Please give me your opinion/Advice on my new Axolotl Setup

[AxolRose]

Hi all,

Just got two new Axolotls in from WardSci and after reading many posts on this forum, I have decided to post my current setup, etc and see what the community here thinks can be improved, or what is a possible danger to my new Axies.

Axies: Two Albinos, one is golden in color the other pink, both approximately 3 inches/ 7.6 cm a piece. (Unnamed yet. We are working on that =) )


Tank: Currently 10 Gallon with black background, aquarium light and a mixture of larger river stones and polished pebbles. (Too big for the little guys now, although both size of tank as well as size of rocks will be changing as they grow). Water level is 85% full, although we can't figure out why some setups have lower than others. Do Axolotls eventually like to be on land as well as in the water?


Cycling/ Levels: Started the tank unfortunately at the same time as I got my Axolotls. I used a little Prime de-chlorinator in the tank as well as a little bacterial agent to get the bacteria started. Currently everything sits normally (ph 7.8, Nitrate 0 ppm, Nitrite 0 ppm, Ammonia 0 ppm) tank is 24 hours old). I understand as the little guys start to pollute the tank, it will create ammonia. I am going to monitor it daily and have a backup tank with dechlorinated water in it for them in case it harms them. I plan on using Prime to control the ammonia levels while the bacteria develops.


Filtration: Under gravel intake with an AquaTech 10-20 Power Filter (hangs on back of tank.) I attached a piece of plastic at the outlet to diffuse the output as much as possible, as well as a plastic plant at each end of the plastic tube to help keep the current to a minimum


Decorations: Large multi holed "fake coral" looking thing (actually looks more like volcanic rock) as well as a little hollow tree stump for them to hide in. 2 Large plastic fern plants as well as some other plastic plant coverage on the tree stump decoration. I bought some dried seeds for real plants, (of course I through the bags away without reading the plant species). They are in the tank, not really concerned if they grow or not, although I understand it helps with the nitrate levels.


Diet: Currently using dried brine shrimp "cubes", although they're not all that great. It floats and makes a mess way too easily. I hand fed them on the first day, and today I just let the brine shrimp float in the tank for an hour. They seemed to find it on accident, and proceeded to eat anything in their way. (including the golden Axie's leg, it seems , more on this later). I am going to order the salmon pellets as suggested elsewhere this week, and just deal with the shrimp for now. (thought about making some kind of mixture of the shrimp and a hardening (gelatin?) agent and making brine shrimp pellets, although I barely manage cooking decently for myself, no reason for them to suffer my cooking wrath.

(Speaking of which, at their size, whats a good time span for feeding? Results seem to vary in forums, with size being the relative factor. Can I accidentally over feed them?)


2sCompany-isms.. so yeah. they seem to get along fine, routinely hanging out either next to each other or otherwise, and never notice them fighting or one running from the other. But the gold Axie lost a leg as what I can only guess was a feeding time accident. It doesn't look bad, (although it's kind of sad) and I know it will grow back, just wondering if I should separate them for a short time or put the gold Axie in a covered bucket with some tank water.)


Um thats about all I can muster (verbose much?) for info at the moment. Any input is greatly appreciated!!

 

[Kaysie]

Whoo, that's a long post!

Here we go:

You'll need a bigger tank, for sure. 2 adults are usually fairly comfortable in a 30 gallon tank.

As far as your tank: The river rocks will be hard to clean. Waste will get trapped between them, making it extremely difficult to siphon out. I suggest switching to a bare bottom tank (great for little ones) and then using sand when they get older. Unless you're growing plants, there's no need for an aquarium light. Axolotls are mainly nocturnal, and the light just adds heat (unless it's fluorescent). Some people don't fill their tanks up as axolotls can jump out of the water. If you have a lid, this isn't a problem. But the extra gap between the top of the water and the top of the tank gives you a buffer.

Cycling is VERY important. In a tank of that size, I don't suggest trying to cycle the tank with the axolotls in it. You're right for using dechlorinator in the tank, and be sure you're using the proper amounts. If I were you, I'd get a bigger tank now, and start cycling it, as cycling can take up to 3 months, and you'll be sure it's ready by the time your axolotls need it.

If you're using chemicals to 'control' ammonia levels, these should be stopped. It's impossible to cycle a tank by using ammonia-fixers. Also, most bottles of 'biological starters' are just a waste of money.

Undergravel filters with powerheads are not good for axolotls. If you do go the route of buying the bigger tank now, I would get a canister filter for it now, and not use a filter on the small tank, just doing frequent water changes.

As far as decorations: you need to be sure they can't get stuck in them, and there are no sharp edges which could injure them. I would just buy aquarium plants. The seeds, if not for aquarium plants, will just rot and add waste to the tank.

Diet: Dried brine shrimp isn't a good food. You'll do better with frozen bloodworms, live blackworms, or earthworm chunks.

At their size, I would feed them daily or nearly daily. At this size, they're still growing quickly.

As far as the leg, I wouldn't worry about it unless you notice signs of infection.

 

[AxolRose]

Heh.. yeah, long post indeed. Thank you for the reply. I kind of had a gut feeling there was some bad juju in my setup. We are gonna head over to good old Walmart (ugh) tomorrow and pick up a larger aquarium. I'll follow the cycling procedure with it as posted on caudata.org until it's good and ready for them. I have two 10 gallon tanks here (whew gonna need a bigger apartment) that I can use as a temporary staging area for them until the bigger aquarium is ready.

