URGENT! Bleeding axie!

Okay I need some help really badly! One of my axies is bleeding rather profusely from her gill! She had some strange white coating on it which appeared over night - I was in the process of posting about that - I walked out for about 2 minutes, came back in and the gill is bleeding! The whole tank has gone really foggy quickly, the bleeding just won't stop.

What should I do???

Hi Searest,

To aid the axolotl in healing, I would move the her to the fridge. Fridging will help calm the axolotl by providing a stress free environment in which she will thrive (axolotls love the cold). The fridge also slows the axolotl's metabolism, which should help slow the bleeding.

A guide to fridging: http://www.caudata.org/axolotl-sanctuary/Fridging.shtml

It's imperative that the water be kept cool and clean. Issues with the water quality can quickly lead to infections.

Keep a close eye on the wound for possible fungal infections.

While the axolotl is enjoying her holiday in the fridge. Could you please give us a rundown of the tank setup?

How long have you had the axolotl?

How large is the tank?

Does the axolotl have any tankmates? Tank mates can cause injury.

What are the water parameters for Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate and pH?

What is the tank temperature?

Water quality issues, warm water temperatures, and stress are the usual culprits of fungal infections developing on axolotls.

Axolotls have very sensitive skin. Is there anything in the tank with jagged edges which could have contributed to the axolotl's injury?

If you could post a photo of the tank setup and of the axolotl, that would be most helpful.

Welcome to the site!

Hello, thank you for your reply!

She is in a three 4 foot long by 1.5foot wide tank - there is one other tankmate, another axie. They both have the fungus on their gills. I feel so terrible - I know a lot about axolotls, mainly from reading this forum inside and out, and also from owning them. My boss bought them for our office, to make it look nicer and because they're my favourite. The guy who sold them to him sold him... a HEATER. Can you believe that? Don't worry - I wouldn't dream of using it. Okay, so your questions.
We've had Annie for about 3 weeks and Trent for about 2.
Temp in the tank is never above 22 - we are in an airconditioned building and even if it's hot outside it is never hot in here. It is getting into WInter in Australia (*australian axolotl owners all rejoice*) which is good.
There are some decorative, large seashells, they could've been the cause of the bleeding... I might take them out right now.
I cannot post a photo of the set up as, quite honestly, I do not have a camera!

I left your questions about water chemistry until last - I have been meaning to bring in my testing gear from when I had axolotls at home (which, unfortunately died from heat stress) but all the gear is at my parents house, which I cannot retrieve at the moment. I have a feeling ammonia levels could be soaring so I'm glad I"ve got her in the fridge now - Will put Trent in the fridge too, his gills are looking bad.

I am doing a 25% water change every day or so to try and keep these levels down. Annie last ate on Saturday, a big fat worm, so when I came in to work today (Monday) I was quite distressed to see them both looking so bad (my experience is that they won't eat when stressed).

The tank is uncycled, perhaps I should leave them in the fridge until the situation improves and I am able to actually test ammonia/nitrate/nitrite levels.

I have calmed down a bit now as I feel a lot better about them being safe in the fridge, and also as the bleeding has stopped. Does what I've said sound like a good plan of attack?

edit: Also, Trent has this habit of doing this weird thrashy thing.. it's hard to describe, but he's...snapping the front part of his body sideways to his back. Argh, this is difficult...it kind of looks like an uncomfortable, violent twitch. His front and back leg will touch when he does this. Any ideas?

Hi there, continue with the daily water changes and as soon as your able test the water chemistry.
It sounds by Trents behaviour that you have high ammonia in your tank, my axolotls did this 'twitching' motion when my parameters were off.
I think now the two of them are in the fridge they will feel a lot more relaxed. Keep an eye on their gills and if you think they have fungus (which it sounds like Annie has) then you will need to start salt baths.
Hopefully your tank will start to cycle with the daily water changes and you'll soon be able to put the axies back in. Good luck!

Hi Searest,

In addition to the rest, what do you feed your axie? There are some clinical evidence that axies fed solely on certain food types are predisposed to bleeding (clotting/coagulation defect).

Also, would it be possible to post some photos of the affected gill? Also take one photo of the normal gill so comparisons can be made.

Cheers.