Settling in or sick??

Sorry I know there are similar thread's i've read them ALL and none gave me the answers I needed.

Hi, I have two axolotls (one is perfectly fine) in small (40 x 30 cm) seperate tanks (was told they were fine now know they aren't hence the bigger tank) while I'm cycling a larger 3ft tank for them to live in. I just brought my second one yesterday and since I got him home he's been swimming straight up towards the lid of his tank with his head out of the water, he'll do this till he sort of..seems to run out of breathe and dives back under the water for air then does it again. When he's not doing this he'll float at the top with his back arched. I thought it could be him settling in but then when he wouldn't settle i got worried. I read all the threads and all the things it *could* be and panicked so he's in a nice container in clean (dechlorinated) water in the fridge which is about 10C constantly (used a thermometer to check this beforehand) i'm hoping if it's something wrong with the water tanking him out of the situation will help and if it's impaction which i imaged because of the arching that the time in the fridge will help. If none of these then it will at least hopefuly give me some sleep and stop me worrying.

I don't have a nirite or nitrate test kits as i live in a rural area i'm driving to a larger town next week to get some. I do however know that the temperature of the water is 20C has been for the last 8 hours and before that it was constant 18C and that ammonia is 0 and ph is 7.0.

I'm not sure what else to do...oh also he's eating fine...which is odd considering. Perhaps i'm over-reacting, i'm still new to this and tend to worry too much. Francis my other axolotl is fine. I didn't think to get photos before i put him in the fridge either which won't help anyone...sorry.

Sorry for the long over-dramatic post i'm just worried about my new baby he did not seem to be acting normal at all it was scary i thought he was going to suffocate. Any advice (such as 'calm down' haha) would be VERY welcome! Thanks in advance.

I would say its probably the water parameters.
But being in the fridge should calm him down and de stress him if it is just a case of stress.

Someone else with more knowledge should be on in a bit

Mel

First of all, breathe!

The symptoms you describe (floating, gulping) are consistent with water quality problems. However, as you just brought him home yesterday, this somewhat complicates diagnosing the problem since it is also possible that the conditions he was kept in before you brought him home weren't quite right.

Your ammonia, pH, and temp all sound good. How old is the tank/tank water that you had him in? The fact that he is eating is a great sign. You definitely did the right thing by putting your little one in the fridge. This will relax him and most likely help ameliorate the problem. It might be a good idea to keep him in the fridge for a while (with daily water changes) in order to keep a close eye on him.

How long until the larger tank is cycled? It is generally advised on this forum to quarantine new animals for 30 days before housing them with others in the same tank.

You're doing all the right things! My advise would be to keep doing what you're doing, find out those other water parameters, and breate until Rayson, Johnny, or the other experts come to the rescue. I'm sure your little fellow is going to be just fine!

Good luck and please keep us posted

Thank you both so much. It helps to have that bit of extra input :happy:. I tend to panick first and think later sometimes.

The smaller tank I put him in has been set up for two weeks and i've been doing small water changes daily. The tank he was in before I got him I hadn't thought of that, he's a little bit thin for my liking but seems healthy apart from that but he was in a tank the same size as mine except with two other axies and no hiding places though he seems reasonably calm. The larger tank has only been set up for a week so it's probebly got another three weeks left but i'll be more certain of that when i've got the nitrite and nitrate test kits.

He seems quite calm today in his little fridge container so I'll do what you said and keep him in there for a bit, i don't want to put him back in his tank till i'm sure that water is safe for him.

Thanks agian, i'll deffinatly keep you posted. :happy:

I thought Ferdinand was looking better when i changed his water yesterday (he's still in the fridge) he seems to have stopped arching his back. But I peeped in on him last night and he's still sticking his head out of the water. He's not thrashing i don't know if this is because he's in a tub with little water so he doesn't have to swim up out of it or because he's better... he is deffinatly still putting his head out of the water though because he put both his front feet on the side of the (glass) tub and put his head out of the water and just sat there for ages. It's bizare to watch an aquatic creature put it's head out of the water like that. His gills were out of the water as well i might add, his entire head and his mouth wasn't open it didn't look like gulping air. Have I just aquired a very strange axolotl? or is there something awfully wrong?

I've added a filter to his little tank (as they are small so i haven't used one) with an airation thing so that there's bubbles and oxygen incase that's the problem and he's got a pot in there so he can hide in or behind it if it stresses him. I haven't yet put him back in the tank though because i'm not certain of wether I should. As i said he doesn't seem sick at all, he's eating and although he's a little skinny... I don't know. I'm at a loss. My other axie is perfectly healthy and happy.

I wonder if this little chap is an axolotl? Are you able to post a photo ?

Yep, this is he. He looks the same as my other axolotl and I brought him from the same place. I talked to the lady I brought him from today and she just said "oh that batch were very active". But it's not him being active that worries me.

Also sorry, not a great photo, I don't own a camera so it's just taken from my phone.

Hi everyone thanks for the help, I think Ferdinand is settled in. He's back in his tank and eating well and not franticly tying to swim upward like before. He does get extemely active late at night (they are next to my bed so i can hear him swimming around) but doesn't put his head of the water and arch his back like he was doing. I set up the filter so that there are lots of air bubbles going into the water, I think this is what made him happy. :happy:

I got a little worried for a while there and stared at him and lots of pictures of other axolotls and i'm certain he is one thankfully haha. I'd have felt pretty dumb if he wasn't since he's my second axie haha. His eyes do pop out a little more then Francis's though which i find interesting but he has a lovely fin on his tail and lovely fluffy, healthy gills.

I'm still keeping a close eye on him (as i do with them both hehe) but I think he's fine.

Thanks again, having the extra input really helped me relax and breathe a bit haha. You guys are great

I'm glad to hear your little one is doing better. Sometimes the best remedy is a short vacation in the fridge and a little time to soothe the nerves :happy:

Good luck with your new friend :happy: