Illness/Sickness: Eating VERY little since move/new tank setup

[Midgey Smith]

Hi guys,

We moved about a week ago,and since then my axie teela hasn't eaten very much,maybe 3 pellets.i bought some barbs today as live food to try and entice her to eat,but she doesn't seem interested in them at all.

I changed basically everything in her tank,new 1mm gravel,a new bubble powered filter,and added some driftwood.the move was probably a bit of a shock for her,she was in a container for the trip and about an hour after,while i set the tank up.also,we drove in a manual,so it was a bit of a shaky ride.

I have also added some driftwood to her tank for hideys.her water quality hasn't been great,i've been doing 20-50% water changes every day or two.the previous substrate was river stones,so i'm sure it isn't impaction.

I'm worried,as i don't know how long she can go without food for.i know she's been without food for a week before,i left her in the care of a friend who said she had been feeding her mealworms,which upon checking were black and decayed,so would have been dead for a few days.any ideas on getting her to eat would be appreciated.

 

[Darkmaverick]

Hi Midgey Smith,

Have you tested for the water parameters (Ammonia, nitrites, nitrates)? What is the water temperature? Often poor tank conditions are the cause of axies being inappetant.

Are there other signs of illness or stress?

Did you quarantine the barbs for a minimum period of 30 days before you offer the axie?

Try feeding your axie a staple of earthworms, blackworms and axie pellets. Occasional treats of bloodworms, shrimp and fish are fine. Live wriggly worms stimulate the appetite and are nutritious for axies.

I would not go overboard with feeding mealworms. They are at best suitable as very occasional treats. They are high in fat, can bite (need to crush the head), and have a tough chitinous exoskeleton that cannot be easily digested. There has been cases of impaction from mealworm exoskeletions.

Cheers

 

[Greatwtehunter]

I have to second Rayson's mention of using earthworms to stimulate her appetite. If she was eating just fine before the move then I would chalk up this current fast to stress from the move. If your water parameters check out just fine then I wouldn't worry and just give her a few more days.

 

[Midgey Smith]

Sorry for the late reply guys,net access is kinda sporadic for me at the moment.

Water parameters are mostly good,high nitrates somewhat,but i'm doing regular water changes to get on top of that.i was in a bit of a panicked hurry to get her eating to quarantine the fish,stupid,but they seem to have done the trick,she's back to eating abut 80 percent of what she was.now i just have to keep my fingers crossed she doesn't get anything from them...

also,are axie pellets sufficient diet?i was feeding her mealworms,but as you said rayson they aren't nutritional at all. I've been considering getting a compost heap going for earthworms,sounds like a good source of free nutritional food for her.

 

[Darkmaverick]

Hi Midgey,

Axie pellets and earthworms form a good staple diet. They can thrive very well on just those two alone. Mealworms are suitable only as occasional treats, even so, they are not my top choice.

Cheers.