Skinny axolotl with no gills visible

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Axolotlet

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Hi, I just got my axolotl back from a friend who'd been taking care of him.
He's much skinner than he was when I dropped him off two months ago, and his fluffy gills aren't visible. I just moved him back into his tank at my house about 12 hours ago (he'd been in a smaller tank at my friend's for two months. The tank was visibly clean until you shook it, and then you could see all the dirt and uneaten food). The tank had all new clean water in it and I used the same filter from his temporary tank, as well as some decorations from his temporary tank.
Is he okay?
 

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Wow, looks like your friend didn't bother with water changes, or feeding much for that matter.
Sorry to see that your axxie wasn't in as good of hands as you thought.

I'm sure with pristine water conditions, and some nutritious food, your axxie will make a smooth recovery, but it's possible that his gill frillys won't grow back to normal size.
 
Is it okay that I put him in 100% new water? I put in the old filter but I'm worried...
He has food but isn't eating much
 
Axolotlet said:
Is it okay that I put him in 100% new water? I put in the old filter but I'm worried...
He has food but isn't eating much
Click to expand...

The good bacteria live in the filter and on all the surfaces, not in the water, so a 100% water change is fine (as long as there will still be ammonia for the cycle or a living animal in the tank to produce wastes).
But keep testing the water every day to be sure the cycle starts working like it should and the water stays perfect.

I think small portions very often would be a good way to go with the food. Obviously he wasn't fed much during that time so you don't want to upset his stomach by making him eat too much at once. Once he starts getting better he'll probably start eating bigger portions again.
 
Does anyone know why his feathery gills are gone?
Thank you so much for all the responses!
 
Axolotlet said:
Does anyone know why his feathery gills are gone?
Thank you so much for all the responses!
Click to expand...

Probably because he wasn't in clean, cycled water.

The water parameters were probably not ideal.
 
I think your axie lost his feathery gills because of high levels of ammonia, due to not doing water changes and not having a cycled tank.

Not to long ago, ALL of a sudden my tap water became unusable for my axolotl. So when I did a 90% water change with my tap, the ammonia levels were outrageous and he lost his feathery gills within hours. (Felt so sad.) I now use bottled water, and he has his beautiful feathers back and he's as happy as can be! Your's looks pretty young still, so as long as you keep your water in check, hopefully he or she will regenerate them!
 
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