Frills on axolotl are gone

[Leslieks]

Hello, I just got a new axolotl about a week ago and the frills on his gills are missing. He arrived this way but I know they were fine before that since I saw some pictures of him before I bought him. He's about 3 to 4 inches long so I have him in a small container and I do daily water changes. I know this problem can be due to poor water conditions but I have another axolotl who is doing fine and since he arrived that way I'm assuming it's not my water. I don't know if I should keep doing water changes until he gets better or if I should try something else. I've also had a bit of trouble with feeding him. He'll have a few blood worms and brine shrimp then he'll spit the rest. Could this also be polluting the water much faster? I could do another water change right after he eats to ensure his water is as clean as possible. I just want him to be okay. I attached two pictures of my melanoid axolotl, who is the one with the problem, and my larger leucistic.

[Hayley]

Okay you seem to be on the right track! The gills are probably damaged from their previous home. Did you get it delivered to you or did you pick them up? They will take some time to heal, but make sure you are doing those daily water changes. You don't really need to check the tub parameters since you're changing it every day but it is good to test your water source for ammonia and hardness so you know what you're dealing with. My water source has ammonia so I use prime to counteract. My hardness is also really low so I add aquarium salt when doing water changes. Keep the water a constant temp between changes so you don't shock the axies. Indian almond leaves will possibly help healing, though I usually do this for skin issues, not sure how well it helps gills.
He may need some time to adjust to your feeding schedule, it's always taken my axolotls a little while to eat properly after getting them. Keep offering bits of food a couple of times a day, try a few things. If you can get your hands on live blackworms they're a great food source for young ones. The frozen foods will pollute the water but you don't need to worry about that since you're changing the tub :)
Hope this helps!

[Leslieks]

Thank you so much for your help and advice. It was delivered to me and I will continue doing the water changes hopefully he gets better and I'll try to find black worms