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Acting Oddly

Bobillion

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Hi, my axolotl has been acting strangely for about a week now and I'm getting worried. Basically, he's been acting quite cagey, jumping at the smallest things that never startled him before and even pulling away from my hand when I offer him food (I've always hand fed him). Also, he's been spending much more time in his hide recently, and doesn't seem to like coming out as much. Or, if he does it is furtive and temporary. He never used to act like this, he was usually quite calm, relaxed, and curious, and would often spend much of his time out of his hide or near his feeding corner. Which is another point - he hasn't been eating nearly as much as he used to, and does not pick up food from the ground anymore, whereas he used to be ravenous all the time.

These are the only factors I can think of that might be relevant:

1) I'm not sure if his hide is the best, When he was much younger I gave him a hollowed out coconut to hide in but he either ignored it or sat on top of it. So, to make things roomier I made his hide out of a piece of driftwood (with a plant on top) and placed near the corner. The two bordering walls have coverings and I even used black construction paper to darken it a bit. On top I have a floating plastic plant as a ceiling of sorts. He seemed to like it, but lately he's been digging holes under the log to try to squeeze himself in as far as possible. I've been considering getting a new hide from a piece of pvc pipe for him, to stick in the same corner. Perhaps this will make him feel more secure? Maybe he's just stressed and feeling exposed?

2) I have plants, as mentioned before (Amazon Spear Grass, Java Fern, and Anubias). They aren't doing too well. I thought maybe it was from a lack of food, but it sounds like it is probably more a lack of light. I'm thinking of getting a light put in for them (perhaps with an auto-timer), but only after his hide is perfected so he doesn't have additional stressors. I try to remove dead leaves as soon as I see them, but the tank still has a weird planty smell and there are swirls of something on the surface. I hope plant juices aren't bad for him...

3) Water quality is fine. The water is cycled and ammonia and nitrite levels are good. The pH is acceptable (~7.8) and the water is hard enough that his gills are always red. The temperature is... not ideal, but I live in one of the hottest cities in Canada. I have air conditioning, though, and I've managed to keep his temperature around 20-21 degrees.

4) I found a nasty surprise last week. I'd slipped on my weekly cleaning regiment and was late by about a week. I found something strange in his feeding corner, a sort of mucousy, spider-web looking thing. I decided it was time to clean. Underneath that spider-web and a thin layer of sand was black. I was pretty horrified! I managed to vacuum up the patch of death sand (there was none more that I could find shortly beyond that corner) and I think the explanation is that a pellet of food got buried there and started to rot. Likely, while digging for food he swallowed some of it and threw it back up. Now I think he's been scared off from eating food from the ground (is this even possible?)

I think number four is most important. I think he may have gotten sick, and the high water temperature is not helping. He looks healthy enough, but he's acting weird and isn't eating nearly as much as before. Can illness explain jumpy, frightened behaviour? I'm strongly considering fridging him, but I'm not sure if that would be preemptive. I also don't know how I'd get him out. Normally I scoop him out with his little transport container, but with how frightened he seems of me I'm worried I would give him a tiny heart attack.

Thanks
 

daniellog

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Some pictures of his setup would be nice so we might be able to spot something. Also has your axolotl shown any signs of stress like curled forward gills and a curled tip of the tail?
 

dragonlady

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Hi Bob,

As axolotls get older, they become more sensitive to light and tend to dart away from it. This might be part of what is happening with your guy. A larger hide would definitely be a good idea for him.

A pic of your set-up as Dan has requested would be a help. If those plants are decaying, I'm sure they are affecting him.

When did his eating change? Before or after the slip in cleaning? Sounds like something was indeed allowed to sit in there and rot. Also, check around the other ornaments too to make sure something else isn't lurking. As you know, housekeeping needs to be done daily at least on some level.

How often are you attempting to feed him and what is his regular diet? Does he share his tank with anybody?
 

Bobillion

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I picked up a big piece of piping for him to use, and I've been meaning to put up some pictures of my set up for some time now, I'll get on it tomorrow, I think, when the lighting's better.

So far he hasn't shown many signs of stress. I always keep an eye out for these kinds of things, but with him hiding so much it's been quite difficult to tell. His gills don't seem curled and his tail tip is usually straight when he's out and about. I have noticed that his gills tend to flap more frequently than they used to, usually when he's hiding and at rest.

His eating definitely changed after the slip. What was odd was that he was acting and eating normally until I discovered that weird mucousy thing, as I cleaned out his tank immediately after seeing it. After cleaning his tank he started acting cagey and I thought it was just because I'd disturbed his environment and he'd be back to normal soon. But, well, that was a week ago.

He's been eating carnivore pellets. Can those go bad? I've been using the same bag for several months now, and it started running low so I bought a replacement. The replacement food was a different brand, though, but a similar foodstuff. I left a bunch on the ground and, unlike the old pellets, he actually ate them at some point. He's still hiding, but at least he ate (not all of them, though).

