I think my axolotl is on my way out :/

Hi guys

I just realised I wrote the thread title wrong... sigh.

To skip the story, just go to the second to last paragraph.

2 Months ago I had to do a 2 week course. I told my parents to look after my axolotls while I was gone but they simply forgot because they didn't enter my room. I'm not blaming them as they are my pets, my responsibility. They became skinny (horribly skinny) and i've been trying to feed them since I got back. I will admit they were skinny before I went on the 2 week course, But they wern't being looked after horribly. Lets just say they were on the skinny side of healthy?

For the past month i've been trying to feed one of two of my axolotls (i've obviously been feeding both, Well, Trying to.) My black axolotl (Blacky) has been eating fine - ish. While at first, weak and resistant to eat, he has come around and is on his way back to full health.

On the other hand, Pinky (my pink axolotl), hasn't eaten at all. For the past week i've been force feeding him a worm a day, but he keeps spitting it out. I felt terrible about doing so, but I was trying to remember the bigger picture. Now today I searched caudata (I realise now that I should of done this at first, and I'm honestly kicking myself for it.) and did the "proper" way of How to force feed a adult axolotl.

The "procedure" went fine, and he is back in the tank with his tank mate, But he isn't moving. He was extremely weak during the month between a week ago and now, and would spit out worms when ever i fed him. He's so weak that he can't get back up onto his stomach... I just saw him in the corner a few minutes ago and quickly turned him over (as in, I acted fast, I didn't spin him over.). He was only opening and closing his mouth at the time, moving only a few tiny degrees. Now he has stopped moving his mouth at all.... edit, read below

Edit: I just noticed him doing that swallowing gulping motion, very weakly but noticeable. Is it possible that its just nerves? :S

I really don't want to kill him by taking him out of the water, because I thought he was dead, So my question of this thread is

How do I know when an axolotl has died? Do they float to the top, belly up, like a fish, Or will they just generally not move at all at the bottom of the tank? Any Suggestions on actions I should take? I'll do what ever it takes to get this guy back to normal :s

I feel terrible about all of this, because again, my pets, my responsibility.I had high hopes after the "procedure" went fine, but now all I can say is that I'm incredibly sad :/

Happy to report that Pinky has moved placed this morning, and is occasionally flapping his gills. Anyone want to suggest what I should do to help this weak axolotl recover? :S

Edit : So many people viewing this thread and no one wants to help? :S

its not that i dont want to help i just dont know how to help you.
im very sorry do you have other axolotls with him or just him?

I feel so bad and I wish I could help also. I would start another thread and label it as urgent to get the help you need. Try contacting a senior member. If I knew what to say I would say it, but unfortunalty thats the best advice I can give you.

I know in my experience with fish force feeding every other day and giving them plenty of comfotable recoup time was the best route...I'm terribly sorry but try those two options asap maybe it will help...I hope she gets better

Kayne said:

Happy to report that Pinky has moved placed this morning, and is occasionally flapping his gills. Anyone want to suggest what I should do to help this weak axolotl recover? :S

Edit : So many people viewing this thread and no one wants to help? :S

Click to expand...

Fridge her so that her metabolism slows down. Keep trying to feed, small meals. As she starts eating better, increase meal size.

Hows Pinky ?

Could you post a picture of her so we can see just ho skinny she is? Also ho big is she?

****, sorry guys! completely forgot, but not for a bad reason.

Pinky (btw i don't know the gender of either of my axoltols) has recovered from the "procedure" and is now atleast strong enough to move when /it wants

I gave yesterday as a day for pinky to get over the stress of the procedure, and couldn't feed him/her today as I had night school. I'll be feeding them tomorrow, and i'll post results, Which I suppose is all I can do.

Thank you all for posting and i'll make sure I remember to post updates! >.<

And im' back with half-news.

