Floating Axolotl

[alamao]

Hello,
I have a problem, one of my axolotls is floating on the surface. He has always been a floater but now he just can't get down to the bottom. I am pretty sure its my fault as i went away for 3 weeks and had my sister look after my axies while I was away and ofcourse the water wasn't changed in that time. I come home and he is floating he has been floating for about two weeks now and I tried refridgeration for 3 days and no good. I think it might be an infected swim bladder but how do I fix it. He ate an earthworm yesterday and is still as quick as he used to be as he swims to the bottom but just comes straight back up. Also he has a white lump on his side I think its always been there though. He has always been perfectly healthy in the 2 years I have had him and so now his actually sick I am not sure whats going on so please help me. Also the other axie in with him is perfectly healthy.

 

[lisa5691]

was she feeding him food that flosts? I dont know if i would be the same for an adult, but when my axie was little and i fed him things that floated, he couldnt get down to the bottom. I started feeding him sinking newt pellets and twice as many tiny bits of worms and he sunk!

 

[mewsie]

Hey!

Are you sure your axie isn't floating cause he feels like it? One of mine floats around the top of the tank all day.. Literally all day. He only goes to the bottom at night. He is capable of swimming down there but just likes the top! (Weirdo)

What is the temperature of his water? There is more available oxygen in cooler water, so if your tank has got warm, he may be floating up where the oxygen is better.

Can you post a picture of your tank set up for us?

Do you have gravel on the tank floor, or anything else smaller than his head in the tank that he might have swallowed? Is he floating more with his back end up?

 

[Star]

Mine does that every now and then for periods of time. She floats, swims to the bottom and floats back up, if parameters and temps are all fine and he's feeding fine it could just be he's discovered he enjoys it? Or that the oxygen is a tad low. Mine seems to enjoy floating towards the filter then swimming against the current for a while and floating away on it :s It isn't a strong current and is angled towards the side of the tank she just seems to have discovered it and enjoys it. They are freakish little creatures

 

[Kaysie]

Axolotls don't have a swim bladder.

Like the others have asked: Does he have problems staying on the bottom, or is he floating voluntarily?

 

[alamao]

He usually does float but he usually only float for a little while than goes back down as where now he has been floating for a whole two week and also his stomach has expanded quite a bit. His main diet is Earthworms bloodworms and mealworms with there head crushed. It would be impossible for the tanks water to be over heating as its winter here at the moment and the temperature rarely goes over 20 degrees celcios. I also found plantaria in the tank those little while grub things and I found some green fungai on the glass. I will try and get a photo if I can.

 

[alamao]

The answer to your question is yes his having problems staying on the bottom sometimes he drifts over on his side too and was swimming upside down yesterday.

I put him into a small container so that he can touch the bottom and this hopefully will stop him stressing but i put in a little more water to show how he floats sort of on his side and sometimes one of his back legs sticks up out of the water

 

[Kaysie]

What are all the round things in the water?

 

[scooty16]

Im really sorry to hear you are in distress. Im not much of an expert so I can't tell you anything, but I do want to tell you one thing: your axolotl is beautiful! Looks like it has golden flakes of pattern on it!

 

[alamao]

@Kaysie The round things in the water are axolotl pellets. I was trying him on them he ate some and I ditched the rest.

@Scotty thanks mate he is awesome but you should see my other one.

 

[alamao]

Hello,
Is someone going to help me out or what?