Think 2 of my Axies are picking on my third

[Bluekoolaid]

Hello all!
I've got 3 axolotls in a 50gallon tank
My golden albino "Bubbles" is just past 7inches and is more than 1 and a half years old
My melanoid "Ricky" is older and a couple inches bigger than Bubbles
My wild type " Julian" is over 9 inches and huge like a tank
I've just notice recently that my Albino has a red leg, he's swimming funny now and bit of tail missing while my Mel and wild are fine
Do you think my bigger children are picking on my smallest child?
Also what do you think is causing the redness in his leg ?
What should I do to fix this ?
Tried to get a good picture of it but now he's hiding

 

[Kochebi]

With the size difference the bigger lots are probably bullying your little guy. It's really risky to have axolotls that are even an inch or two smaller than another in the same tank. Also what is the base length of your tank? You should probably have at least 40 or so inches of length and plenty of hides for them to spread out. Not sure if your tank is a 50 long or a taller tank. The aggression could also be coming from competition over places to hide if you don't have at least five or so for your three axolotls. I like to try and shoot for at least two per axie, or one per axie but with plenty of plants.

As far as the red leg goes I'm not sure. You might want to quarantine him for a little bit and see if it's an irritated wound that heals or something else. Someone else may be able to give better advice on the redness.

 

[Donna001]

I agree with Em, the size difference could be causing a problem.
Quarantine tank until the problem with the leg is resolved.
If you could post water parameters and perhaps get a better picture of your albino, you may need to take him out of the tank and put him into a tub of dechlorinated water to get a good picture. Hopefully it is just a wound on his leg, which will heal on it's own with good water conditions. Watch out for infection/fungus on the leg. I hope that the information in the link will be useful
Axolotls - Health & Diseases
Please keep us posted on progress and we will try to help.

 

[Kochebi]

Oh, and a few quick tips if need be!
If it's irritated skin there's two things that are great remedies for axolotls. India almond leaves added in small quantities to the tank, or given in isolation tubs are great. The other is black tea. I use a golden monkey type tea for my axolotls, which has slightly higher caffeine than usual. The caffeine isn't bad, and actually works as a laxative of sorts for them as well. I would just say don't leave them in with it for too long!

Next, I add aquarium salt to my tanks, at half the recommended dose. I've had many previous problems with tank fungus, ich, and skin issues on my axolotls (the fungus and ich came before the lotls were in the tanks, thankfully) but I've noticed all of these problems have now been reduced with tank salt in. It's not necessary, but, from personal experience, I believe keeping a low dose in the water is a great boon to your lotl's health.