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Question: Short gills only on one side

Mortimer

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Hello! I bought my first axolotl about two months ago. He is approximately 6 months old. (I am calling him a male at this point, but I'm not sure about his sex. Hopefully, I hope he will be happy with the name Mortimer if he turns out to be a she!) Anyway, when I bought him, the gills on his left side were significantly shorter than those on the right. The person that I bought him from said that he had recently been in a fight with another axolotl, and the two had just been separated. I assumed that his gills had been eaten/damaged and that they would regenerate. But...this was two months ago, and his gills haven't changed a bit. I'm fine if he happens to just be lopsided, but I was just wondering approximately how long it typically takes axolotls to regenerate gills? Or if maybe if this is just the way he developed?

Another question....my understanding is that axolotls' gills are red when they are fully oxygenated. Mortimer's gills have been black (or dark) since I bought him, EXCEPT for one morning following a water change...they were bright red. They haven't been red since. Is this significant? Others have told me that some axolotls never have red gills....but I'm not sure if that's accurate.

Thank you for any information you can provide!!!

Sharon

One other thing--as you can see in the picture I've posted, Mortimer's mouth is sometimes partially open. It has seemed to be less so recently, but I still see it this way at times. I have read that this could be a sign of malnourishment. I feed him a combination of black worms and frozen jumbo mysis shrimp (just started the shrimp today), and he always seems to have a healthy appetite. Maybe I am just worrying for no reason, but I'd like to make sure that he's okay.
 

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FX1C

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He's a very cute axie :)

The gills will regenerate over time - what type of filter is in your tank? If its a high flow filter that causes water movement the gills won't be as long and fluffy as if its in a tank with just a sponge filter...

As for diet bloodworms are not a good stable for a growing axie - live earthworms are a balanced diet & should be the main thing fed - bloodworms & shrimp are only a treat item... Try getting some fat juicy earthworms & see the difference they can make :D



<3 >o_o< <3
 

DeCypher

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The gills are fine, they'll grow back. As for their colour, it's normal for it to fluctuate. Sometimes they're red, others purple, sometimes black. It's because of blood flow.
The mouth-open thing is normal, axies always do that.
Your axie looks very nice! As said by Nikki, earthworms [or trout pellets] are the best staples. Bloodworms are not...they lack a lot of important nutrients, such as calcium.
 

Mortimer

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The gills are fine, they'll grow back. As for their colour, it's normal for it to fluctuate. Sometimes they're red, others purple, sometimes black. It's because of blood flow.
The mouth-open thing is normal, axies always do that.
Your axie looks very nice! As said by Nikki, earthworms [or trout pellets] are the best staples. Bloodworms are not...they lack a lot of important nutrients, such as calcium.
Thank you!!! Very good to hear about the open-mouth thing and the gills. I am actually feeding him live black worms (not bloodworms). I've read that these are excellent in terms of nutritional value and good for young axolotls. Was I misinformed about this???
 

Mortimer

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He's a very cute axie :)

The gills will regenerate over time - what type of filter is in your tank? If its a high flow filter that causes water movement the gills won't be as long and fluffy as if its in a tank with just a sponge filter...

As for diet bloodworms are not a good stable for a growing axie - live earthworms are a balanced diet & should be the main thing fed - bloodworms & shrimp are only a treat item... Try getting some fat juicy earthworms & see the difference they can make :D



<3 >o_o< <3
Thank you!!! I have an outside filter that is set at the lowest setting. Do you think that could be bad for him? He seems to be doing well, but I'm new to this....so I'll switch to a sponge filter if that's better. Also, I've actually been feeding him black worms (not bloodworms). I've read that these are excellent in terms of nutritional value and good (in terms of size) for young axolotls. I hope I haven't been feeding him the wrong food...
 

xxianxx

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If the gills are short / missing due to a genetic deformity they wont grow, if they are just damaged they probably will.
 
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