Illness/Sickness: My axies gills are small

[BadLilMama]

My axies gills seem really tiny compared to the pictures on here - hes my first axie and all the advice online is quite general, but i am concerned - are they small and if so what can i do to fix him?

 

[dazkeirle]

If thats him in the pic I wouldn't be concerned, they are very long and look beautiful. He looks like a juvenile and the gills will grow longer as he gets older.

Gills are mostly down to genetics although good water parameters and temperatures are said to come into play.

To be honest nobody knows definitively how to make gills longer or shorter, it just happens.

To ensure they stay as they are make sure you keep the water clean, temperature down and don't introduce fish (who may nibble at them). This way you'll keep infection and fungus out and your axie will remain healthy.

 

[BadLilMama]

thankyou! you put my mind at rest i am so nervous of doing something wrong i even worry he's the right colour! thankyou

 

[dazkeirle]

put up a few larger images and we'll give him a good looking over if you want to put your mind at rest.

From your profile picture though I can assure you there is nothing wrong with his gills.

Colouring is so random and varied that it cannot be used as an indicator of health, unless of course there are irregular patches of white which can indicate illness however this is rare.

Axie are fairly hardy if you get the basics right.

In my sig are the parameters which are recommended.

Ensure the tank is setup with a substrate which cannot cause impaction, feed a good nutritious diet, and do daily spot checks for waste and clean up.

Most importantly give him plenty of TLC and attention. That's all they need.

Of course if you need anything, we're always here, because like you will soon be, we are Axie mental.

 

[BadLilMama]

i think my tank levels are all right, thereis just some thing niggling and since i dont know anyone who has them - even my vet doesnt know them! i had to travel a loooooong way just to buy him! but here are some pics - anything you spot will be a help!! i think im going axie mental already - planning to get another eventually but want to make Hedwig happy first

 

[daremo]

I think they look good, some axies have longer and fuzzier gills, others have less... mine is just like that one (but he has half of his left gills!!) and she still does great

by the way, that substrate is risky.... the axie will probably eat it...

 

[dazkeirle]

Look like a cute little Albino, to be honest the gills are beautifully long however they do appear a little low on filament.

Good news is that filament is fairly easy to grow back, it's the stalks that often don't regenerate.

Has the filament (fluffy bits) always been so sparse or is this a recent thing?

Now the bad news, if you want your axie to survive, trouble free, you need to get rid of those pebbles ASAP.

Treat it as an emergency as those are just about the right size to cause problems, small enough to eat but not big enough to pass. If swallowed impaction may occur, resulting in poor health and eventually death.

Get the little fella out right away and maybe store him in the fridge to chill him out. Empty the tank of all pebbles.

If you suspect he may have already swallowed some then leave him fridged and hopefully he will regurgitate them.

Please follow this advice, pebbles of that size are very dangerous. There are many stories of issues caused by pebbles much larger (see my sig) and also much smaller (see my own personal story of "A diary of Fred" on the main page.)

If you don't know your water parameters exactly, you really need to find them out. Get yourself an API Master Test Kit, preferably before putting the little fella back in.

 

[BadLilMama]

thanks guys i realised about the pebbles - im goin to get some aquarium sand tonight, he is eating etc so i hope that he hasnt eaten any how long should i fridge him for and what in? the filaments on his gills were like this pic when i first got him

 

[dazkeirle]

hmm they do appear to have reduced which could indicate an issue with water quality, temperature or disease (fungus). Have you seen any white cotton like fungus on his gills?

Either way the best course of action is get him out of that aquarium and away from the pebbles for now.

If he has had an issue with fungus, the course of action to take is salt baths (See link in my sig).

I cannot stress how important it is to test your water, and make sure it's ok, before putting him back in.

Then if all is well and the tank is not yet cycled perform daily water changes until cycling is complete.

As for whether he's eaten any stones, it's hard to tell unless there are lumps or other issues like him not eating, floating, being sick etc.

Shine a torch on him when in a shallow container and you may be able to see a silhouette of a stone.

If there are no problems indicating that he has swallowed some, then don't worry, you may have dodged that bullet, but get him out before it can occur.

If he has, then a period in the fridge may help him pass it or regurgitate. However I wouldn't do this unless you can be sure there's an issue in the first place.

I hope that helps, we'll get the little fella right as rain

 

[BadLilMama]

i cant see any cottony stuff on him he has a few white speckles on his gills like in the photos is this fungus? i dont want to salt bath him if he doesnt need it. im goin to fridge him until i get the sand though

 

[daremo]

he looks normal

I don't see why fridge him, do you think he ate stones??

You can just put him in a container while you remove the stones and get him back into his tank...

He is looking great

 

[ted22]

Your axie looks great some axie just have smaller gills than others I wouldnt worry (daz has put you on the right track) as he said it is imperative that you get those stones out asap but apart from that he looks great you will probably find that the white dots around the gills are bits of iridescent pigment my goldie is covered in em looks like hes covered in specks of gold leaf dont know what they would look like in a white albino but its very probable that this is what you are seeing and not fungus (fungus is very cottony and fluffy!) Gills may change size depending on amount of dissolved oxygen in the water cooler temps and surface agitation will help increase oxygen levels and may increase gill size, either way its nothing to worry about theyve got a set of lungs and breathe through their skin too if they cant get enough through their gills so dont worry! He looks like a beautiful little axie, just listen to what all of us on here have to say and you wont put a foot wrong!

Take it easy

Ed

 

[BadLilMama]

thanks guys!! you're heroes!! i got rid of the stones and got sand and as soon as its all clear and he's back in I'll post a pic thank you guys for all your help i feel better now!!

 

[dazkeirle]

That's really great.

You will have earnt yourself an enormous amount of respect here by heeding the advice given and doing the best for your Axie.

We were all beginners once, and almost all of us made some mistakes to start with, it's only natural. Axies are very strange critters.

Make sure you stick around, and keep us updated with his developments, and those of your next Axie, there will be more....

 

[BadLilMama]

thanks im just glad i had somewhere to ask !! here is the new tank & sand i think it looks great

 

[BadLilMama]

btw am i right in thinking he is a boy :rofl:

 

[dazkeirle]

it's hard to tell without a close up of the cloaca area, and knowledge of age.

It doesn't look large though and so if it is mature I suspect a female (I'm no the biggest expert at this though)

Well done with your new tank, looks great and is far better suited to your Axie. She will love you for it for many many years longer than she would have with the stones.

 

[BadLilMama]

s/he is about 8 months old,

 

[BadLilMama]

from comparing cloaca on here Axolotls - Biology i would tend to agree with you, unless something changes as she gets older

 

[Crysta]

Well it's too soon to tell really, I'd say wait at least another year to make a definitive estimate.
but for now Hedwig? is a lovely girl x)