Please Help? Not sure what's wrong.

Right, so I'm not sure what's wrong with my new axie - Toothless. I'll try to give as much info as possible to help you guys help me - but my knowledge is limited as he's my first axie, and I've not got that much of a clue about his history.

We kinda adopted him as my step-dad was moving some people, and they were going to throw him out. So we rescued him. All we know is that for the past 2 years or so he's been kept in the tank we got him in (60x20x15cm - 18ltr). That was just under 2 weeks ago. Before that, they told us that he'd belonged to another family member who decided they didn't want him either and left it with them. We had to give his tank a really good clean after we got him, there were old foot pellets mixed into his gravel and the water was very murky.

So I have no idea how old he actually is, he's about 19cm long, but his external gills look nothing like they do in photos of healthy axies (I'll attach pics).

Other than his external gills looking very underdeveloped, he's been mostly fine till today. He's been really sluggish and won't eat.

He only way he'll eat is if we drop the pellets we were given right in front of his face for him to suck up. (We have the Aquarium Science Axolotl Pellets). We've been monitoring how much he eats for the past 4-5 days now, and he usually eats between 5-10 pellets a day. He won't swim around to grab them, usually just stays where he is and does his thing.

He occasionally swims up to the surface of the water to gulp for air it seems (I usually spot him doing this at least once or twice a day), and he's been doing it a lot more than usual today. He usually has a good swim about too, but like I said above, he's been really sluggish and won't even move much when I give him a little stroke. He doesn't even react when I dip my fingers into the water (he'll usually look up and even come over and give me a feel and a sniff).

I'm just really worried because I'm still not sure what's right/normal for him, and I just want him to be happy and healthy because it sounds like he's not been treated very well in the past, and I've completely fallen in love with him.

If there is anything you might need to know that might help - let me know and I'll answer as quickly as possible. I just hope there is something I can do for him.

Thanks very much and sorry for the wall of text.

congrats on giving him a nice loving home....well done.

They are very lazy animals. They just sit and look, thats them and every now and then they go for a swim around the tank.
Im guessing his water parameters where all wrong that is why he has lost his gills. With good, clean, cool water they should grow back in no time.
Pellets are good, they have all the stuff they need but nothing beats a nice wiggly earthworm. You could also try bloodworm(mine love them).
Please make sure you dont have him on gravel(they tend to eat it). The water temp shouldnt be a problem at the moment because it is winter here but you should think about how you are going to keep your little buddy cool in summer.....
Try not to touch him too much because it upsets their slimecoat and allow fungus to take hold. Keep the light off(if you have one) because they dont have eyelids and the light can annoy them. If you have a light on the tank put in a couple things for him to hid(I have a garden pot cut in half) in if he wants.
Welcome to the forum and can you repost the pictures(I couldnt see them). we love pictures.
Sorry I got carried away writing
Lea

Unfortunately I can't view your pictures.

Do you still keep him on gravel ? If so, I would remove it as soon as possible. When an axolotl eats, it gulps in the food ...plus the gravel. This can lead to their tummy being filled with gravel and eventually this will cause a blockage.

As you have had to give his tank a good clean, you will need to keep a really close eye on the ammonia, nitrate and nitrite readings while your tank cycles.

Have a look through this link.
Axolotls - Housing in Captivity

Thanks for the responses so far. I'm really having trouble with his housing at the moment - sadly I've not got a lot of money, but I really do want to replace the gravel he's on with sand. I've not spotted him swallow any gravel - but that's not to say he hasn't done so before I got him.

I've had a friend suggest to cool the water some as it feels really warm today - and also bringing down the water level so he can reach the bottom of the tank as he's floating quite badly.

Here are the pics again. They were taken before today - just to demonstrate how tiny his gills are.

axis can and will live happily with no substrate.

most keepers prefer it as it's easy to clean. I would recommend removing that gravel asap.

His gills look ok but could be better.
What filtration do you have for him if any?
do you know what the water chemistry is and if not can you find out?

if you have any questions feel free to ask.
Sam

His gills look shorter then some, but I wouldn't worry, you see quite a variety in gill length on here. As you get his conditions just right they might grow or get fluffier, they might not.

Either way he's seriously cute! Love that smile ^_^

Re: gravel, take it out and leave the bottom bare for the time being until you are ready to get sand. I didn't think mine had eaten any gravel in the week before I changed to sand, but they were pooping it out for months.

He could very well be floating because he has gravel trying to work itself through. If this persists, you might need to send him on a holiday into the fridge - it helps relax them and pass gravel.

re: temperature, how warm is the water? You do need to keep him cool, but it needs to be in a sustainable way, swapping warm for colder water could shock your axolotl and stress him out.

Can you post some pics of your whole set up for us?


He could

Ok, I'll get the gravel taken out for good tomorrow - like I've said I'd rather not stress him out any more tonight.

As for filtration, we're using the filter that came with him, it's a QD-1900F

As of yet, I've not got any water testing kits. I know where to get them, but I literally have no money right now. (I know that sounds like a terrible excuse - but I'm currently unemployed and living with my Mum right now).

