New To This Please Help

I've recently purchased a 1 gold male and 1 white/grey female axies absolutely beautiful creatures, she is currently growing her tail back along with her front left leg, he is quite skinny and was constantly floating listlessly on top of tank at pet store on each visit, both have had good feed on bloodworms and seem to have settled in quite nicely. Swimming and xploring, my tank is 2ft by 1ft and full with a small flowing waterfall filtering system live plants and i have river stones covering bottom (aprox 4-5cm in size) with two pipes for hiding. I seem to have tiny snails in the tank is this a problem? even any advice on gravel and water levels.....I love my babies please help

The tank sounds okay, but it might be a little cramp. You might want to monitor the water parameters because the river rocks could trap debris. Sand is an excellent substrate. Have you cycled the tank yet?

The snails certainly hitched a ride into your aquarium on the plants. They are not harmful and might also make a nice snack for your axolotls.

For information on ... well, everything, really, check out the axolotl website www.axolotl.org - particularly the pages on Housing and Requirements.

Good luck and welcome to the world of axolotls!

-Eva

Hi There, and welcome to the forum! :happy:

little high said:

I've recently purchased a 1 gold male and 1 white/grey female axies absolutely beautiful creatures, she is currently growing her tail back along with her front left leg, he is quite skinny and was constantly floating listlessly on top of tank at pet store on each visit

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Sadly, this is the level of care offered by most petstores. They often pack too many axolotls into one tank which wreaks havoc with the water quality as displayed by the axie floating and the axies will lop another's body parts off due to not having enough space.

Axolotls have remarkable abilities in regenerating, your new friend should grow her tail and front leg back in time - the younger she is, the more quickly she will grow these back.

little high said:

...both have had good feed on bloodworms and seem to have settled in quite nicely. Swimming and xploring, my tank is 2ft by 1ft and full with a small flowing waterfall filtering system live plants and i have river stones covering bottom (aprox 4-5cm in size) with two pipes for hiding. I seem to have tiny snails in the tank is this a problem? even any advice on gravel and water levels.....I love my babies please help

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As Oregon Newt has recommended I would change the substrate to either sand or bare bottom. Axolotls are messy little grots and their waste and left over food will get trapped underneath and the only way to get the grot out will be to shift the rocks - this is time consuming and a real pain!

The advantage of sand, is that the wastes sit on top making it easy to spot and clean up. Bare bottom tank makes life even easier, but is not as 'aesthetically' pleasing.

If you opt to use sand, the best sand is childrens play sand, pool filter sand or fresh water aquarium sand. Do not use Beach sand or Marine sand.

Water quality is most important to an axolotl. I would recommend you obtain test tube kits for Ammonia and PH. Nitrite is also important and Nitrate is handy to know if you are in the process of cycling the tank. An article on cycling: http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cyclingEDK.shtml

Until the tank has finished cycling, you will need to be doing 20% partial water changes DAILY to keep undesirable Ammonia and Nitrite levels under control.

I would recommend filling the tank to the top and leaving an inch clearence between the water surface and lid. The more water volume the better as this will assist in the dillution of wastes and as you have a water fall filter it will also lessen the impact of the falling water (axolotls do not like moving water).

Axolotls can grow to any size from 7-14 inchs, I would recommend you get a bigger tank as axolotls need a lot of floor space - the recommended minimum tank length for two adult axolotls is three foot.

I would also suggest some more hides, the general guide is at least twice the amount of hides to the number of axies in the tank - ie. two axolotls = four hides.

Cheers Jacq.

Havelock said:

I would recommend filling the tank to the top and leaving an inch clearence between the water surface and lid. The more water volume the better as this will assist in the dillution of wastes and as you have a water fall filter it will also lessen the impact of the falling water (axolotls do not like moving water).

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Ooooops! I forgot to add that if you fill the tank, ensure you have a secure lid that covers the whole tank. Axolotls can and do jump and some have taken their owners by surprise pulling off an escape worthy of 'Houdini'.

Thank You very much for all the helpful hints a bigger tank may be in order then i have a 4 ft one (i was wanting for mud skippers). I read as much info as I could find, on all sorts of sites to read that 2 would fit nicely in a 2ftX1ft tank. I have atleast 1ft of water in there and they do seem to be happy hand fed them small feeder fish tonight. I know the female is 18mths-2yrs old and he almost half the size of her. She was isolated in the pet shop for 4 wks prior to my purchase (as someone had brought her in as she had been attacked by there other axies). I've put the two together and they seem to be going well. I was relly worried as to the stones being to big. See if anyone else out there had largish stones. I was reading bare bottom tanks can be stressful as the axies can't grip the bare tank floor to move around. Is this true? Thought the stones would be more natural. Keep the advice coming please and thanks again.

Oops forgot to say yes of course i have lids on. They will stay on after he showed off some acrobatics for feeding time.

little high said:

I was relly worried as to the stones being to big. See if anyone else out there had largish stones. I was reading bare bottom tanks can be stressful as the axies can't grip the bare tank floor to move around. Is this true? Thought the stones would be more natural. Keep the advice coming please and thanks again.

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I had 4-5 inch large stones in my tank at one point...I celebrated the day I replaced them with sand!

Yes, large stones do look lovely - but they are a pain in the neck to keep clean as they must be moved to clean under as it is very important to the axolotl's health that wastes are not left trapped in the tank to wreak havoc with water quality.

I've heard some axolotl's experience a little bit of trouble with gripping a glass tank floor and may scrabble around a bit as a result - but it doesnt really stress them. A lot of members use bare bottom tanks and if I had not fallen in love with sand, I would have used bare bottom.

If you prefer the natural look though, use sand. Sand looks great - I love my sand. Childrens Play Sand is the cheapest option for sand - I purchased a 20kg bag for $6.00 AUD (This was enough sand to cover the base of a four foot tank with ease).

And that's great news about the lid!

Cheers Jacq.

It's not really about what I want to look at it's about making my babies happy healthy and comfortable. So thank you so very much for the advice, how would you go about cleaning the sand though, well the best way to clean the sand. Wasn't really wanting the stones in there anyway as I'm paranoid of them getting there little legs caught in the groves and cracks/crevices between the stones. I really want to do what's best for them. I've waited this long to get them I really want the best posible life for my babies, I was told years ago by a pet shop that I could have them with my black moor goldfish but just watch that the goldfish dosen't bite him. I was a bit suspicious on that so I have tried to learn as much as possible beforwe I got one but haven't been able to find out to much clear information about it until recently. Any advice on nitrate levels as my tap water is actually 20 ppm ? And is there any others I should be testing other than amonia, PH, and Nitrate. I have been doing a 2nd daily water change

You can clean sand by putting it in buckets and filling the buckets with water and swirling around. You will need to do this until the water is clear, and then a few more times to be safe! It can take a while and is a real pain to do, but you don't need to do it often I made the mistake of having a huge amount of sand in the tank, but you only need a thin layer so that will cut down on your cleaning time.

Nitrate is fine between 10-40 (or 60, can't remember), so don't worry about your tap water. Just make sure it is dechlorinated I only test for pH and ammonia now, but when the tank was first cycling, I tested for nitrite and nitrate. Also some people test the hardness of their water but I don't think this is necessary personally. (Can't do any harm though! )

You mentioned snails earlier too. Unfortunately, once in the tank they are hard to get rid of. I wouldn't worry as if they are tiny your axolotls won't have trouble if they eat them.

I agree with the other posters in that you need a bigger tank. Your current tank is good for one adult axolotl.

Also with the feeder fish are you quarantining them for 30 days if you buy from a pet store? If not I recommend you do so.

Anyway, good luck with your babies

I'm testing for nitrate, nitrite, ph, amonia and hardness now. I think that's everything covered. (My partner and I have a 4 ft tropical and a large 2ft tropical tank aswell so it'll all get used) I bought them an air stone that goes the length of the tank at the back today. The stones are now mostly out, it's bare bottom until I get sand. They have there pipes and some stone patches with plants though still. (I don't want them to be bored). Thanks for the tip with the feeder fish. I'm really interested in a grow you own food system. Just not sure on the best ways to do things. Was thinking a tank in the garage (because the house is getting crowded) with guppies or something similar. Or a small worm farm. Also will they eat crickets ? Now that you have mentioned the quarantine part does anyone know if I should do this with all live foods that I buy such as crickets/worms ? And I've read ox heart, liver, lean beef, chicken liver, duck liver is also good for them. (I work at a butcher so was wondering if I could feed them like kings for free Hehehehe) Wasn't sure on getting them anything without opinions as I did read once axies aren't designed to digest the fat's in beef. Is this true? And does it apply aswell to other foods such as chicken liver or duck or even chicken beef pork or lamb. Love the advice guys keep it coming.

edit just here I saw 2 beautiful boys today at my favourite aquarium shop well looked after and in good condition.....only thing is i'm in love how many do you think will be comfortable in a 6 ft tank? (I can bargain with my boyfreind for a bigger tank)

On the Caudate Culter page (http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/articles.shtml) there are several excellent articles on types of foods including links to culturing them yourself.

