Mirandabee
New member
Hi, I am new to axolotls and Caudata.
Short story: The water where I live is very soft, so I have been adding a modified Holtfreter's solution to my dechlorinated water, to about 20% concentration. Everywhere I see salt baths discussed, the recipe is 2-3 tsp Kosher salt, per liter or dechlorinated water. And when not bathing, the axie should be in plain dechlorinated water. How do I adjust this recipe if the axie has already been living in 20% Holtfreter's?
As in, when I make a salt bath, am I adding Kosher salt to literally plain, dechlorinated water (that is too soft for axies' comfort normally)? Or, am I adding Kosher salt to my 20% Holtfreter's treated water? I know too much salt can harm them. But if the water in the baths is too weak, I'm concerned it won't do any good.
My axolotl has been fridging, and so far I have done 3 days of salt baths, 2x a day. Out of fear of harming them with too much salt, I have had them in a Holtfreter's solution diluted to about 10%, and for the salt baths I have used plain dechlorinated water, and added the recommended amount of Kosher salt. I've changed the main tub of water daily, and was planning on continuing today-Tuesday with 1x daily baths. However, I realized I needed help determining if the waters I have been using are too much, too little, or enough. Does anyone have experience with this? Anything helps.
Full story: In August I took in 4 juveniles (Bilbo, Kaiju, Pippy, and Ponyo - Bilbo and Pippy to go to my mother's once they were a bit more grown) from a friend whose pair had babies. She hand raised the baby axies, and then found them homes, but is not a professional breeder. I have a 30gal tank set up with a bubble bar, an AquaClear 70 filter, a USB fan to help keep the water cool, and a digital thermometer. Decor is some simple plastic plants, a faux log, some rocks, and a terracotta pot. They've been eating Axolotl pellets, bloodworms, and brine shrimp (thawed, Omega One brand). The temperature sometimes varies a bit throughout the day, but stays roughly in the mid 60s. I had been battling some cloudy water (no one warned me how much waste these guys can make, lol), which caused the ammonia and nitrites to be higher than ideal. But by doing regular water changes, minding the filter, and using a turkey baster for waste, I had managed to clear it up. PH and nitrates have been consistently good. All four had been enthusiastic eaters (and poopers), very active, and grew from 4" skinny bug-eyed babies to robust and 7-8", with fluffy gills. Around a month ago, one of my greens (Bilbo) started exhibiting some floating behaviors (couldn't stay down, didn't seem in control of their floating). I spoke with my friend (original mama) and did some research, and found that Bilbo probably had a bubble in their tummy and once it passed, they would be fine. I did remove them from the main tank into a smaller tub, so they could touch the ground. The floating started to make Bilbo tilt to one side, and within 48 hrs they passed away. It was very upsetting, but I chalked it up to something internal I would not have been able to fix. Then, last Monday, Pippy started exhibiting a similar, but less dramatic floating behavior at the top of tank, and I was really worried. I again removed the axie from the tank and put them in a tub, because I had read that not being able to touch the bottom of the tank / control their own movement can stress an axie even more. Within 8 hours, Pippy passed. Then, I woke up on Tuesday morning to find that Ponyo had also passed, at the bottom of the tank. Kaiju is all I have left, and ate pellets that morning / was being active. I removed Kaiju from the tank and began fridging out of fear they were next. I didn't fridge the others before because I didn't think it was needed/ was unsure they were large enough to be fridged safely yet. Shortly after being placed in the fridge, Kaiju vomited/pooped (I didn't witness) up quite a bit of partially digested food, plus the largely undigested pellets from that morning. I took it to be a good sign. On day 2 of salt baths described above, there was some white fluffy/floaty stuff, which I am unsure was shed skin, or maybe fungus(?). Bilbo and Pippy showed no change in behavior or appearance until close to the end. Ponyo showed no signs I was able to identify (such as gill fungus, etc).
Sorry for posting such a long essay! If anyone has any idea what may have happened, I would really appreciate the help. I'm not sure what other relevant information I can include here for reference, please let me know though. I want to do as best I can for my remaining baby. Please go easy on me if there's something obvious... This whole thing has had me really torn up. Based on their growth, appetite, and activity, I thought I was doing an alright job. I became really attached to them and getting to know their little personalities.
