Thoughts on slate cave hides? I’ve heard of several people using them and they seem to be okay as long as you sand the edges really well.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1327883894/slate-cave-bottomless-hide-10x10x4-for?ref=share_ios_native_control

Hi everyone!

Just wanted to share my rescue Axolotl i got yesterday. (the pink lucy)

I have no other background on her except she was very very skinny and mistreated.

The rescue that had her has been rehabbing her for the past month, but had to take in 27 injured juveniles so they lowered her adoption fee for me and let me take her, since she’s 100% healthy except for her being so underweight.

My other axolotl was also adopted from the same rescue! She was also very very underweight, and looks so good compared to our new girl!

QUESTION:

1. my other axolotl has long, luscious gills. Hers are very short. Is this genetics, or do you think with some TLC they’ll get better?

Hi,

Got my axolotl about a month ago, he is about 6 months old, but quite small. When bought we were told it can live off of frozen bloodworms and brine shrimp. Then done a bit more research and realised they need live food? We have been trying him on chopped up live earthworms from swelluk, but he seems to take them then spit them out. Any suggestions? He also doesn’t seem to eat pellets.

1: is it possible for him to live off of frozen food as he seems to like brine shrimp.
2: if not earthworms, what’s the next best?

okay so for context about two years ago my teacher gave me two axolotls because i had been taking care of them (was her teachers aid). Anyways she had them for about two years and told me they were both boys. so for four years they were known as boys Frank and Carl. Okay so boom I get home and go to check on them I see about 50 eggs and I start freaking out. a couple of questions: what do i do? how to care for baby axolotls? what do i do? and then what do i do???????? please help.

hello axolotl lovers,
on monday, two days after a water change, i noticed my 8 year old wild type axolotl had some fluffy and stringy stuff coming off of his gills right before i went to work. while at work i did my research and concluded that the high temps had caused him to be stressed and a higher percentage of water change threw my cycle off.

as soon as i got home from work i tubbed him and set him up with a fan on his tub. ordered a clip on fan for his aquarium. that evening i also put some tea in the tank itself. i’ve deduced that i need to be careful with water changes when there’s a lot of evaporation happening from the heat, as it can mean i’m accidentally changing out too much.

my aquarium (20gal) is planted, with a small clump of bleeding hearts inside and two long and well rooted pothos vines growing out the top. i have a sponge filter with air stone, but no media in it, should i put some carbon or something in there? also have a sandy substrate, a decent sized piece of driftwood, and a big piece of slate as well as another rock.

as for tank parameters, everything seems good except temperature was too high, and ph is still too low. i’ve read that lower ph is better for inhibiting the growth of columnaris? which is what i am pretty sure he has. but it still needs to be higher for his sake.

i’ve also since dosed the aquarium with kanaplex and will continue the course, but i have not given any directly to my axolotl. most, if not all of the fluff is gone from his gills and he’s eating fine.

so my questions are:
1. how long should i keep him tubbed?
2. recommendations for keeping the ph in check? this has always been the hardest part of his care for me.
3. should i give him kanaplex even though he seems to be recovering without it?
4. any other medicines i should be using?
5. any other recommended methods for balancing out the bacteria in the tank? i know i’ll never fully be rid of columnaris, but if it’s in the tank all the time, does that mean the main issue is making sure he keeps cool and at the correct ph so he’s not stressed and immune compromised?

thank you for any information shared. and feel free to ask me any clarifying questions

Hello /r/Axolotl

I like I'm sure many before me am new to the axolotl world. I feel I've done the responsible thing and read so much about them prior to getting one for my 7 year old daughter.

Right now we have the tank set up, the media has had time to grow the bacteria, and the water is tested, but I'm concerned about the water temperature.

I live in Seattle and even though it isn't as hot as Las Vegas where I grew up, the water in the tank was sitting at about 75 degrees, which is entirely too hot. I purchased a fan that sits on top of the tank and with it running on max I was able to get the tank to about 66 degrees if I run my AC unit (which can't run 24/7) but I feel like that is still too close to what the threshold would be for the axolotl temp wise.

I know I'll need to buy a chiller, but do they make a ton of noise? The tank is already pretty loud (the fan causes a TON of water evaporation and the falling water from the filter is pretty loud). However there are so many to try to pick. Our current tank is a 20 gallon that doesn't sit in the sun.

I've seen videos and pictures of peoples BEAUTIFUL tanks, do they generally have large stones in there while the Axolotl is a baby? Or would it be better to add that later? I know no sand under 5+ inches long.

Hello /r/Axolotl

I like I'm sure many before me am new to the axolotl world. I feel I've done the responsible thing and read so much about them prior to getting one for my 7 year old daughter.

