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Question: Fridging, shell evacuated

Sarah Jane

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Hi, On Monday evening, Bobothy the axolotl, who has been with us for two years, was tail floating. By Tuesday lunchtime (Wednesday night here now, in UK) his whole body was floating, so we fridged him.

Within a couple of hours there was a lot of poop, and then after a couple more he had pooped out a shell from his tank. It's pyramidal and about 8mm across at the widest point. I had thought this too large for him to swallow.

All tank levels are fine, and we are going through the 4 day return to tank with 25/50/75% water changes in his fridge box, but he is still finding it difficult to stay at the bottom of the box. He usually eats daily, and did so last night, but was not interested on Monday or tonight. What do we do if he is still a bit floaty when the four day changeover process is finished ?

Thanks for any suggestions.
Sarah
 

KumquatSquats

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if he is still tail floating (and distressed about it) he probably has more poo in him and needs a few more days of shallow water. does he look bloated at all? i imagine a shell that large could have damaged his insides a bit so id be looking for signs of infection and maybe decrease feedings a bit to give less stress on his guts while they repair.
also check his abdomen for air bubbles, if you see air in the abdominal cavity he needs to see a vet since thats a far more serious symptom
 

Sarah Jane

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Thank you for your reply. He does look a bit bloated, and was turning sideways, rather than tail up when he floated. However, he is the same size on both sides of his body. He hasnt eaten tonight.

I have also now discovered a high nitrate level in his tank, which has not responded yet to a filter boost water treatment, but I am guessing this may take a while. He hasnt eaten tonight.
 
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