-Eva

little high said:

edit just here I saw 2 beautiful boys today at my favourite aquarium shop well looked after and in good condition.....only thing is i'm in love how many do you think will be comfortable in a 6 ft tank? (I can bargain with my boyfreind for a bigger tank)

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Four axolotls will be comfortable in a six foot tank.

But to ensure no disease is introduced to the tank inhabited by your current axolotls, you will need to quarantine any new axies for 30 days before adding them to the tank inhabited by your current axies.

Guppies are a great feeder fish nutrition wise and the babies are usually small enough not to do any damage if they nip your axolotl. I use them myself personally as a friend breeds them. You just have to make sure none are getting too big as that is when they can start nipping off bits of your axolotl.

Crickets are fine to use as food. I am really not sure if you have to quarantine all live food such as worms and crickets - as I don't use them - but another member should chime in here I know you should quarantine fish, plants, snails and other axolotls - i.e. stuff you get from petstores.

The meats you mention would only be good as treats as meat tends to be fatty and not so great for axolotls. They make great treats now and again though

You can also feed frozen blood worm, frozen brine shrimp (or either of those two live, but note that brine shrimp dies quickly and can foul up your tank - that is why I prefer the frozen stuff), and salmon pellets (these are really good and I use them a lot).

Cheers for all the help guys, really really apreciated. I think i've covered all my concerns for now . I should have some pics ready soon roxy and rexy love posing for the camera I think they should be models (she used to be called rocky but I've renamed her roxy and he of course is sexy rexy) I'll post them in the gallery if i can work it out computers don't make a lot of sense to me so excuse my stupidity about navigating around the site. Thanks once again for your help Bought them home some chicken liver from work today. They'll be getting fed on pellets, frozen bloodworms, liveworms & frozen brine shrimp with little treats of course every now and again. Am looking into a bigger tank for them so I can get the other 2 and turning the small tank into guppie bredder so they can have live fish aswell.
cheers again
nat

little high said:

I'll post them in the gallery if i can work it out

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No worries! Here is the procedure for posting photos in the gallery: http://www.caudata.org/forum/showthread.php?t=55492

We look forward to seeing your axolotls soon in their full glory in the gallery!

Cheers Jacq.

Hi,

A good way to clean/rinse sand is to put it in a pillow case and run the garden hose through it mixing it periodically till the water runs clear

cheers I'm a little confused as to how to clean the tank with the sand in it, how do i clean the sand then. I know how to clean it before putting it in but how do I then clean the bottom of the tank from debri's and such?
and thanks for the gallery tutorial link

little high said:

cheers I'm a little confused as to how to clean the tank with the sand in it, how do i clean the sand then. I know how to clean it before putting it in but how do I then clean the bottom of the tank from debri's and such?
and thanks for the gallery tutorial link

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Thats the beauty of sand, the debris sits on the top of the sand making for easy pickoff with a turkey baster or gravel syphon.

For daily spot cleans, I use a turkey baster.

I use a gravel syphon when doing my partial water changes. You just need to woft your hand through the sand and aim the syphon at any grot that floats up. Try to keep the vacuum an inch above the sand otherwise the sand gets sucked up too - this is no hassle though as you can just put the sand back in.

The axies also chase my hand around the tank which is amusing.

I see I feel a little silly as I was asuming that a gravel syphon would suck the sand up so there lay my confusion on how to go about it. Thanks for clearing that up. Fixing up a four foot tank for them, it'll be a week before I can get the water in it though as the silicon has to set for atleast a week first.
Just got back from the pet store (bought a quiter air pump) I diconected the tubes for the air stone and looped them under the lid one of them fell out and I am now trying to dry my carpet. Todays water change performed itself all over my living room carpet :O I remember the joy of carpeted floors and tanks now.