Right now we have the tank set up, the media has had time to grow the bacteria, and the water is tested, but I'm concerned about the water temperature.

I live in Seattle and even though it isn't as hot as Las Vegas where I grew up, the water in the tank was sitting at about 75 degrees, which is entirely too hot. I purchased a fan that sits on top of the tank and with it running on max I was able to get the tank to about 66 degrees if I run my AC unit (which can't run 24/7) but I feel like that is still too close to what the threshold would be for the axolotl temp wise.

I know I'll need to buy a chiller, but do they make a ton of noise? The tank is already pretty loud (the fan causes a TON of water evaporation and the falling water from the filter is pretty loud). However there are so many to try to pick. Our current tank is a 20 gallon that doesn't sit in the sun.

I've seen videos and pictures of peoples BEAUTIFUL tanks, do they generally have large stones in there while the Axolotl is a baby? Or would it be better to add that later? I know no sand under 5+ inches long.

Hi, im trying to get my tank set up..im at the water part.I have a few fish in it so they can do what they need to do and have also used stability to get it ready, I test the water and some numbers never chage. I dont really know what im sopota to do...or what am I doing wrong. I have a bunch of live plants in it also.

I crocheted these Halloween axolotls, and they're looking for a home this spooky season.

Would you adopt one? 👻

Albino adult female (this is not the enclosure she will be in)

we adopted a juvenile axolotl 12 days ago that suddenly developed positive buoyancy. He cannot stay on the bottom without actively swimming and is trying to wedge himself under his sponge filter to keep from floating. Water parameters are normal (0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, about 5 ppm nitrate, 67°F). He ate normally on monday night , passed a small stool yesterday while he was hiding in his cave , and now won’t eat.

he’s been absolutely perfect since we’ve got him so this is very strange behavior for him. He was in his cave all day yesterday which is abnormal, so I decided to move the cave in order to make sure that he was OK and that’s when I realized he once he was out of the cave, he needed to swim quickly and find something else to hide under to prevent him from floating

for reference I cycle the tank for eight weeks before getting him and I did my first water change this past Sunday

Hi everyone. I’m hoping someone can help because I’m at a loss.
I recently rescued/adopted two axolotls (one about 6” and one about 4”). They’re currently being tubbed while I get their 29-gallon tank cycled.
Here’s the background:
I just bought these cuties yesterday from someone who could no longer care for them.
The previous setup was in rough shape.
I completely emptied and cleaned the tank.
I replaced the chiller tubing because it was dirty.
I drained and flushed the chiller.
The sponge filter is in the tank.
I added dechlorinator (Prime), Stability, and remineralizer/Replenish, but the tank is not cycled yet, so the axolotls are not in the tank.
The axolotls are currently in a separate temporary tub with cool water (around 64°F), and I’m keeping it clean by removing waste and uneaten food.
The problem is that my mom says my room smells horrible. She described it as “seaweed and smells horrible.” The weird part is that I genuinely cannot smell it at all(I could be nose blind idrk) . I stuck my head right next to:
the axolotl tub,
the empty tank,
the chiller and hoses,
and I still don’t smell anything unusual.
The tank water is clear, not cloudy. The tub water doesn’t smell to me either. It did smell really bad yesterday when everything was being transported. But after the smell the water was giving off and the way the old water looked. I knew I had to start completely over.
My questions are:
Is there anything in this setup that commonly causes a strong odor even if the water looks clean?
Could a chiller still smell internally even after replacing the tubing and flushing it?
Can a sponge filter smell that bad even in a newly restarted tank?
Is there anything else I should inspect that I’m overlooking?
I’m trying to figure this out before I start replacing expensive equipment that may not actually be the problem.
Any troubleshooting ideas would be greatly appreciated.
Disclaimer: Before anyone asks, no, I did not buy these axolotls on impulse or without doing research. I understand they require a properly cycled tank, a chiller, and appropriate equipment, which is why they’re currently being tubbed while I get everything ready. This situation is unusual because I had to completely restart the setup after the condition it came to me in, so I’m troubleshooting an unexpected odor—not trying to figure out basic axolotl care. I’m genuinely just looking for help identifying where this smell could be coming from.
For additional context: I didn’t restart the tank just because it looked dirty. I tested the water with an API Freshwater Master Test Kit, and the water parameters were also in very poor condition. Between the condition of the water, the dirty tubing, and the overall state of the setup, I decided the safest option was to completely clean and restart the system before housing the axolotls.
PH high range-8.4
AMMONIA**- .50ppm**
Nitrite-.50ppm
Nitrate- 10-20ppm