I dug up a bounty of worms for my axolotls, washed them to make sure they didn't have anything disgusting on them, and held them for about 5 minutes above their heads. Knowing pinky could not eat the biggest and baddest of the worms (it really was a big worm, quite strong for a worm too), I gave it to Blacky, who was as eager as an axolotl. He gulped the whole thing down and is now in a very funny (awkward) position

BUT, Pinky, on the other hand. I picked the smallest worm up first (start small, since he's weak), and he didn't even look at it. I tried the medium sized one, still nothing, Tried the largest (which wasn't even that large, only 0.5mm thick, where as blacky's was at least 10mm) and still nothing. I tried placing the worms in front of him on the sand, and i've left them there for me to collect later tonight... nevermind i Just witnessed blacky devour all of them. His position / stance is even more funnier (awkward) . BUT, again, Pinky. He's (possibly she) showing no interest in food. I'm afraid i'm going to have to do another hand feed via syringe tonight. Seriously considering fridging to slow down metabolism, so that hopefully Pinky gets over, what ever he/she has got.

I'll take some water samples and post the levels up soon.

Water levels are

PH level : 6 - 7
Nitrite level : 0
Nitrate level : 0.25 - 0.50
Amonia : 0

Those are relatively good levels right? Why is pinky being so stubborn! >.<

What's the tanks temperature? Is it near any noisy things or sun light? I read that some axi's are particular in that kind of way. Also, some pics would help a lot. Otherwise, good luck! :blob:

gemsowner said:

What's the tanks temperature? Is it near any noisy things or sun light? I read that some axi's are particular in that kind of way. Also, some pics would help a lot. Otherwise, good luck! :blob:

Click to expand...

Noisy, Yes. The filter I got is probably good for a tank my size, with normal fish. With axolotls it produces a current that is far too strong, So i've set it to shoot water through the air and hit a platform on the other side of the tank. The constant splashing is very noisy :s

I turned the filter off recently but the tank just got too messy / cloudy.

I'll take a few pictures soon, will post back.

And temperature? I'll have to get back to you on that...

Try putting the filter on the tank and putting some plants to deflect the water so the currents not strong.

Some more info would be good along with your pictures.

What the lighting like?--they dont like bright light because they dont have eyelids
Temperature?--should be quite cold ~60-67 F
Substrate?--no pebbles/gravel correct?
How are her gills? coloration? facing forward or back?
Any floating?
No interest in food still?
Any poo?
How old is she?
How long is she?
Water parameters still the same?
Have you changed the tank setup at all? New plants, animals, filters, substrate?
How long has she been in the tank since you last changed anything?

Please reply with this info as soon as possible so we can help.

I'm sorry that i'm so forgetful with these forums. It's so embarrassing when you are all trying to help!

He/She was apparently around 6 months old when I first got them may last year. So I guess they're about a year and 9 months?

Substrate is a nice yellow sand

Temperature, 18C (or 66F?), Is 12C too warm for fridging?

Gills, for both axolotls, are stubs I've got no clue how to make them grow back to beautiful long strands :/ Gills are facing backwards, and are casually flicking to grab oxygen (as I was told last year? )

Still no interest in food. I've force feed via syringe for the 5th time now since I made this thread.

Poo? wouldn't have a clue as blacky is eating so much that he's pooing enough for both of them, Maybe I should seperate them for the mean time? :s Possibly fridge aswell?

How long, 17cm rougly, divide by 2.5 for a rough estimate in inches.

Water Parameters
PH level : 6
Nitrite Level : 0
Nitrate Level: 10-15
Ammonia Level : 0.25 - 0.50

I also just realised the original testing, The results were mixed around, Nitrite would of been 0.25 to 0.50 and Nitrate's would of been "RECORDED" as 0. If you're ignoring the last test, then don't worry about the past 2 sentences.

The sudden "Spike" of Nitrate would be highly due to the fact that I've realised that I was testing incorrectly. The card says to shake the Bottle of solution #2 for a minute, yet I was shaking the test water for a minute >.<

Should I be alarmed by the amount of nitrate, Is it what is causing my axolotls to have short gills? Should I start doing higher water changes and more frequent cleaning than once a month?

I see that nitrate is the least toxic, which is good, and that its because I haven't been doing good enough with water changes. At least I know now

I haven't changed the setup in a long time. Probably a year. I've moved things around during cleaning, but its all really the same mostly.

They've all been in the tank since day 1.

