I'm a first time axolotl owner, but I've done a lot of research. I have two axolotls, one 5 inches and the other 3 inches in a 30 gallon tank, separated with a divider, I have a sponge filter on each side of the tank, plus a big filter with a spray bar on my 5 inches side, which I'm removing in a few weeks once the bacteria is fully developed in the sponge filters. I also have a Eheim skimmer on her side as I removed the tanks lid for cooling purposes, but my 5 inch is relatively unbothered by all the flow but I still want to cut it down a bit, plus it will give her some more space to move around.
For some background information I got my 3 inch first from an aquatic, amphibian and reptile shop at about 2 inches in length, but she was not in good conditions, they had her in really warm water cramped in a tiny tank with tons of others, bright lights, no hides and a gravel substrate, and the guy tried telling me she was a leucistic when she was clearly an albino, but I took her anyway and when I got her home she was more than happy to swim into a nice cool tank. And then a few weeks later got my 5 inch from a reputable breeder at almost 4 inches in length. I've had them approximately a month and a half, and their tank was fully cycled before I added them.
My 5 inch axolotl is absolutely fine, eating well with beautiful long gills that only curl forward when I make changes with the tank. However my 3 inch axolotl recently had a bit of fungus on her bottom left gill (still unsure of the cause) so i tried salt baths but i felt it was stressing her as too much and her gills were only shrinking after the bath, and her tail was looking a little red at the top (still is as you can see in the picture) Instead i used some aqua care general tonic in the main tank and everything got better, fungus gone, gills growing back slowly, and it took her a day but she's eating normally again.
But there is one recurring thing worrying me and that's her basically permanently curled gills, and slightly more lethargic behaviour but she was never very active to begin with. And before everything like the salt baths and fungus she never curled her gills.
I can't currently test the water parameters because the water is green due to the tonic, but beforehand everything was fine, and I've done a couple 10% water changes in the past 4 days just in case, the temperature is consistently below 19°c, and there's no lights on the tank because they only have a couple hides (which they don't use much anyway) they are quite confident little axies.
Another thing I have noticed is that my 3 inch seemingly produces a lot more waste.
Does anyone have any clues as to what could be going on with her, if she's ok? As my 5 inch is in the same tank and thriving. If you require any more information I'll happily tell you, I just want the best for my baby
For some background information I got my 3 inch first from an aquatic, amphibian and reptile shop at about 2 inches in length, but she was not in good conditions, they had her in really warm water cramped in a tiny tank with tons of others, bright lights, no hides and a gravel substrate, and the guy tried telling me she was a leucistic when she was clearly an albino, but I took her anyway and when I got her home she was more than happy to swim into a nice cool tank. And then a few weeks later got my 5 inch from a reputable breeder at almost 4 inches in length. I've had them approximately a month and a half, and their tank was fully cycled before I added them.
My 5 inch axolotl is absolutely fine, eating well with beautiful long gills that only curl forward when I make changes with the tank. However my 3 inch axolotl recently had a bit of fungus on her bottom left gill (still unsure of the cause) so i tried salt baths but i felt it was stressing her as too much and her gills were only shrinking after the bath, and her tail was looking a little red at the top (still is as you can see in the picture) Instead i used some aqua care general tonic in the main tank and everything got better, fungus gone, gills growing back slowly, and it took her a day but she's eating normally again.
But there is one recurring thing worrying me and that's her basically permanently curled gills, and slightly more lethargic behaviour but she was never very active to begin with. And before everything like the salt baths and fungus she never curled her gills.
I can't currently test the water parameters because the water is green due to the tonic, but beforehand everything was fine, and I've done a couple 10% water changes in the past 4 days just in case, the temperature is consistently below 19°c, and there's no lights on the tank because they only have a couple hides (which they don't use much anyway) they are quite confident little axies.
Another thing I have noticed is that my 3 inch seemingly produces a lot more waste.
Does anyone have any clues as to what could be going on with her, if she's ok? As my 5 inch is in the same tank and thriving. If you require any more information I'll happily tell you, I just want the best for my baby
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