Axolotl constantly gulping for air

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gougeaway

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Nicole Riccio
Hi everyone,

Mugatu is a 7 year old axolotl. This morning I was woken up by a gulping sound. Now I see him swimming to the top of the tank and gulping air every minute or so. Earlier he was just floating on top of one of his plants and gulping air every minute. This is not something he usually does.
What could be going on and what can I do?

We don't have any substrate in his tank (i read in past forum posts that this can be an issue with this type of behavior).

Help?
 
How's your water quality and temp like? Water waters have less oxygen

Axolotls breathe by gills and lungs so gulping at the surface is normal however every minute or two is excessive...
 
check everything, Ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, pH. Something is preventing it from using its gills for respiration. You might want to move him to a temporary container with fresh dechlorinated water. Maybe something got into the tank by accident
 
I just tested the water levels

PH- 7.6
Ammonia - 0.25
Nitrite- 0
Nitrate- Somewhere between 0-5
Temp - about 20 degrees Celcius

Any ideas?
 
Your parameters seem okay so is there any way something else could have gotten into the water? Like did you add anything new or any chance something accidentally sprayed into the water. Did the temp suddenly get hotter and hes just adjusting? Or maybe your tap water had a sudden spike in something. I'm just throwing out ideas.
 
I added some dechlorinated water to his tank a few days ago, but other than that nothing new has been added to or gotten in the tank.
He's still gulping 3 hours later :/
He's also been taking 3-5 gulps in a row at the top of the water.
 
Your tan isnt cycled yet, it is possible that there have been spikes in the water and you should be testing it frequently. These spikes may be the culprit?
 
Is there anything I can/ should do at this point? I'm just worried about the little guy!
 
How long have you had your axie? You say he's 7 years old, have you had since a juvie, or not too long? And how long has he been in that tank?
A photo of your axie and his tank would help.
 
I've had him since he was a juvie and he has always been in this tank. I will try and get some photos.
 
Elise, that is what I was thinking, and because the tank is not cycled, nitrite spikes are very possible. And they get high, fast!

In my opinion i would take him out of the tank, put him in a tub of dechlorinated water doing 100% water changes daily, just until you can be sure its not something in the tank. If it is you can avoid any serious concequences by removinghim now. It wont hurt anyways! I would always rather be safe!
 
Alkylhalide said:
Elise, that is what I was thinking, and because the tank is not cycled, nitrite spikes are very possible. And they get high, fast!

In my opinion i would take him out of the tank, put him in a tub of dechlorinated water doing 100% water changes daily, just until you can be sure its not something in the tank. If it is you can avoid any serious concequences by removinghim now. It wont hurt anyways! I would always rather be safe!
Click to expand...

Yeah i'm thinking you guys are right and maybe the test kit might be not working properly.

check for nitrites again and check the expiration date on the kit. If its possible maybe bring a sample to a store to get checked again.
Do what they said about removing him.
 
Question (sorry if this is dumb): Why wouldn't the tank be cycled? I only added about 20% water...I do this whenever the water level gets low in the tank.

I'm at work now, so I can't do anything. I am also traveling for work tomorrow for almost a week so I am at a loss of what to do! A friend of mine is feeding him for me but I doubt she'll want to do 100% water changes.

I'll stop and get a new Nitrite kit on the way home from work.
 
gougeaway said:
Question (sorry if this is dumb): Why wouldn't the tank be cycled? I only added about 20% water...I do this whenever the water level gets low in the tank.

I'm at work now, so I can't do anything. I am also traveling for work tomorrow for almost a week so I am at a loss of what to do! A friend of mine is feeding him for me but I doubt she'll want to do 100% water changes.

I'll stop and get a new Nitrite kit on the way home from work.
Click to expand...

Your tank was cycled which is why you have some nitrate, but something caused an ammonia spike which would turn into a nitrite spike. It could either be more ammonia being produced or something caused some of the bacteria to die.
 
Get a liquid based test as they are more accurate than test strips.
 
I have a liquid based test which is what I used this AM, but I guess maybe it wasn't correct?
 
I say it isnt cycled because there is a ammonia reading and the nitrate is to low. A cycled tank would have 0,0, 10-40ppm for nitrate. 0-5ppm is what I see maybe half way through a cycle. You may have crashed the cycle at some point but i dont believe it to be cycled.
 
I just had my boyfriend look at the testing kit, its an APH master test kit and doesn't expire until 2018.
 
Okay, just got home and re-tested the water

Ammonia: 0.25-0.50

Nitrite: 0

Nitrate: 40

Mugatu is still floating on top of his plants quite a bit, but the gulping has stopped.

Thoughts?

Thanks so much! You guys have been really helpful today!
 
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