littleelliott
New member
Hello! I recently got a baby albino axolotl and she’s displaying some behaviour that I can’t pinpoint on any other forum. She is normally quite docile and sweet, lying on the bottom of the thank and perching on her rocks. Occasionally though, for no reason apparent to me, she rapidly swims to the top of the tank and nips at the air, then swims down again. I know they don’t breathe air, and she’s not very food driven (I put food in front of her and she takes her time), so I don’t know if she sees something on the top water and wants it all of a sudden, or if this is a bad behaviour.
Note: her food sinks and it’s in a specific bowl on the bottom of the tank. I’ve also looked for other signs of stress but she looks and acts fine most of the time, plus the water should be just right...
Note: her food sinks and it’s in a specific bowl on the bottom of the tank. I’ve also looked for other signs of stress but she looks and acts fine most of the time, plus the water should be just right...
It sounds to me like your axolotl is just swimming up and gulping air. They do it when there isn’t enough oxygen in the water, or sometimes just because they feel like it. My axolotls will do it every now and again, and it’s completely normal. If your axie is doing it consistently however, you may want to switch your filter or find another way to add more oxygen to the water. It’s not something you need to worry a lot about, but it can cause stress over time so the quicker you fix it the better. I would also check her gills to make sure they are their normal length. She should be completely fine though!