Also, One thing, There is a light that sits on top, that is on a timer for 3 hours of the day. I'm going to find some batteries, whether out of a remote or what have you, and take pictures now.. Can't find any batteries, Going to use 2 megapixel phone instead, Prepare for the worst!

Can an axolotl go blind, and If they are blind, Could they tell which way is up?
He/She walks around the edge of the tank sometimes, but also will walk to a position and sit down. But Pinky is still (Well for the first time I've seen him do it (or her) in a while) was able to swim up to the surface and gulp some air.

Told you they would be bad >.<

You should be changing the water 20% every week.
Your pH is rather low. You need to add some crushed coral to your tank to bring the pH up gradually.
Your ammonia level should be 0.

You need to cycle your tank.

Yes they can go blind. Yes they can tell which way is it. Animals have a special sensory system in our brains that says nope you upside down or vice versa! The walking and sitting is normal. The air gulping is troublesome to an extent.

I would fridge pinky and try to keep feeding, if not force feed and keep fridging. She is terribly skinny. The fridge will slow her metabolism and help her put on some weight.

Some important notes about fridging. (The 12 should be fine)

Keep her covered with a towel (dark) so the sudden light does not scare her.
Water changes daily. All of the water.
Keep the dechlorinated water you are changing her tub with in the fridge so you do not kill her with a huge temperature change.
She will not have any more of an appetite in the fridge so I reccomend keep force feeding also mix in your liquid a salamander pellets along with earthworms, they contain vital nutients she needs.

I also want you to get ahold of another more experienced member and show them the picture of her. (find them on a forum and click on their name to go to their profile page and send them a private message)

It looks like they have been living in bad conditions and that their gills have decayed because of that. You have to cycle the tank again and do weekly changes along with cleaning the left over food and poo from the tank at least everyother day. After a few weeks of adjusting to the new cycled tank the gills should start to regrow. You might also consider adding an air stone to improve circulation and oxygen in the tank.

I'll definitely buy an air stone since you're recommending it. I'll also now do water changes every week. Pinky is already in the fridge, with a towel wrapped around his/her little container.
Theres a bottle of dechlorinated water already in there, aswell as a glass of regular water with the thermometer constantly in it, to make sure temperature doesn't go up or below.

Okie please keep me posted about her. did you contact a senior member try bellaboo who posted on this thread? and are you working on cycling the tank?

Pinky is being fridged, and has been since 2 days ago. No sign of poop? but still very skinny. Water changes will have to be done on saturdays so Blacky will have to wait 3 more days!

About to go raid some worms to put into pinkys food to force feed.
Crushed coral? i think I have some of that actually, Or atleast a white rock / sand that can go in. I'll take a look.

Edit : I added some crushed oyster shell, which does the same thing (according to the packet)

No i didn't contact a senior member purely because I don't know what to ask. I've got pinky fridged, will cycle the tank on saturdays, with 20% water changes, and will make sure both axolotls are fed. With pinky being force fed until he/she will happily accept food.

One question on that last note, How would I feed a axolotl who is blind? Just continue to force feed?

I have no idea how to help you (sorry i just got my axolotls a few days ago) and one of them has not eaten sence we got them another on has only eaten on the first day. i have not tried earthworms or anything but bloodworms, and the food he/she came with. i think he/she might be picky about food and who is giving it food (like me). but it worries me that its not eating. i thought i might post it on thread because both of the problems have to do with not eating. my axolotl that worries me the most i think is sick because last night it vomited when i tried to offer it food. it especially worries me because the axolotl that isn't eating came without arms because the breeder got mixed up and set aside the wrong color. so they said they had sold out of the color except one that didn't have arms.
so i pretty much have 3 juvenile axolotls and 1 wont eat the food i offer it, and its missing its arms so it is already weak. and i cant even force feed it because i don't know how. sorry about me not being able to help. i hope pinky starts feeling better. anyways maybe you can help me because you know the proper way to force feed them. i really don't want my axolotl to die, like my mom keeps on saying it will. i am sorry if you wouldn't want me to post this but i figured that Pinky and my Gibson are both going through similar things. also i came home from school today sick so i am not going to feed them or change their water unless i get better so i will have to have my dad do that stuff.

Have you tried other types of food? Maybe he wants something else for a change.