to distinguish). Just test every couple of days b4 you do the waterchange. The main ones to worry about during cycling are the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate.

Cinnamon, the cycling thing is exactly what you're doing setting up the tank and letting it establish good bacteria.

Your tank won't be completely cycled by the time you get your axies - it can take from 4-8 weeks, but good that you're getting the test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. You can keep your axies in a rubbermaid tub (makeshift tank) of dechlorinated water (if you have cats cover it so they don't attack the axies), which you will need to change every day.

See this article, it should explain it better: http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cyclingEDK.shtml

Salt baths are used to treat infections, wounds, fungus (if an axie gets them). Hopefully you won't need to do that too soon.

Is your waterfall flow current very strong, just that axies don't like too much current/flow, it stresses them. Maybe stick something beneath it to adjust the flow.

Also, IMO I wouldn't keep the feeder fish in with the axies , unless you know who the breeder was, they may carry parasites or something that can be passed onto and make your axies ill.

Have you seen www.axolotl.org, it's a good source of axie info as well.
 
W

wendy

Guest
Kapo, I have been doing daily 20% water changes and adding 2 supplements -
- Nutrafin Biological Aquarium Supplement which rapidly matures new aquariums and filters
- Nutrafin Water Conditioner which improves tap water quality by removing chlorine and chloramine

Is this not right? Should I not be doing this every day? Should I re-test the readings?? Maybe I should retest again tomorrow before I have done the water change? HELP!! I dont want to be doing the wrong thing by Gilly.
 

kapo

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Ahh. Did u test b4 or after the waterchange? And how often do you add or does it say to use the biological bacteria supplement? Water conditioner is fine.


Wendy, stop using the bio supplement and just let your tank cycle.

(Message edited by kapo on October 22, 2006)
 
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wendy

Guest
I did the water change in the morning and the test in the evening.

I was told to use both on every water change, but have looked on the bio supplement and its says weekly. So I'll stop using that one - should I add it once a week still, or not at all?

Roughly how long do tanks take to cycle? And once it has should I then do the water change only once a week, using both the supplements again?

Thanks so much for your help.
 
C

cinnamon

Guest
So I got a 20 gallon tank and I have large rocks on the bottom. I have two places to hid and a thing under the filter waterfall to keep the current down. I have a temp gage to make sure it doesn't get too warm. I bought an ammonia test kit and a nitrate, nitrite, hardwater, ph. alkaline test strips.
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Now... While I wait for this tank to cycle I should keep them in a rubbermade? Why not the 10gallon empty tank? Just water and the axeies... Do I do 100% waterchanges everyday? How do I do that best to keep the stress down?
 

kapo

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Testing shud usually be done b4 the waterchange.

As you're cycling your tank you don't need that bio. supplement. Petshops love to sell you stuff that you can do without.

Once your tank is cycled and as long as you don't overfeed and keep up with regular tank maintenance, there is no need for that bio stuff at all. My sister was given something similar when she started her tanks and found her nitrate levels were always very high. Once she stopped using it her nitrates lowered and stayed about 20ppm. Also clean your filter by washing it in tankwater but not the same day you do a waterchange.

Tanks can take from 3-8weeks to cycle. I would stop the bio. supp. if i was you and let your tank cycle.

Once your tank is cycled then test your tank once a week, if the ammonia or nitrites rise then do your weekly waterchange (that's how we gauge when to do a waterchange. Always use the waterconditioner with the waterchanges; no need to use the biosupplement at all either now nor once your tank is cycled.

(3 of our filtered tanks get tested weekly so get weekly waterchanges, 2 are unfiltered get tested every 2 days and changed twice a week depending on the readings.)


<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>Quoting Cinnamon Pierce on Monday 23 October 2006 - 01:51 (#POST109337):</font>

While I wait for this tank to cycle I should keep them in a rubbermade? Why not the 10gallon empty tank? Just water and the axeies... Do I do 100% waterchanges everyday? How do I do that best to keep the stress down?<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

Cinnamon, we did 100% changes but we had two containers and just switched our axies from one to the next using a net. If you have a rubbermaid storage container or big bucket you could do the same between the 10gallon tank and storage container. My sister didn't like that method she only did 75% waterchanges on the "temporary tank" so she didn't need to move her axie like we did.
 
W

wendy

Guest
Thanks again for your help Kapo!

Can I ask you, we were told that Gilly was being fed on catfish pellets - 12% oil, 48% protein, 8% ash and 1.3% fibre, along with these I have been digging up a few earthworms that he loves - Is this ok? I also gave him some bloodworms (frozen in little blocks) which I put in a net and ran water over until they were de-frosted and then fed to him, but I have to say they go everywhere, I have read somewhere on here about candle holders to contain them, but dont understand, are these containers like oil burners? Thanks again.
 

kapo

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OK I've never fed bloodworm cubes, only cos our petshop doesn't stock them and I don't get into the town petshop much. But by candleholders I can only think they may mean the little glass ones you can get which you pop the round candles in, maybe from the Pound shop (I used to get them there when I lived in London). Other alternative is just a saucer/small bowl in your tank (as advised by people who do feed bloodworm cubes). You could forego the cubes and just continue with the earthworms (ours also love these!) and pellets as he seems to enjoy them. Earthworms are a great staple. Another quick way of getting worms especially when it's been raining, if you have garden furniture, bins or bricks or anything else sitting in your garden turn it up when it rains and pick out all the worms sitting on the dirt or bottom of container (they love the wet and saves you digging). Ours won't eat axolotl pellets (they smell horrendous!) so they just end up sitting in the tank.
 
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