Illness/Sickness: New Axolotl- floating, not eating.

I got an axolotl yesterday. It floats around a lot. It varies. But it seems to spend a lot of time around the surface. I imagine it went through a LOT of stress throughout being transferred to the tank that it's in now. It took about an hour to get the tank set up appropriately before it could be let out of its bag. It was sat in the water in its bag so it could adjust to the temperature etc. Y'know, all that stuff you do when you get a new fish/aquatic creature.

I bought a pH indicator (the one with the drops, not the filter paper) earlier today. The water is neutral. I don't have a chemical test kit yet. It just doesn't seem to be doing too well. It's missing two gills on its left side. It was like that when I bought it, but I hadn't realized until I got it home.

It wasn't eating at all yesterday (it's been in the tank for about 24 as of 1 hour ago). Then earlier today after doing a bit of a water change, it seemed to be going for its food more. But it isn't swallowing it. It just spits it out again. I'm very concerned about it.

At first introduction, it spent a lot of time in one corner of the tank. It's now happy enough to roam around. I made a small cave-like hideout for it from large liverocks, which it seems to like. I know it's unnatural for them to float around the surface like it's doing. It seemed to be fine at the pet store. So it's more than likely something to do with the water condition or stress. Any help is greatly appreciated.

To be honest, it's looking bleak. I haven't gone as far as to name it yet, because I realistically don't expect that it's going to get better. If it does, it'll be a miracle.

Thanks!

The move wouldn't be stressful enough to put your axie off food, I have received them shipped which they spent about 14 hrs in a bag. I would say you need to test your water parameters, and temp? as this is the most likely stress indicator. What are you trying to feed it?

It's on a diet of sinking food pellets, which is what it was being fed at the pet store. The temperature is around 20-21ºC. Should I put an ice bottle or two in the tank?
I've stopped any water changing, feeding attempts etc. until I get help. I'm worried about making things worse.

Thanks.

Hi,

Try to get your temp down a bit or you could fridge your axolotl.

Here is a guide on how to fridge him this should stop the stress and if he has illness help him recover or slow the spread of it.

Make sure your fridge isnt too cold though.

Axolotl Sanctuary

I would fridge your axolotl until you get a test kit to test your water paramaters and the temperature is a bit worrying for me.

I'm worried about the temperature too. To keep the temperature down, are ice bottles the only option? Or are there water coolers? For the time being I've got ice bottles in the tank and am making sure that there's not too long of an interval between bottles to avoid temperature shock.
I'll look into fridging him/her as soon as I can.

When introducing it back into the tank, will the water need to be the same temperature as it was in the fridge? Because I imagine that will be hard to maintain.

It's not floating quite as much. It's still not exactly healthy, but it's doing better by observation. It's staying toward the bottom more. I'm really worried about it. I'm aware that if you don't have the means to look after something like an axolotl, you shouldn't have one. But this is a rare situation for me.

Edit: I've taken the live rock out of the tank... because it has a really pungent smell about it. Like when you find a dead starfish on the beach. I just have a feeling that it's probably not improving anything. It might even be releasing bacteria or something into the water. What are your thoughts? You might have to actually see/smell it to really understand where I'm coming from with this.

Also, I want to change the crushed coral/sand for black gravel.
What's your suggestion on how to do it?
It's my opinion that the crushed coral would be better suited to marine fish/salt water loving creatures.

I'm desperate to make it a clean fresh healthy environment.
Maybe larger pebbles (bigger than it can swallow) would be better? Though harder to clean.

Hi,

Remove the crushed coral sand asap it can make the water unsuitable for axolotls.
To remove it I would just get a siphoning tube and get a bag with some holes in and suck the sand out.

You should be left with enough water so you can top back up again so it will be like doing a water change basically then you can go bare bottom for a while if you want. Bare bottom is very easy to clean but doesn't look as good but it will make the water paramaters better until you can get it all sorted.

I use fake sand I bought from my local fish store but I made sure there is nothing added and its not crushed coral.