Thank you,
Miranda
Short story: The water where I live is very soft, so I have been adding a modified Holtfreter's solution to my dechlorinated water, to about 20% concentration. Everywhere I see salt baths discussed, the recipe is 2-3 tsp Kosher salt, per liter or dechlorinated water. And when not bathing, the axie should be in plain dechlorinated water. How do I adjust this recipe if the axie has already been living in 20% Holtfreter's?
As in, when I make a salt bath, am I adding Kosher salt to literally plain, dechlorinated water (that is too soft for axies' comfort normally)? Or, am I adding Kosher salt to my 20% Holtfreter's treated water? I know too much salt can harm them. But if the water in the baths is too weak, I'm concerned it won't do any good.
My axolotl has been fridging, and so far I have done 3 days of salt baths, 2x a day. Out of fear of harming them with too much salt, I have had them in a Holtfreter's solution diluted to about 10%, and for the salt baths I have used plain dechlorinated water, and added the recommended amount of Kosher salt. I've changed the main tub of water daily, and was planning on continuing today-Tuesday with 1x daily baths. However, I realized I needed help determining if the waters I have been using are too much, too little, or enough. Does anyone have experience with this? Anything helps.
Full story: In August I took in 4 juveniles (Bilbo, Kaiju, Pippy, and Ponyo - Bilbo and Pippy to go to my mother's once they were a bit more grown) from a friend whose pair had babies. She hand raised the baby axies, and then found them homes, but is not a professional breeder. I have a 30gal tank set up with a bubble bar, an AquaClear 70 filter, a USB fan to help keep the water cool, and a digital thermometer. Decor is some simple plastic plants, a faux log, some rocks, and a terracotta pot. They've been eating Axolotl pellets, bloodworms, and brine shrimp (thawed, Omega One brand). The temperature sometimes varies a bit throughout the day, but stays roughly in the mid 60s. I had been battling some cloudy water (no one warned me how much waste these guys can make, lol), which caused the ammonia and nitrites to be higher than ideal. But by doing regular water changes, minding the filter, and using a turkey baster for waste, I had managed to clear it up. PH and nitrates have been consistently good. All four had been enthusiastic eaters (and poopers), very active, and grew from 4" skinny bug-eyed babies to robust and 7-8", with fluffy gills. Around a month ago, one of my greens (Bilbo) started exhibiting some floating behaviors (couldn't stay down, didn't seem in control of their floating). I spoke with my friend (original mama) and did some research, and found that Bilbo probably had a bubble in their tummy and once it passed, they would be fine. I did remove them from the main tank into a smaller tub, so they could touch the ground. The floating started to make Bilbo tilt to one side, and within 48 hrs they passed away. It was very upsetting, but I chalked it up to something internal I would not have been able to fix. Then, last Monday, Pippy started exhibiting a similar, but less dramatic floating behavior at the top of tank, and I was really worried. I again removed the axie from the tank and put them in a tub, because I had read that not being able to touch the bottom of the tank / control their own movement can stress an axie even more. Within 8 hours, Pippy passed. Then, I woke up on Tuesday morning to find that Ponyo had also passed, at the bottom of the tank. Kaiju is all I have left, and ate pellets that morning / was being active. I removed Kaiju from the tank and began fridging out of fear they were next. I didn't fridge the others before because I didn't think it was needed/ was unsure they were large enough to be fridged safely yet. Shortly after being placed in the fridge, Kaiju vomited/pooped (I didn't witness) up quite a bit of partially digested food, plus the largely undigested pellets from that morning. I took it to be a good sign. On day 2 of salt baths described above, there was some white fluffy/floaty stuff, which I am unsure was shed skin, or maybe fungus(?). Bilbo and Pippy showed no change in behavior or appearance until close to the end. Ponyo showed no signs I was able to identify (such as gill fungus, etc).
Sorry for posting such a long essay! If anyone has any idea what may have happened, I would really appreciate the help. I'm not sure what other relevant information I can include here for reference, please let me know though. I want to do as best I can for my remaining baby. Please go easy on me if there's something obvious... This whole thing has had me really torn up. Based on their growth, appetite, and activity, I thought I was doing an alright job. I became really attached to them and getting to know their little personalities.
Thank you,
Miranda
