HELP!! Charlies gone nuts!!!

D

deemi

Guest
HELP! i changed the water, gravel and plants in Charlies tank and now hes smashing him self against the tank walls and tring to jump out!!!, i checked the ph level , and its fine but now his gills have gone bright red and really fluffy with white fluff at the tips on the feathers... i doubt its fungus because its only been a few hours! heeelllpppp
 
am i not meant to have gravel in the tank??could that be hurting baby charlie?
 
He could just be bit stressed from tank revamp but on the other hand you should test the water in your tank for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Did you do a complete water change on your tank and if so, did you cycle the tank b4 placing him back in?

Also, gravel can be bad for axies, when they swallow it, which they will eventually do (esp. as they get bigger and snuffle), it can block them up and cause blockage problems and stress your axie. You'd do better to replace with sand, which can be bought from Bunnings or other hardware/landscaping places quite cheaply; or alternatively, bare/no substrate or large pieces of slate/rock.

How big is your tank?

Can you post a photo of the fluffy stuff on her gills (they're not feathers, but we all know what you mean)? I would have thought it was fungus from the description but as its only been a few hours maybe its something else?

(Message edited by kapo on September 16, 2006)
 
i change half the water in the tank normally but this time i had to change a bit more because i havent been able to get the water clear for ages. GUess ill be buying sand tomorrow! sorry the pics not to good charlie didnt want to come over to the camera, hes now siting with his head to an angle which isnt like him!.
70250.jpg
 
oh and the tank size is 29.5 cm by 29.5cm ( its a cube). hes really still.... hes normally runing around at night.
 
When you do a waterchange you shud do 20-30% waterchanges rather than 50% each time. Did you cycle your tank previously? If your tank is uncycled or newly setup and your axie is residing in it then you shud try and test your water every few days and if necessary (ie: high ammonia and/or nitrites) do a 20-30% waterchange to bring levels down.

The unclear water could have been a bacterial bloom which happens occasionally. You just have to test the water regularly for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, we do ours once a week b4 waterchanges or if anything seems out of the ordinary, ie axies seem a bit stressed. Try and do spotcleaning with a turkey baster if you can get one (very handy little tools!)

Also, I notice your axie is near a window, do you have any hidey holes/caves for him to hide in, just that axies don't really like too much light, they are nocturnal. If you can't move tank to opposite side of room, maybe you could partially cover it. We used a towel/old blanket on ours until hubby made some "blinds" for the tanks.
 
<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>Quoting deemi on Saturday 16 September 2006 - 13:09 (#POST106105):</font>

the tank size is 29.5 cm by 29.5cm ( its a cube)<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>

Well, that could be why you are having probs. with cloudiness. A smaller tank fouls very easily (my sister had one about this size for her then small axie) so you need more frequent water changes, esp. if it is unfiltered. Also, having gravel (even tho you have a feeding dish) you'd be surprised at how much gunk ends up under it! That tank will only last a few more months, if that and then you will have to change it as your axie can reach a size of 30cm (two of our 11mth olds are that size now ). A 2ft (60cm long x 30 or 35cm wide) tank would be better for 1 axie or if you decide to get another a 80-90cm long tank would suit.

It might be fungus, I'm not entirely sure sorry. Maybe keep an eye on it and see how it develops overnight or tomorrow (if it seems to have gotten worse). If it does then start saltbaths twice a day.

2-3 teaspoons of salt per litre or pint of water in a foodsafe plastic or glass container (eg icecream container).
no more than 10-15 mins for the saltbath

Also, what temp is your tank?

(Message edited by kapo on September 16, 2006)
 
Lorie, how do you treat for fungus?
If it isnt fungus, could an unesecary treatment be harmful?
 
deemi when you did a water change did you treat the water for chlorine and could there have been a temperature difference between your tank water and the tap water
 
is it possible some sort of chemical got in the water that could have burnt him?
 
its possible there could have been a slight water temperature difference ( to tell the true by that stage my hands where numb) the water was a little out of balance but it was on the opposite side of the scale chlorine wise , i balanced it out with one of those ph tester kits, i mixed the chemical in water and disolved it before i put it in, do you think that could have burnt him?
He made it through the night but there is like a film of white stuff over him and its on the plants hes been rubbing up against...
 
If your ph levels are out, don't use any chemicals like ph up or down to try and balance it out. It is only a temporary fix and can be just as stressful to axie due to the fluctuations. There are other ways to do it.

But what are your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings? These are most important as toxicity can harm your axie and be quite stressful. If you don't have test kits for these, then take a sample of your tankwater down to petshop and get them to test it and post the figures here.

When you do a water change let your water stand for a couple of hours in same room so it is same roomtemp as tank when you add it. You never mentioned your temp btw.

Do you add a water conditioner/dechlorinator (something that removes both chlorine and chloramines from the water) to your tapwater b4 putting it in tank?

(Message edited by kapo on September 17, 2006)

(Message edited by kapo on September 17, 2006)
 
When I was on vacation, my brother changed my goldfish water, and he did not dechlorinate the water...their scales looked similar to your axolotls gills, white and patchy...perhaps it is chlorine burns
 
deemi when you say you balanced it out with a chemical what chemical did you use, i dont think its ammonia burns as i had an axie with ammonia burns and it was nothing like the picture of your axie
 
i used the ph down (or was it ph up?) powered disolved in water (it was the right one to add according to the chart thingy)
 
i dont have a thermometer to test the water, and i have no idea what ammonia, nitrite and nitrate readings are or how to get them, i asked the lady i bought charlie from at the pet shop but she knows less then i do, she didnt even know what to feed them and had a heater in the water!!( dont worry told her to take it out) kind of lost! my last axie lived in my pond outside and we never had to do anything for him, he even caught his own food!
 
im just nipping out to get a thermometer from the pet store, should i make the water cooler? what temp should i try and get the water to? will this help him be more comfortable?
 
the water temp is 20 degrees, i have just used a Aqua master " Ammonia Chlorine and Chloramine Eliminator" too. and i also have now replaced the filters in the water filter.
 
removing the chlorine is great but i wouldnt recommend removing the ammonia, your tank may never cycle properly if you just remove the ammonia, you may also have to get a test kit that can test levels for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate cause all these levels can affect the health and water quality of your tank and axie.i wouldnt put to much hope in the pet shop as most have no idea about axies. how long has your tank been established
 
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