For a permanent temp solution here are a few .

I wouldn't put live rock in the tank either, My tank consists of fake sand, plastic plants, java moss, fake hollow log and half a coconut shell with a hole in for the axolotls to go in
(The moss is on top the coconut)

None of these foul the tank I just occasionally have to trim the moss and net the spores its producing constantly.

What filter do you have? It may not be good enough for your tank size.

When you re-introduce your axolotl get the tub from the fridge and put it in a room somewhere but make sure it doesn't jump out and the temp should slowly rise to the temp of the tank then simply put said axolotl and the water he is in back into the tank.

I've been keeping an eye on it constantly since I got it. It's doing a lot better now. It's been on the bottom a lot more and swimming healthily. I honestly thought I was going to wake up this morning to find it dead. Oh, and its also been eating. It still sometimes spits the food back out, but it keeps it in its mouth longer.
It takes the food into its mouth, looks like it's trying to swallow it for a few seconds, then spits it out.

I'll go bare bottom for a while and maybe add some other substrate later. The gravel that I bought is similar to this -

Will that be safe? Or do I need to find something else? I'm more than happy to take the time to clean the substrate and everything, if that's the issue.

My axolotl is about 15cm long and the tank is 610mm x 305mm x 380mm. They said there should be enough room for it to grow up to 30cm. The water level is about 3-4cm above its body length.

I temporarily don't have a filter. I didn't have the extra money at the time. So I'm doing regular water changes and picking up any excess food myself. The guy at the pet store said it wouldn't need a filter- they weren't using one. This was before I'd checked all the info on the internet.

Also, I'm waterlogging some wood to put in the tank. Should I stick to plastic decor?

Thanks heaps for your help by the way. I really appreciate it.

Hiya
I think that gravel could cause an impaction risk how big is each pebble.
Childs play sand is a perfect substrate or a bare bottomed tank.
How big is your Axolotl?
Have you tried feeding it some live food? earthworms, Bloodworms, blackworms?
They like wriggly things.
If you cant get the water below 20 i would say fridge it. Do you know what substrate it was kept on in the pet shop? If it was kept on unsuitable gravel there it could have swallowed some. Being in the fridge could help it pass anything its swallowed.

Mel

Bare-bottom tank at the pet store. There wasn't anything in there other than some floating water weeds.

The pebbles are about the size that you can see in the image above. It's pretty much to scale. They might even be smaller than that.
I thought they would only have risk of impaction if they suck the pebbles in when you feed it? But so far bare-bottom is looking to be the best option. I'll have a look at getting some plain sand.

My aim is to get the tank to be similar to what they would have in their natural habitat. I didn't really want any plastic in the tank. I was hoping to have it "au naturel". But for now I just want it to be a happy healthy axolotl.

I'm about to take it out of the tank so I can remove the coral. And any other debris in the tank.

- p.s. it's about 15cm from tip to tail.

Axolotls tend to suck anything up, sand would just pass thru but those pebbles could cause a problem. I would 100 per cent say no. Bare bottom would be fine. Childrens play sand is cheap and an alternitive. Some people on the forum have used slate tiles and attached them to the bottom of the tank it looks really good and is easy to clean. Do a search to see. How wide is your axolotls tummy is it the same width as his head or a lot less. If he's lookin skinny, floating and still not eating i would definately fridge him for a week or so. It will de- stress him, keep him cool, and slow down his metabolism. Mel

: D I've taken all the crappy crushed coral out, and it's now got a bare bottom. There's a tiny bit of dust-like stuff in the bottom of the tank because it wouldn't come out, but it shouldn't cause any problems. The water temperature is down. And he/she seems to be way happier. Its tummy is fairly normal sized (y'know, doesn't look bloated, but doesn't look skinny). There's a rock for it to hide in, and a plastic plant. Nothing else is in the tank for the time being. Slate tiles on the bottom sounds good. I'll see if I can do that.

