Sick old axie, growth on gills?

This axie is about 14 years old, he/she has had problems in the past few years with not eating, especially in summer and I could swear that once apon a time its gills and tail fin were larger, but it is eating fine at the moment (though still a little thin from last time it stopped eating). The thing that has me worried is that funny red things have appeared on its gills over the past month, the photo shows the biggest one but there are several smaller ones on the other side.

Could they be some kind of parasite or it it the gill itself that has swollen? I can't see any kind of head and they don't move when poked gently (though the axie doesn't like it at all). Up close it looks like a tube that comes out of the main part of the gill, then turns around and goes back in. A blood vessel maybe?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. Yes it does have a growth on its eye, it has had it for years and it does not seem to be growing or causing problems (though I doubt that it can see very well).

It's a bit hard to see from the size of your photo, but it may very well be it's gill/stubs. Someone posted a similar question/photo over a year ago and it looked like a live bloodworm or protruding from its gill but eventually came to the conclusion it was part of the gill/stubs growing/regenerating in an odd way.

Likewise I can't see the growth on the eye, but I have seen similar growths round the head region especially in older axolotls, the gills/tail fin can tend to recede too as they get older.

If you click on the photo it gets much bigger, I'm not sure why it is so small in the post but I had never posted a picture before so that probably has something to do with it. It does look somewhat like a bloodworm, but more smooth (and with no head/tail).

Are the funny red things likely to cause him/her any problems? It looks painful and I am worried that if they break it might lose a lot of blood.

As for the picture, early hours of the morning when I answered this thread, so having probs trying to focus! Here is the thread I was thinking of!

www.caudata.org/forum/showthread.php?t=42999&highlight=gills+have+worms

Thanks for the link, it looks like exactly the same thing as my axolotl has!

I'm not sure what could have caused it to happen, I can't think of anything that has changed over the last couple of months and the weather has not been warm so I doubt it is a temperature thing, maybe it is just because it is old?

Is there anything that I can do to help it? Or is it harmless?

sick gills

did you ever find out what the problem with the gills was?
did it ever heal or go away?

one axolotl of mine has developed exactly the same thing, but the one gill "stub" it has ruptured a week ago and was bleeding badly, especially when the gills were flushed when the axolotl was active. It was a bit frightening how much blood came out.

Ive now covered the aquarium so they don't get disturbed, added a anti-bacterial fish remedy to the water, and been doing small daily (dechlorinated) water changes. Ive also moved the water intake of the power filter so that it is well clear of the axolotls (it was close to the bottom of the aquarium before, and I wondered if the gill got trapped in it). There's been no bleeding for several days now, but the gill "stub" is still there.

There seem to be several reports of this kind of thing, but no-one knows if it's water quality? age? (this axolotl is about 3 years old and has bred twice) physical damage? parasites? is there anyone out there who knows what this is?

Hi Ombry,

14 years is a good age for an axie. That having been said some people claim to have gotten 20 year old axies.

This may sound stupid but if it is stress related you could put your axie in the fridge for a week or two the colder temperatures help slow down the axies metabolism and help it destress.

It does sound abit like old age. Keep us informed.

Good luck

Ian