Edit: Oh, and I've been feeding him every day. I didn't know when exactly that was supposed to switch to every other day. I'd say he's around seven months old, now. I frequently check on him and the tank, and I always do spot cleans and checks. I never let food sit in his tank for more than a day (and it used to be food wouldn't last that long with him around). And he's by himself.
 
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HitmanSougo13

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Axies has surpringly good memory! If there was a bad memory with a certain food it remembers. The food change can add to it's unhappyness. It is probably shocked by the sudden recent changes in the environment. While adding a light may help the plants, the axie will dislike it and the light can increase the temps. If u are interestEd, I wrote a post for a diy aquarium fan that u can use along with the a/c. Definitely pay attention to how much he is eating and if he is losing weight.
 

dazkeirle

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Not sure I completely agree with this. I think you need to start feeding your axie some juciy worms and bloodworms and stop using the pellets for a bit to see if he improves.


For 9 months my axie had been "hand fed" cat biscuits (with very similar make up to trout pellets) by his previous owner. She told me that was the only way he'd eat.

I very soon realised what she really meant that he was force fed, and I'm not surprised that's the only way he'd eat them.

Within seconds of putting bloodworms into the tank the changes in behaviour were dramatic, a month later I started with earthworms and his energy and behaviour are better again still.

Agree with Dan, food should be soft and fun for the fella to eat, I certainly wouldn't want to live on Jerky my entire life.
 

Bobillion

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I'm still not entirely sure how to feed him bloodworms. They're so tiny. And I was holding off on earthworms until he was bigger, he always seemed too small to be able to eat them. But maybe he's big enough, now.
 

Bellabelloo

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How big is he? If he is still small, then you can cut the worms to a smaller size. You will however be surprised how big a worm an axolotl can eat :D
 

dragonlady

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How big is he now? (sorry, Bellabelloo and I replied at the same time) If you really think earthworms are too big, you can cut them in half and soak them for a bit in water before feeding him. This soak makes them a little less slimy - some don't like the slime. Maybe some nightcrawlers from a bait shop may be a little smaller.

Do you have a Walmart near you? The ones in the US have three different sizes that may help. They have the regular nightcrawlers, trout worms (some don't like these - mine do), and I just found "baby" nightcrawlers there today which are a little larger than the trout worms.

If you have a PetsMart near you, you can try red wigglers too. These are a little smaller in diameter than the trout worms.

So, there are some different options, and once you get him going on those, you could order a starter online and raise your own so you'd have an assortment of sizes.

Good luck and how about some updated pics sometime?! ;) :D
 

kdlaw

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Keep your bloodworms in a small container in the refrigerator. I just use a toothpick to pick up a few and drop them right in front of the Axolotl. They suck them up with a little jerk of the head. Mine really like them and get them as a treat. However, they have got to be alive and moving for Chopper and Snapper. They will eat pellets, but really like live bloodworms.
 

Bobillion

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He's gotten quite large, I'd say he's around 7 or 8 inches long, now. Not especially wide, though, just long. That's from head to tail, mind you. I'm not actually entirely sure how much worm he could fit inside him.

Anyways, sorry I took awhile to reply. I've fed him worms (well, "dew worms," whatever the hell that is, I got them from a bait shop and they look like, well, earthworms) the past two days, once a day. He's taken to them well, I think, slurping both down and, so far, not vomiting them up (or whatever the weird, mucousy mass was around the tank. What does axolotl vomit look like?)

It's been surprisingly unpleasant for me. I have no problem feeding him live food, and in fact I've given him wax worms before (and man I thought those would creep me out but it was actually ok.) The problem I have is cutting them in half. They writhe in agony... and they have red blood... I'd have no problem giving him a whole one, but I don't even know if I should try yet. They're very long and if he can't eat it all then I've wasted a worm (and a life). But what should I do with the other half? If I feed him the head end then the tail end will die and go to waste. If I feed him the tail then the head will live on, severely wounded and suffering. Ack, I'm such a wimp.

On the other hand it is pretty cool watching him scarf it down so, that's good.

Honestly I want the best for him, and I'll gladly suck it up and continue doing this. I'm just counting the days until he can eat a whole worm...

Oh, and I'll have new pictures up soon. I'm also going to give him a pipe fitting for a hide. Once all that's done I'll take pictures of the tank set up and see what you guys think. The only problem I have is that he won't leave his log, so I don't know how I'm going to get him out of the tank so I can change it around for improvements.

Thanks again guys for your help.
 

dragonlady

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Nightcrawlers are a little less gross to cut in half. They don't "bleed" and the head end will survive just fine. At the size of your guy, he should be able to eat whole worms, but it may take him a bit to adjust. It looks like he's really struggling with the worm while eating it, but he will get it down. He may spit it back out a few times, but he should eat it. I know that it's difficult to consider the life that has been lost in the process, but this is a natural cycle. What would your fella' be doing in the wild? ;) Just one of the many things we have to do for our pets!
 
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