Question: Moving our Axie to a bigger tank!

Hi there,

So, My Axie is currently in a 60L tank all on her own, and we've just bought a fabulous 240L for her.

I'm not in a rush to move her, and I want to make sure everything is right before hand.

How do I go about moving her into a new tank? - Would I simply cycle the tank as before, without her in it, and once all is good transfer her? And, would I be able to switch the filter (and other bits such as bogwood, hides etc) in her current tank to the new one to speed up the process? (I have another filter too)

Also, would the new tank size be a bit daunting for her as she's on her own? And do you think it's worth looking into getting her a mate?

She's currently about 18cm long, a very healthy eater, we've had her 3 months, and she's very active, loves nuzzling my and my partners hands/fingers!

Also, when we got her, her gills looked damaged and stunted on one side, the 'red bits' have been growing back wonderfully, but the stunted bits are still quite small compared to the others. Is she likely to grow it all back in full? I have no idea if it's from injury or misgrowth, as we bought her from a garden centre.

xLele said:

Hi there,

So, My Axie is currently in a 60L tank all on her own, and we've just bought a fabulous 240L for her.

I'm not in a rush to move her, and I want to make sure everything is right before hand.

How do I go about moving her into a new tank? - Would I simply cycle the tank as before, without her in it, and once all is good transfer her? And, would I be able to switch the filter (and other bits such as bogwood, hides etc) in her current tank to the new one to speed up the process? (I have another filter too)

Yes to all of the above. To make the cycling go a bit faster, you could put some of the used filter media in with the new one, a bit of substrate and a plant or 2 if you have them. Those should help kick things up a bit. You can have both filters if they fit, the only real worry is the need to baffle them if the flow coming out of them is too strong, but it's easily done.

Also, would the new tank size be a bit daunting for her as she's on her own? And do you think it's worth looking into getting her a mate?

The size wouldn't be too daunting, but she might pick a favorite area for a while until she's sure that the new tank is safe for her. When I moved my axolotl into his 208 liter tank he picked the area that was planted the most and would usually hang around there. After a day or two he would come out more and more, and now it's just his sleeping area. He'll walk all over the place and swim around. You could get a mate, but I wouldn't really be able to tell you if she would care or not, but you definitely have the space for 1 or 2 more.

She's currently about 18cm long, a very healthy eater, we've had her 3 months, and she's very active, loves nuzzling my and my partners hands/fingers!

Also, when we got her, her gills looked damaged and stunted on one side, the 'red bits' have been growing back wonderfully, but the stunted bits are still quite small compared to the others. Is she likely to grow it all back in full? I have no idea if it's from injury or misgrowth, as we bought her from a garden centre.

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I gave you my answer to most questions there in red. As for the gills, I can't really tell, but I have read that they can sometimes re-grow a little odd. I don't see anything that looks bad, really, but that's just my un-trained eye.

Are the blood worms her main diet? Have you tried worms? She should be big enough to eat earth worms or pellets, which should provide a better nutrition for her. Just in case you didn't know.

Good luck with the new tank, I'm sure she'll love it!

240 liters will be awesome for her or even for her and a couple new ones. I have a tank that size and currently have it divided in to two because one of my three is a lot smaller and younger than the other ones, but still plenty of space for everyone. If you do decide to get her a friend then make sure you either get one that's about the same size (5 cm difference max) or put in a divider until the smaller one grows up.

I'd cycle the new tank first and then when it's ready just put her and all her hides, plants etc in there. You could take some of the media in the established filter and put it in the new one to speed up the process a bit.

She might not grow back all the feathery bits in her gills, but as long as she's happy and doing well then it won't matter. If anything, I'd say those gills just make her that much more special little axie.

@Cacique, pretty much what I thought then, thanks for the clarification
Bloodworms are her main diet yes, I'd love to feed her earthworms but I live in a top floor flat, and no garden, in a concrete city! So short of me going to the nearest park and digging it up, I don't know where else to get them from, and I'm not keen having a worm farm, and I don't think my landlady would be either! I tried her on Daphnia once but she just sniffed her nose up at it.

@keiko, I really can't wait to sort the new one out, It's a Reno 240L, and I got it for £40, absolute steal. It's a little sad if they don't grow back, but she's still beautiful!

Any bait shop should sell a good selection of worms--places like REI, Sports Authority and Dicks are likely candidates as well.
Edit: just saw you were in Europe. I have no idea if there are the same stores there, but any place that sells fishing rods should sell worms.

Otherwise you can go for salmon pellets, or carnivorous fish pellets. I've got my smaller axolotl, Turanga, on small salmon pellets, and my big guy Mulder on aqueon's bottom feeder pellets (they're almost a CM in diameter so they're still too big for Turanga). They're pretty comparable in nutritional value.