回复: Re: Need help with my axolotl!! Refuses to eat and has white stuff on his body!
Ah, well thats not ideal really. You should have done the research on how to set up your tank
before getting him, because that is why your axolotl is sick now. But never mind, just make sure you do the proper research now so your pet does not suffer in the future.
You need a tank thermometer if you don't have one - the temperature must be below 21C (axolotls are cold water animals, optimal temp is 10-18C). If your tank is much warmer than that then you need to work out a solution or your axolotl will not live long. Read this ENTIRE PAGE as it will explain all the basics that you needed to know before you got your pet, including how to cool down the water if required
Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity
3 days was nowhere near enough time to grow the bacteria you mention. Your tank needs to cycle, which it is in the process of doing now. This usually takes 6-8 weeks and is quite complicated to understand - another reason why you needed to know about it before hand (search fish tank cycling into google). You should do your own research on what tank cycling is because you need to know how it works (and I won't be the best at explaining it), but it is essentially the growth of bacteria in your tank that will remove extremely harmful waste products that your axolotl will produce. Your axolotl is currently sitting in water with a bunch of toxic substances that will kill him if not removed. Once the bacteria is grown it will do this for you, then your once-weekly water changes will do the rest. However right now there is nothing there to do this, so your axolotl is suffering. Unfortunately this means you will have to do large and frequent water changes until your tank is fully cycled. Its better if you understand the process and have an water test kit so you know when the cycling is complete, but if you really can't be bothered then you should be doing at least a 50% water change
daily for two months. Probably not what you wanted to hear, but thats why most people cycle their tanks before they get their pet. Please understand that you
must do this or your axolotl will likely die.
Once your tank is cycled and set up you will need to do at least a 25% water change once a week - I recommend buying a syphon (
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Neverland-...9018&sr=1-6&keywords=gravel+cleaner+fish+tank) and some buckets if you don't already have them.
Invest in the API water testing kit that I mentioned earlier (
API Liquid Freshwater Test Kits | Swell UK Ltd) as you will need it to monitor ammonia, nitrites and nitrates. Ammonia and nitrites are deadly and must be as close to 0 as possible, nitrates around 20-40ppm. Once your tank is cycled ammonia and nitrites should be around 0 as the bacteria is removing them, but right now I imagine they will be quite high, which is why you need daily water changes.
Let me know if you have any more questions but you MUST do your own research for all of this, its as simple as a google search. There is a lot to know and you just need to read around to know what you're doing, I can't hand it all to you on a plate. Its great that you're taking the first steps to making sure you have a happy healthy axolotl, we just need to make sure you're doing everything right and he doesn't get sick again. As for the potential fungal infection please also do some research on this as you are the one who is looking at your axolotl and will be able to compare his symptoms with others on the internet. If it is a fungal infection he may need to be fridged and salt bathed, but these are risky procedures so you need to know what you're doing and that it is necessary!
Good luck :happy:
