My Axolotl floats....why?

[nick]

Hi all,

I have been the owner of two Axolotls for about a month now. They have settled in pretty well but I am trying to interpret their behaviour to determine how they are going. The albino Axolotl seems to linger mainly around the lower part of the tank. He (not sure of the gender, how do you tell if they are M/F?) just crawls around the rocks. However, the other yellow Axolotl floats around constantly right near the surface of the water. He's up there all the time and occasionally it looks like he's gulping out of the water. The yellow one also seems a lot more aggressive when feeding. My tank is around 21C.

Would appreciate any feedback as I get to grips with these strange creatures.

Nick from Australia.

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[john]

<font color="ff0000">I've moved this to the Axolotl Help section - please make sure you post in the correct topic next time.</font>

 

[swiftrat]

Hey Nick, you can tell the gender this way:

Females have a smaller cloacal bump and tend to have flat, broad heads. The males have a slightly larger cloacal bump and they have slightly narrower/longer heads.

As for the floating, could just be gas buildup in their guts or lack of oxygen in the water - do you have a filter/airstone running (gently)?

 

[mik]

Go into foto gallery and checkout recent post on gender. I put two pics in there of what to look for.

It should be very clear as to how to tell the gender.

Regards,

 

[ebbie]

Hi Nick
I am a recent axi owner too. My Little guy, Church, was floating alot and I was concerned. I looked around on the net and found he did have a gas problem. I lowered the water level so it just covered him (This lets them put their feet on the ground and therefore stress less) I also lowered the temp of the water by putting in ice cubes, and a froze bottle of water. This is because the wrong temp water can cause the gas.He was happier but still not right, so I gently rubbed his sides. This is all stuff I looked up, but worked like a charm for me! Hope it helped

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[kelly]

Hey Nick,

Mine do that sometimes too. Apparently it's either that when they go to the surface for air they accidentally swallow water that goes to their stomach and they become off-balance or swim at the surface of the water. That usually goes away by itself but if it doesn't you may have to take it to the vet.

The other thing is that it might have too much mucus on its coat and gills, and it hugs the surface of the water and the filter. For that you're supposed to give it a 2 minute bath in 3% saline (salty water).

Make sure you keep the water conditions good and the filter working.

Cheers.

 

[tina]

hey
I need help my axolotl is barely eating, is floating, seems to be gulping at the air, has shrunk in size, has turned a broen colour he was yellow, he has a little spot on his head that id darkish. please help me!!!!

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[nick]

Hi everyone,

Thanks heaps for your responses. My floating yellow guy has descended to the bottom of the tank for now. I think my water is a little too warm Ebbie, the frozen bottle of water is a good idea. It is currently at 21C but should be around 17C. Filtration is good, Swiftrat, is an air stone just a pipe in an ornament that releases air bubbles into the water? If so I have one of those two on a fairly slow release. The critters are doing ok now but I will read up on the gender and determine their sex. I have two and would obviously like to know if one is male and the other one female!

Thanks,
Nick.


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