Illness/Sickness: Floating Axie

If you cant test your water and cant fridge your poor axie you are not giving him a very good chance of survival

im getting my water tested tomorrow...i kinda just said that. And i cant really help it if my mum doesnt want me to put him in her fridge its out of my controll but im doing all i can

cant you sneak him in :happy: hope he gets better quickly

i think it would be pretty obvious...he doesnt quite look like lettuce

Can you keep him in a tub somewhere cooler than the tank?

It doesn't need to be filtered or anything as long as you change the water daily.

Mel

What size is your tank? Have you been changing some of the water daily? I think, given your circumstances, this is your best option. Axolotl problems revolve around three major issues - water quality, temperature and food. Since the temperature of your tank is within bounds consider whether you've made any changes in your feeding regimen. If that hasn't changed it's got to be about the quality of the water in your aquarium.

So, what's changed? Sometimes an aquarium will go through a negative phase where the ammonia levels (and the products of it's break down) are beyond comfortable or healthy levels for your pet. Signs that this might be the case include a change in behavior - basically the animal is trying to get somewhere else - hanging around the surface or acting oddly. Partial water changes are the most immediate way to effect a solution here.

Sometimes another toxin has entered the aquarium somehow. Usually, the only thing you are adding is food. Check your food source to make sure you're not adding anything that might build up to toxic levels (either inside the animal or in the tank water).

I'm not a big fan of fridging since I think that moving the animal introduces an additional stress factor that can have a negative impact on an already stressed animal. I also think that since it slows the metabolism it sometimes prolongs a problem that could be resolved more quickly through proper husbandry.

I understand your problems with your Mum's objections to putting your pet into her refrigerator. I also understand the difficulty you have with affording a test kit or even getting to a pet shop to have them test your water. But, you do have some things that you can do to keep your animal in it's best health. Make sure that you're doing all of those things that you do have control of. In the end that really should be enough. Best wishes to you and to your Axie.

A really nice guy at the pet store said hed test my water for me for free and it came back fine so there is nothing wrong with the water. My axolotl is looking better, his colour is brighter but his gills are still dark. Im changing his food tonight and see if he'll eat it. He hasnt eaten for almost a week now. Im not sure what to do

also i havent changed his food, hes been on the same food since i bought him. so i have no idea what is making him sick

good news about the water at least that ticks off one of the things. Sorry to hear he is still poorly have you tried any earthworms with him?? Fingers crossed he picks up soon

bayhicoach said:

...I'm not a big fan of fridging since I think that moving the animal introduces an additional stress factor that can have a negative impact on an already stressed animal. I also think that since it slows the metabolism it sometimes prolongs a problem that could be resolved more quickly through proper husbandry.

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Bayhicoach offered some great advice, but I want to dispute the above paragraph. I realise Bayhicoach is only offering an opinion, but the post in general is so good that I worry future readers of this thread, might be persuaded to agree with him and delay in fridging their axolotls believing the process could cause their pet unnecessary stress.

Fridging is a tried and trusted method of destressing and detoxifying axolotls. The initial move might be stressful but it's short lived and could be the difference between having a living or dead axolotl.

By fridging them you are lowering their metabolism and removing them from other factors which could be causing their problems.

Lowering the axolotl's metabolism also increases the efficiency with which it excretes waste and is therefore unlikely to prolong any problem - in fact, quite the opposite.

Leaving your axolotl in a potentially toxic environment while you improve upon any poor husbandry that may have caused the problems will certainly prolong the suffering of your pet and will without doubt delay its recovery. Any problems caused by poor husbandry should, if possible, be addressed once your axolotl has been removed.

I have no desire to appear confrontational over this, as I've said, it's because the rest of bayhicoach's post is so good that I fear his opinion might persuade some that fridging their pet could cause more stress related problems, when I believe the consensus of opinion among experienced keepers would favour fridging as a valuable and often vital process.

Fridging is definitely a good option. I have done it many times and find that it really helps with what's going on. It destresses the axies too, and helps them deal with any infections etc.

I just recently got rid of fungus in 2 days because of the fridge and salt baths!

My axolotl is nearly all better. His colour is normal now and his gills look healthy again he just wont eat still. He is getting interested in his food but just wont take it from me, he nibbled at it a little bit this morning. His stomach is very white though for some reason. Its hard to explain. It looks like he has swallowed some sand or something

I'm glad he's doing better! But I would keep an eye on his belly.

Interesting point to consider, Esoteric. You're exactly right, it is just an opinion and I'm not an axolotl expert. Neither am I easily offended. I appreciate reading all of the comments on this board and appreciate the feedback. I know for sure that I am thoroughly enjoying my experience with my axolotls.

Do you have small substrate in your tank? I have lost an axie who ingested a small stone which became lodged and he was no longer able to eat. However, my current axies were fridged successfully. I understand your Mum not wanting to put the axie in the fridge. When I fridged mine I got a lot of negative comments from people thinking it was cruel. In the end it was the best thing I could have done. I put mine in a large tupperware container and put a teatowel over the top to stop them getting scared when the light comes on. If you are in Sydney you are welcome to fridge your axie at my place. The only thing my husband complained about the fridging was that the temp was raised a small amount to 6 degrees instead of 4. Best of luck.