Need some guidance please

Hello all
We are new axy owners! We bought 2 at Petco on Dec. 19th. One of them whom we named Axel was pretty beat up, missing the top half of his tail and was being picked at by the fish in the tank with them. When I brought him home he had blister/bubble type things on his front feet. By the next day his gills were forward, crooked tail and refusing food. He was developing blisters on his back feet as well and the front blisters were turning pink. All the water quality parameters were fine (I made sure they were good before we even bought them). We put Axel in the fridge the next day he has been in there since. He is much improved. The blisters on his front feet are gone, the back ones are still there and a very slight pink. So we feel we are moving in the right direction. Should we wait until they are completely gone? My thinking was that after the fridge we would move him to a small 2 gallon tank so he can re acclimate and we can get some food into him before moving him to the big tank. Side note: he has not eaten since being with us nor pooped which makes me think he hadn't eaten at Petco for awhile before I bought him.At this point should I be worried about him as he is looking a bit skinny?
Do we need to move him to the smaller tank first or is it better to just make the leap to the main tank with his buddy? And should we wait until the blisters are totally gone? Any ideas what caused the blisters and hopefully we didn't do anything to make them worse for him.
His buddy Otto is doing great and has grown like gangbusters since being with us hopefully Axel can catch up

Re: Need some guidence please

Can you provide pictures, please. I'm curious to see if the blisters you describe resemble these:

It was 1 large blister on each foot


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Re: Need some guidence please

The last pic looks like a tiger sal

Re: Need some guidence please

Should I be caring for these guys differently?

Re: Need some guidence please

Have a read through these two links. While it is a larva its needs are pretty similar to that of an axolotl. But when it morphs you will need to keep it in a terrestrial set up.

Caudata Culture Species Entry - Tiger salamander

Caudata Culture Articles - Tiger Salamander 101

Re: Need some guidence please

so these guys will absolutely morph? or is there a chance they will stay as is?

Re: Need some guidence please

It is most likely that they will morph.. that is assuming they are both the same.
You may notice that the eyes protrude more, the gills will get smaller and the fin will start to shrink. The legs also get more stocky. I think yours is already showing signs of morphing. If you look at this post by Mario, it shows some lovely photo's of some in the process of morphing.
http://www.caudata.org/forum/f1173-...3-ambystoma-tigrinum-successful-breeding.html
I am a little concerned about the blister on the feet still, but am not sure on how it is best treated.

Re: Need some guidence please

I would agree that your green one is not an axolotl, more pics would confirm this. And photos of the other one.

I would go back to the shop and point out that are talking out of their backsides selling you a tiger as an axie, and demand a refund, or at least shout loud and long until they give you a free vivarium to keep it in.

Re: Need some guidence please

this is a pic of Otto that is doing great! his gill stocks and gills have grown a lot since we have had him, they looked like the sick one's when he came here this is a current pic

Re: Need some guidence please

It would seem they're both tigers, then. You can also tell because of their coloration (I've never seen an axie with colors like that, but it's fairly common for tigers) and also note that the toes are more rounded? Tigers.

Go to Petco, pitch a fit, and tell them they need to learn how to correctly identify the species of animal they're selling. I'd expect this from a small petshop, but Petco?????


(That being said, Otto is a little cutie. Gorgeous)

Re: Need some guidence please

The pet store you mention is a national big box pet store chain in the states that is often popping up in the news for neglect. Giving them your money for an "axolotl" will encourage them to purchase more and thus creating a horrible cycle.

If you are going to return the little guys, there are amazing breeders to be found on this forum.

Re: Need some guidence please

Oh the irony!

http://www.petco.com/caresheets/amphibians/Amphibians_Aquatic.pdf

". The axolotl, often called
a water dog, is easily confused with the larval tiger salamander; the axolotl will
remain fully aquatic unless forced to metamorphose because of poor conditions.
"

Re: Need some guidence please

When I saw these guys for the first time I asked about them and the kid told me they were 'water dogs' or also called axolotls. I went home and looked up each of those and they seemed to be 2 different things the water dog being a tiger salamander and the axolotl being an axolotl. I went back and asked which they were and was told axolotl. They also had some white ones and black ones so with my limited knowledge I assumed those were the melanoid and leucistic and the green ones were the wild type. So I went home and set up my tank and got everything ready and read as much as I could about axies. When I went back to get them I picked the 2 green ones because they were being picked on by the fancy goldfish in the tank with them and I could see they had picked away at Axel's tail so the top half was almost gone. I again asked if these would turn into tiger salamanders "no m'am they most certainly will not morph" was the answer so I went ahead and bought them.
So hubby and I have spoken about it and we want to keep these little guys as we have become attached and I would never bring them back to Petco (I have ferrets from there and have heard what happens to them when they get brought back) so we are going to roll with it. Petco might end up getting an email from me about the situation though.
So all that said I feel terrible and stupid that I actually listened to them and didn't believe what I read and I feel like I should have known better based on their reputation in the ferret community.
Thank you for all the help and the links to point me in the right direction!

So back to my original question about transitioning the guy in the fridge- should we put him in a hospital tank so we can get him eating again or just put him right into the main tank?

also i'm not sure but my breeder has tried selling hers to petco and petsmart but they wouldn't take them, something along the lines because they are a chain pet store and if one store sells it all of them have to?
Can anyone clear this up for me? just curious.