Here's his set-up right now, when we got him it was literally just him, the goldfish gravel, the filter/pump and the tank. I know it's really basic - but again, I'm broke I have taken out about half of that water now, as he seems to be really panicked about not being able to stay on the bottom of the tank.
From left to right there's the filter, a bottle of frozen water to try to cool the tank, his hidey-tube (was a farmers union bottle - sans ends) some Dragon Flame and Toothless - looking very sorry for himself :c

hes very cute! i hope he does okay.

Until you can get the test kits, take a sample of the water to your local fish shop/ aquarium. They can test it for you.
I suspect a combination of gravel and possible warm water are causing the floating. Do you have a cooler room in your house that he can move into?

bellabelloo said:

Until you can get the test kits, take a sample of the water to your local fish shop/ aquarium. They can test it for you.
I suspect a combination of gravel and possible warm water are causing the floating. Do you have a cooler room in your house that he can move into?

Click to expand...

Thanks for the suggestion - I don't know why it didn't cross my mind to take a sample to an aquarium! (I did some work experience in one! I'm just in worrying mother mode - forgetting all rationality). I think my room might be a bit cooler for him - I'll see how he is tomorrow and if he's chilled out a bit I'll get him moved while I'm emptying out the gravel.

I've seen this suggested on a few other threads - do you think it'd be worth popping him in the fridge while I get his tank sorted??

Thanks again for all your help so far guys!

If it is warm at the moment it might be worth doing so while you are getting the tank set up and ready. If it helps at all, my guys are very good at getting me fretting on their health and well being

My axies worry me more than my kids do.......I think the axies do on purpose
If you decide to put toothless in the fridge make sure you do 100% daily water changes with water the same temp. I put a extra bottle of treated water next to the axie in the fridge just for water changes. Toothless probably wont eat while he is on holidays so dont stress and he will most likely poop and make a big mess of his water.

Your axolotl looks fine. He doesn't look sick at all. If he won't eat the pellets try blood worms or earth worms. Just make sure to clean up the mess. Yesterday I moved my axie into a container and tried to feed him some pellets and he REFUSED, which he never does! Then, I fed him some worms and he just gobbled them up. I think they definitely need a variation in diet because they can be very picky eaters. Just keep up the good work!

Also, take out that gravel if you haven't done so already!!

Thanks again for all your help - just a little update.

Toothless seems a lot better now. He's had a bit to eat, but still seems a little slow. He's reacting when I pop my fingers into the tank, comes over to check me out and stuff. Still a little floaty (looks like his head is more buoyant, or he's got a sinky bum) - but he looks like he's managing to reach the bottom on the tank now. However - it looks like someone's topped up his water levels and I have no idea where they've put the frozen water bottle - to my annoyance.

I will give him another day - as unfortunately my step-dad is home today - and even though Toothless is my pet he thinks he knows what's best for him (though I'm the one seeking help and advice from people that have kept axies before!). So rather than argue with him - I'll give Toothless another day of rest and then make the big house move/renovation!

Thanks again for all your help :happy:

You're doing well so far and everyone else seems to have covered everything else so I will point out the obvious issue that seems to have been missed a bit

Your tank WILL be cycling (there are heaps of threads here on the subject) which can take a couple of months to complete and in the absence of the test kit, far to costly for what they are I totally understand that , and the ability to monitor toothless' water closely daily to know when the levels of ammonia and nitrite are getting too high you'll need to be doing daily 20% water changes. I suspect whoever topped up his water actually did you and toothless a favor as they in affect did a water change and diluted some of the ammonia that will be building up in your tank making the water more inhabitable and toothless more comfortable so don't come down on them too hard for losing the bottle on you Animals who are in too much ammonia will usually hang out near the surface and often go off their food and go downhill quickly if the water is not fixed up.

I know you want him to be able to reach the bottom but you will probably find the floating will be greatly reduced once the ammonia is reduced. It's much easier to keep the levels more stable in more water so I'd top up the tank to give yourself and toothless more of a buffer. If the tank has a cover you can fill it right up but if it doesn't then remember to keep it about an inch below the top as these guys have been known to jump on occasion.

Ammonia also causes gill shrinkage in my axies so it won't be helping toothless' either I suspect.

Given he has been on gravel for a long time I would still put him in the fridge for a couple of days to help the little guy pass some of what he's swallowed and while you're cleaning out that gravel and moving the tank is the perfect time for his holiday

Good luck, we're all rooting for toothless to make a full recovery :happy: please keep us updated on how he's going.

Mere.

Just thought I'd post one last update on Toothless's condition.

I popped him in the fridge yesterday, threw out the gravel and refilled his tank, so all is well there. I was planning to keep him in the fridge for 2-3 days - but this morning I awoke to find Toothless back in his tank!
I'm guessing either my Mum or step-dad put him back, all day yesterday they poo-pooed the idea of keeping him the fridge - my step-dad more concerned with him 'contaminating' our food.
Thankfully, Toothless does seem to be back to his usual self! Though he's got a bit of a dog-trying-to-walk-on-lino thing going on, but is otherwise fine

Thank you so much for all your help - and really sorry that my parents were so skeptical of your advice

I know how you feel with regards to parents! My mum worries about everything! She'd feed them every five minutes too if she had the chance. She hates the thought of fridging them and worries they'd freeze to death. No logic in that silly head of hers

Glad they're okay though!