So basically until the new tank is ready I should be changing the water out for fresh, de-chlorinated water. I'll create a minimal environment for them (couple of large rocks, a hiding spot with minimal areas for them to hurt themselves, etc. etc. that can be cleaned easily and whatnot. I would prefer to not have to stress them out too much during this phase, so maybe siphoning 60-75% of the water with the water from the other tank (let each cycle sit for 24 hours, plus some Prime to de-chlorinate) will suffice? I'll take the whole filter thing out for now, and just do regular water changes.

The area I live in has minimal pet shops/ etc. to source food from, the brine shrimp was the best I could do initially, as the pet shop "ran out of bloodworms".


Using frozen water bottles to try and keep the temp fluctuations down, as it stays between 65 and 70 almost consistently. I will probably build some kind of fan based hood cooling system between now and when the larger tank is cycled.

Heh at least I won't get bored this month... ^^

Thanks again for the insight. I'll post pics, etc.

Scott

 

[AxolRose]

p.s. Will order the canister pump online (local pet shop charges 200% of what's listed on most sites). Can I start cycling now, and add the pump in to the mix within the next week or so?

I'll read up as much as possible to try and get the cycling process proper.

 

[AxolRose]

Quick Update:

Got the 10 gallon setup up with nothing in it right now. Put black foamboard around the sides of tank to try and eliminate as much light as possible during daylight hours. I have a second tank setup with fresh water that is gonna sit for 24 hours and let the chlorine escape. I'll do a major water swap tomorrow, take all the junk I bought back to Walmart, etc. and gonna get these guys set up good and proper.

Pick them up a nice PVC (?) hiding spot, maybe 1 big rock I can take out and clean easily and leave it at that till their new gig is ready.

Hope I am on the right path now.

Thanks a billion for the advice!

Scott

 

[Kaysie]

Since you're cycling, it's best to pick up some good quality test kits (use liquid drops or dry tab test kits, not the 'test strips') for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate. And while you're using these on your cycling tank (test it once a week or so, just to track progress), you can test your little tank for ammonia, and when it gets above acceptable levels, do a water change. Your method of aging the water in the other 10 gallon tank is a good idea. That'll ensure it's been fairly well degassed, and is the same temperature.

Adding the filter later will be fine. The filter just serves as additional space to grow the good bacteria. Also, if you want to add your substrate while the tank is cycling, that would be good too. It's up to you what to use. I like pool-filter sand, as it's pretty coarse, and doesn't cause too big a mess when cleaning. Others use play sand, which is that super-fine sand found in sandboxes. Still others use no substrate at all!

PVC elbows (used for plumbing and drinking water supply) are great hiding spots. All of my tanks have them. I'd pick up a few, as they're only 30cents a piece or so. Additionally, you can pick up a package of plastic disposable cups, and cut them in half long-way to create caves. All of my tanks have those too. Those are REALLY cheap. lol.

If there's a bait shop in your area, you can see if their earthworms are appropriate. Just be sure they're not packed in old tobacco tins, or in manure. I've used bait shop worms without a problem. Walmart also usually carries them (thats where I buy mine).

 

[AxolRose]

Gotcha. I have an Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Test Kit. Guy at the pet shop said it would work, although the glaring "SALTWATER MASTER TEST KIT" on the front is bothering me. Is this ok for freshwater?

Got some runs to make today. Gonna have to find other food source today, this brine shrimp is impossible. I basically have to spread it around the outside edges of the tank for 30 minutes, and hope they find it on accident when they're near the surface. It works, but not very assuringly.

I put the gold one in a salt bath for 10 minutes last night. Also read that lower temperatures are good for the healing process, although I haven't found a surefire way of keeping water below 60 degrees yet, and I don't want to stress him out by subjecting him to 65 degrees, than 60 again. I have a small container inside of a ice chest liner with some ice in between I could use, but that means either moving him permanently into it for a week or so, and shoveling ice into it religiously. May go that route and give him the salt bath daily if I find a way to do it without stressing him out.

i guess if worse comes to worse, this post will end up being a journal of my follies, of which others can read, laugh and maybe learn something from.

EDIT: RAR... just read that salt vs. fresh is the level card colors, so my test yesterday was null. Pet shop guys really don't do any justice to their trade.
Gonna look for a printable version of the cards for now, as that seems to be the obvious difference. I'll be sure to change water out now, as the levels could be higher than i expected.

S

 

[Kaysie]

I used that same test kit. The Nitrate test gave me some issues, but the other ones worked ok.

Does he show signs of infection? I wouldn't give him salt baths unless he's ill. They usually recover from bitten flesh pretty well. If your water is 65F on a regular basis, just leave it there. That's a fine temperature.

 

[AxolRose]

Not that I can tell. Can't seem to find a good reference for obvious infection indicators. Was more or less following the advice here: http://www.axolotl.org/health.htm but for now he seems ok.

Got a 30 gallon tank today, as well as some "leafy-ier" plastic plants (big blades, no areas for them to get stuck in). Going to pick up some PVC tomorrow, and I am scouring the area for good earthworms or bloodworms for them to eat. For now, hand feeding them the brine shrimp cubes/ reptile sticks (I have read these have long term issues, and only using them until I get the ideal salmon pellets and bloodworms/ earth worms stocked up.)

Starting the cycling process tonight. For now I have the water type cycle between my de-chlorination tank and their "home". Put a clip on fan over the tank and now the tank stays below 65 consistently.

Again, thanks for all the advice.