not so healthy looking axy

hello,

I have a few questions about my axy i would really appreciate some help!?

first axy- My male axy 1 1/2 yrs old has silver colouring on his skin which has increased in the last few months. Is this a sign of something going wrong (or just the way he is developing?) Also whats that bump on his mouth? is that normal? and the size of his toes are oddly small? pictures attached

Also his gills are small, fragile and dark in colour -which i think it may be because of water conditions in the past-(is it at all some type of fungus?) salt bath ??

I should mention. Three days ago I bought a new 4foot tank which is having to go throught its cycle with my axies in it. my reading today was as followed

Ammonia .10ppm -CRITICAL!!-i am changing 20percent now and buying some stuff for the water tomorrow..
Nitrate 2ppm - how can i get my levels up, should I?
Nitrite 0ppm
pH 6.4 - will add air stones

i will post new reading in 24hrs

second axie - my new girl axie (that came with the new tank) seems stressed and the ends of her gills are curving. i assume its beacause of the new boyfriend and home.. and ammonia. the good news is that she is responsive and eating.



Any advise would be great! thanks in advance. xime

The silver colouring is probably just markings. My youngest has silver flecks throughout her body. That bump I dont know, could be an old injury or maybe just a quirk of nature( keep an eye on it). His toes might have been bitten off at some point and never fully grew back or again its just him. I don't think its anything to worry about.
I'm assuming you didnt quarantine the new axolotl which you really should have done, but now you have introduced them its too late. Regular daily 20% water changes should bring the ammonia levels down, you need to keep this up until the ammonia is 0. The gravel may be another cause for concern, so while your sorting everything else out you may want to remove that too. It can cause blockage in the intestines if they swallow it.
I wouldnt buy any stuff to add to the water except dechlorinator. Axolotls are very sensitive to chemicals added to their water. I would imagine they both look stressed because of all the recent changes to their enviroment and the ammonia levels.

Great! Thanks for your response.
Phew so the silver is normal!! And the toes I was told at the aquarium that he was attacked by other males and it would grow back he never mentioned his toes?! I thought it was because he was young.
i just made the water change i will post new reading tomorrow.
No quarantine was made and will not do these drastic changes again.
dechlorinator was definitely used. I will not buy any other chemicals. Except some air stones.

Thanks again!!

Hi,
i agree with Becky, please remove the gravel apart from ingestion it is also a lot harder to keep clean of waste which will just continue to contaminate the water. Also i would make sure they have plenty of hidey holes and plants so as they can avoid each other if necessary.
What sort of filter are you using if any? If possible deflect any water flow against the side of the tank.
If you have plants there really is no need for airstones, these will only cause disturbance in the water, and as axies like their enviroment to be as still as possible could possibly stress them.

Hi Frances D,
I am using a Marineland Penquin 110 Biowheel filter.
I will remove the stones, they have two seperate fake logs to hide and some bushy plants. Aswell as black paper on the sides the tank.
What can you tell me about using sand?

Thanks for your reply.

Hi Xime,

Childrens play sand or aquarium sand for fresh water aquariums (ie. Sand without salt) are suitable sand substrates.

Dont buy aquarium marine sand (this is for salt water aquariums) or use sand from the beach as they have high concentration salt in them.

The sand will need to be cleaned thoroughly before adding to the tank. Even at it's cleanest (i.e. an eternity of rinses ) it will in all likliehood still cloud up the tank - this should settle and clear in a few days - may take shorter or longer (depending on strength of filter).

I strongly advise NOT TO use any chemical water clarity agents sold at aquariums to clear it.

If your axies are stressed and you need to monitor face lump and no toes closely, I would perhaps wait before adding the sand...Axies are happy on a bare bottom floor. This would allow you time to sort out the chemical balances in your tank as well....just a suggestion.

Cheers J.

Hi,
ihave a combination in my tanks, two have sand one doesnt, to be honest the easiest to keep clean is the bare bottom.
I would definately pop in a hidey hole or two more, in a tank that size they would stil have plenty of room.
I have play sand which took alot of rinsing but is definately pleasing on the eye, a few strategically placed large pebbles helps break it up.

Thanks for all the help given to me.
Apologies for the late update. My water levels are healthy and advice on the tank set up followed. No chemicals were added only water changes done as suggested.

My two axies seem very happy in there new home. I have just spotted them resting on the bushy tank plant together.

I did have another question about Jacq comment: Why monitor face bumps and toes exactly? is this a sign of stress? they seem ok.

thanks again!

xime said:

I did have another question about Jacq comment: Why monitor face bumps and toes exactly? is this a sign of stress? they seem ok.

thanks again!

Click to expand...

Hi Xime,

No it's not a sign of stress. Stress though can exasserbate eek: Argh, I hate that word - can never spell it correctly) problems in new and old injuries and abnormalities by causing fungal growth and infections.

In combination with the water balance problems you were having, you also mentioned your axie had lost his toes due to fights with other male axies at the aquarium and you had commented on your concern for the strange bump on his mouth.

My comments were in relation to making another big change to the axies environment (ie. adding sand as well as sorting your water imbalances) which could have stressed the axies further. Stress causes fungus and fungus loves attacking vulnerable spots such as injuries.

My apologies, but I did misread you on the toes, I thought it was an open injury at the time and would thus need close monitoring for fungus and infection. But looking back I see you said toes were just 'oddly small'.

I think any strange bumps and abnormalities should have an eye kept on them however.

I am delighted they are happy in their new home Any chance of a picture of your set up?

Cheers Jacq.

Hi again,
glad to hear everything is going well, and long may it continue to do so.
Just one thing, dont forget to do regular water test, especially important in hot weather as heat and ammonia spikes can be fatal.