Question: Is this normal for juvenile/new axolotls?

[hannarm06]

My new Axolotl is a juvenile (approx 2.5 months I think b/c he's about 2.5 inches long) and the little dude keeps not just running into walls (which tends to happen a lot) but swimming into the walls continuously and trying to swim into corners while being fully aware that they're there. He keeps swimming upwards up the wall and then swimming back down without reaching the top. He usually just swims up against the wall about 50-75% to the top and then floats back down and he does this repeatedly until he gives up and then just stares at the wall. I'm pretty sure he CAN reach the top as he likes to climb on top of the filter which almost reaches the top, but I'm not sure. Is this just regular axolotl derp or is he entertaining himself or adjusting to new environment or should I be concerned?

The tank is currently bare bottom because he's too little for sand. 10 gallon tank (I know it's small but will get a 20 gallon if needed once he gets bigger) Temperature was 66-68 but is now 68-70 from water change (cooling fans have been ordered). Ph was about 7.4-7.6 which is supposedly ideal. Nitrites and nitrates are both 0. The ammonia is 0.25 which I know is a little high but the tank is still cycling and I'm doing 20% water changes as often as possible which is what the sellers recommended (I didn't speak with them directly but I got a long packet for setup and care), but there hasn't been any change in levels so far. I have a few Indian almond leaves in there to help and will get more plants and tank decor soon, as well as sand when he's old enough. Currently feeding him 1/3 of a nightcrawler cut into pieces every other day.

Sorry if I seem a little frantic. I got him as a birthday present on Saturday (it's currently Tuesday), but it was a total surprise so I've been trying to learn as much as I can about Axolotl ownership pretty much nonstop for the past few days, cause I don't want anything to happen to my baby. Definitely having some axie anxiety. So if anyone could also quell some of that, that would be great as well

 

[AMurry24537]

Short answer: yes, it's normal, especially during their active hours. Mine do it alllll the time, lol.

For the tank cycling I personally would recommend cycling the tank artificially and tubbing him in the meantime (doing 100% daily water changes) to keep him away from any adverse effects. Your current method is kind of resulting in you getting the worst of both worlds: he's still exposed to the ammonia and soon nitrites, and your cycling process is getting slowed down by the water changes. Again though, that's just my personal view. Others do it differently and successfully all the time!

As long as your using something like Seachem Prime to detoxify the ammonia/nitrites as they build up, I think you'll be fine

 

[hannarm06]

Oh I might try that but I believe I read somewhere that doing 100% water change for tubbing daily can make it hard on them as it's harder to acclimate but I guess that's also better for them than ammonia/nitrite so I might see if I can do that

 

[AMurry24537]

Oh I might try that but I believe I read somewhere that doing 100% water change for tubbing daily can make it hard on them as it's harder to acclimate but I guess that's also better for them than ammonia/nitrite so I might see if I can do that

Yeah, like I said, there's a lot of different ways of going about it. If you continue in your current method though, I would like to re-stress the importance of using Prime or another axolotl-safe treatment, then you can hopefully avoid the problem all together

 

[hannarm06]

Yeah, like I said, there's a lot of different ways of going about it. If you continue in your current method though, I would like to re-stress the importance of using Prime or another axolotl-safe treatment, then you can hopefully avoid the problem all together

Oh yeah I've been using fritz complete which I believe is the same thing as the seachem prime as it helps detoxify ammonia and stuff and it also helps dechlorinate tap water

 

[wolfen]

the tank should be allowed to cycle with no chemical interference, using prime whilst cycling (or similar detox chemical) is a double edge sword.
the ammonia that is tested is called TAN (total ammonia nitrogen) which is ammonium (NH4) which is non-toxic and free-ammonia (NH3) which is toxic (this is the part that causes the issues), as ammonium breaks down free ammonia is produced which is then converted/consumed by bacteria/microbes, the bacteria/microbes can't break down the ammonium only the free-ammonia, when a detox chemical is used it stops the ammonium breaking down reducing the free-ammonia and stopping the cycle.
now if the cycle is allowed to continue but you keep you axolotl in the tank then you are exposing it to ammonia which is caustic and will cause burns damaging the skin, gills etc.. then once the ammonia starts being converted/consumed nitrites are produced which are toxic but aren't visibly noticeable of the effects, the nitrites are absorbed into the bloodstream and prevent the absorption of oxygen slowly poisoning the animal, the end result of the cycle is nitrates which aren't toxic at low/medium levels but are unpleasant at medium to high levels (very high levels can have same symptoms as nitrites) these are removed with water changes, plants, special media etc..
tubbing and doing 100% daily water changes is not harmful to the axolotl (obviously not nice being cramped in a tub) and is better than being exposed to harmful nitrogen compounds.
cycling a tank serves many purposes, it ensures that the nitrogen compounds are being removed/converted effectively, is ensures that the tank/filter can cope with the amount of waste produced by the designated animal, it helps to iron out any issues that may occur before adding an animal ie.. low ph, low kh etc..