Question: Fungus or being bullied?

I have had my male Axie for between 1 and 2 years and for at least a year (maybe more), I have been struggling with gill issues. I have done several fungal treatment over the last year or so with no major changes. So, now I am thinking maybe my female is chewing on his gills? I moved him to a separate tank today to see if that helps, but I wanted to see what everyone else thought after seeing his gills.

Gill loss of this type is a sign of stress. It can be caused by bad water chemistry, high temperatures, too much current flow or illness.

Axolotls do not "chew".

What type of filtration are you using?

Is the tip of your sick axie's tail cupped?

What is your water temperature?

Do you have hard or soft water? Are you using a tap water treatment?

Have you tested your tank water for ammonia, nitrates, and nitrite recently?

What foods do you feed them?

It appears your tank does not have a place to hide in it, axies need places to hide in during the day.

Try to answer as many of these questions as possible and we can help diagnose the problem better.

In the larger tank I have been using a Whisper Internal Power Filter. In the tank I just moved him to I am using an Aqua-Tech Power Filter.

His tail is perfectly straight, not cupped.

Water temp is usually around 74 degrees F.

I think our water is soft. And yes, I am using a de-chlorinator or bottled spring water when I have it.

I have not tested my water.

I feed them goldfish and pinkie mice a couple times when my geckos didn't eat them.


I do not have a place for him to hide yet as I just moved him a few hours ago to his own tank. The other tank has hiding places though.

The other thing that confuses me is that my female seems to have no problems with her gills as you can see in the pic.

Goldfish and pinky mice look to be the issue. Mice are too high in fats, and goldfish carry disease and parasites. Try nightcrawlers. They are the best staple for an axolotl diet. Just like humans, some axies are more prone to illness than others.


I highly suggest some water testing as this is a very common factor in axolotl illness.

A lower water temperature will promote healing. 75F is not bad, but it is on the higher side of tolerance.

Hi Abberzoo,

I suspect water parameters being the main culprit here. I look at the photos you provided and can make out what seem like a layer of smooth rocks and pebbles as substrate in the background. Often such substrate lead to poor or fluctuating water quality issues as they can easily trap and accumulate waste.

1 - Test your water for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, pH. You can bring a sample of your tank water to the aquarium shop to have them tested. Otherwise, its always a good idea to invest in a good colourimetric solution type test kit.

2 - Perform regular 20% water changes with clean dechlorinated water. Tap water is fine as long as you use a dechlorinator. There really is no necessity to specially get bottled water. I doubt you have soft water unless you are using distilled water.

3 - Siphon or use a turkey baster to remove visible wastes at the bottom of the tank.

You want to aim for 0 Ammonia and nitrites and <60 nitrates. pH should ideally be around 7 but is not as critical. A range of 6.5-8 is fine.

Nutrition is important as well. The best food source are still earthworms, although bloodworms, blackworms and axie pellets are excellent staples as well. I would advise against feeding mice and goldfish. If you are keen on using feeder fish, they best types are guppies and minnows. Even so, they are to be fed very sparingly as an occasional treat.

Cheers.

Abberzoo said:

I have had my male Axie for between 1 and 2 years and for at least a year (maybe more), I have been struggling with gill issues. I have done several fungal treatment over the last year or so with no major changes.

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Hi Abberzoo,

Could you clarify on what you mean by 'several fungal treatment'? Medication designed to treat fungal infections in fish, is usually highly toxic to axolotls (particuarly if the medication contains any malachite green).

I had no idea that earthworms were the preferred food source!
The small rocks are in the tank I just moved him to, the substrate in his usual tank is sand.
I've probably done between 3 and 6 three day fungal treatments over the past year.
I will take a water sample into the pet store today to get it tested and possibly buy my own test kit so that I can keep a close eye on the levels.
I am also going to go buy more sand, a clay flower pot for a hiding spot, and some nightcrawlers!
Are redworms ok?
Last time I tried to feed him earthworms, they were too big for him.

What did his gills look like when you first got him?
I've tried red worms before but my axies didn't like them ,becuase the secrete a foul tasting ooze out of them . Try the regular big earthworms, if they are to large cut them smaller.

His gills were beautiful when I first got him.
Well, I had my water tested and my Nitrite is at 1.0 (I have no idea what Nitrite is) and my water is hard.
Any suggestions on how to fix this?

Hi Abberzoo,

I think this thread has some relevance to your other thread of ill axies. Nitrite levels of 1.0 is high. Ammonia and nitrites should be 0 in a well maintained, cycled tank. Nitrite toxicity and chemical insult can occur. Hard water is fine.

I recommend you fridge your axie individually in containers for the time being and perform daily water changes with clean dechlorinated 'fridged' water. Meanwhile, perform 20% water change on your main tank. Siphon up any visible detritus and check your filter. Perform another water chemistry test. Record down the changes so you can work out the best routine for you to keep the ammonia, nitrite levels at 0 and nitrates at <60.

Cheers.