I did a 40% water change too (with dechlorinizer) and now the water looks a lot clearer and fresher. It isn't floating around anywhere near as much, but it still keeps making its way up there for a few minutes before swimming back down. Is that normal? It doesn't look like it's doing it in a sickly way anymore.

Thanks everyone for your help. It's my first axolotl, and I had no idea what to do.
I'm a vegan and I'm really obsessive about looking after animals and stuff. But not so much that I'd "love it to death". It might not have made it through the weekend without your help.

Hi,

Its not a case of if the axolotl gets an impaction its a case of when because the axolotl will forage i often see mine with their face in the sand digging around then they suck a bit in then spit it out again but the gravel will get stuck and your axolotl wont be able to spit it out again then you will get impaction.

As Mel said play sand is a good alternative.

For my 3 foot tank my sand was £15 or 30 bucks because it isn't the cheap stuff it looks beautiful though.

I will put a pic so you can see the sort of scale stuff your looking for. In proportion to your axie.

I would consider feeding your axie earthworms as'well because this will make him/her happier and more entertained at feeding times because they don't just swallow it there's sort of a fight involved where the axie slurps the worm in like a noodle

I like the colour of your axolotl. : D

I'll have a look for some finer sand stuff to put in it. Or some slate tiles.

Is it okay to put wood in the tank? After its been treated and all that. Or should I get plastic/fake wood instead?

Also, what kind of lighting? I saw that it said they don't like bright lights because they don't have any eyelids and everything, but some of the tank setups look like they're using daylight and brighter lights. At the moment I'm avoiding directing any bright lights at it. And the room that it's kept in is generally dark.

Do they prefer the dark?

Thanks again!

Axolotls dont like light. But if you have plenty of hides and you need the lights on for plants then its fine. Just be aware when you turn the light on they sometimes get startled. My wild hit the lid of my tank the other day and i actually got splashed with water! Just because i turned the light on! When you say treated wood what do you mean. I have some bogwood in my tank and i'm gonna get a bit more. Usually things will just need boiling and/or soaking. Mel

Treated as in boiled, soaked etc. to get all the tannins and stuff out of it. Not like treated pine or anything like that. : D

At the moment I have some wood soaking in hot water in the bath tub. Should you keep boiling/soaking it until it doesn't seem to be releasing any dirt and things into the water? The wood's been soaking since yesterday, though I read that it sometimes takes a week to a month. Or maybe a few months depending on the wood. I also want to get some plain garden rocks from the plant nursery tomorrow to boil and put in the tank. Would they be okay?

Hi,

As long as you have lots of hidey holes and places in the shade like caves a light should be fine because if it annoys them they will go into their caves.

My axolotls just sit around looking for food or playing with eachother when the light is off but if i turn it on then come over to the glass to say hello and interact with me.

I have no experience with real wood in my axolotl tank only with my crayfish and there isnt much left because he sharpens his claws on it and pulls bits off when he is bored... His water paramaters are fine but i have never kept axolotls with real wood.

I will post a pic of the wood i have in my axolotl tank. It looks good and is a decent size + the axolotls cannot hurt themselves on it because the inside is rubber so they can bump their big ol heads around in their and it wont hurt

I have a bit of granite aswell that they sit on top. 2 of my 4 artificial plants float so they can climb up

Ohh, I like your tank setup. : D

I hadn't thought about them hurting themselves on it. This is why I have to ask first. xD Because I don't think of obvious things at the time.

The wood I was going to put in was so it could sit on it and just chill. And to add to the natural look. I'll have a look around for some realistic looking fake-wood though. I like the whole arch thing you've got.

This is the progress of my tank so far (since Fri). In the thumbnails.

Hiya,

Its only 1:15 pm here

You can get some granite perhaps like i have done with my crawfish so he can crawl out the water if he likes to. You would have to get the sharp edges off like i have with the bit in my axolotl tank though so they don't get cut or caught on them.

In my local pet shops there are plenty of nice fake wood and rock.

You could put plants in for your axies mine seem to like climbing on them. Mine even crawl up the old heater that isn't plugged in anymore