Stressed Axolotl??

[reagangallaher05]

I just received my axolotl on Friday of this week. As this is my first axolotl I am not positive on all the signs and symptoms of stress. I saw that some of my axolotl’s gills are curled foreword and that really upset and bothered me. I automatically email the breeder asking for help, and sent him some pictures. He said that because I have a very low current, the water temperature is a constant 68 degrees, and all my water parameters are great (minus the hardness of the water) he thinks that the curled gills are just because my axolotl has long gills and such a small body. What do you guys think?

He also isn’t very active, I took this picture earlier today, and he had been in that same spot for a few hours. The breeder also said that this is normal..

 

[Murk]

It seems like a relatively young axolotl, with big gills, so those do curl easier.

It is still a sign of stress, but it's not uncommon for the axolotl to be a bit stressed the first few days after moving. If someone suddenly dropped me into an entirely different universe, I would hide in a corner for a couple of days as well.

It's difficult to see if there are any other signs of stress/health on the picture. For now I'd advise to be patient and keep an eye on it. Does the axolotl eat well? If so, I would expect the curled gills to disappear in a few more days and the axolotl to become a bit more active.

 

[reagangallaher05]

It seems like a relatively young axolotl, with big gills, so those do curl easier.

It is still a sign of stress, but it's not uncommon for the axolotl to be a bit stressed the first few days after moving. If someone suddenly dropped me into an entirely different universe, I would hide in a corner for a couple of days as well.

It's difficult to see if there are any other signs of stress/health on the picture. For now I'd advise to be patient and keep an eye on it. Does the axolotl eat well? If so, I would expect the curled gills to disappear in a few more days and the axolotl to become a bit more active.

Thank you so much for your quick and informative response! Yes, I agree, I would be extremely stressed as well.

I did catch him coming out of the log hide a few inches and hiding between the two plants I have just beside the log hide, which is a good thing.

He is eating well I think? I’ve been feeding him 2 worms every day, each spilt in half and fed to him on the morning and night, but I think I should only feed him one worm because he does seem to be spitting some of the pieces up and just leaving them. I am a brand new axie owner so I am still figuring out the ropes. What do you think about the feeding?

 

[Murk]

Earthworms?
Yeah, that sounds about right. In general, you can feed an axolotl as much as they want to eat. Ideally, their belly is about as wide as their head. This seems like a young one, for which such a wide belly is hard to achieve because they use all the food to grow - the more you give them, the bigger they get.
(An elaborate way of saying: the more the better!)

Spitting out food is... Eh, it happens, for all kinds of different reasons. Could be stress as well, could just be axolotls being weird, could also be that they like different food. Do you know what the previous owner fed?

 

[reagangallaher05]

Yes, i’ve been feeding him worms we scavenged for outside. I’ve been feeding him about everyday since Friday, which I hope isn’t too much. From what I have read, I’m pretty sure that is actually a staple amount of food until they get bigger. Actually, my axie’s belly is pretty close to being as big as his head so that’s good! Should I keep feeding him everyday?

In regards to what the previous breeder fed him, in not too sure. On his website I saw some bloodworms in the bottom of the container that the babies were in. I also saw some earthworm pieces in the container that have the bigger babies in. Would that be considered juvenile axolotls?

 

[reagangallaher05]

Update, he is being SUPER SUPER active for the first time. He’s swimming around like a maniac! He’s not hiding much at all, but I’ve found that he is camera shy.. if I pick up my phone for a video of a picture of him swimming he drops dead to the bottom of the tank and just sits there until I put my phone down and then he starts back up I was super worried but I am so relived now that I see him doing better!

Thank you for your help, tips, and advice!