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Swollen stomachs! Please help!

Velaria

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I am raising 25 axolotls. They are all a little bit over two inches long now, and almost five months old. There are two with problems:

1) Baby #1 is an axie of whom I have posted pictures on this forum in the past. He has developmental problems with his limbs. His front legs are very small and short, and his hind legs are almost nonexistant. They're tiny little stubs and you can only see them if you look very closely. I haven't had the heart to euthanize him, so I figured I would just raise him, keep him as a pet and let him have as happy of a life as possible, and of course, not allow him to breed. His stomach is extremely fat, but I don't believe that he has a gas bubble because he is not floating in any way and I cannot see any air in his stomach. He seems to be happy and healthy, and he's eating regularly. Given the fact that his limbs are malformed, I wonder if his stomach is malformed as well??

2) Baby #2 has been floating upside down for the past three days now. I've made the water level in his container very low (just enough to cover him) in hopes that this would make it easier for him to keep himself right side up, and sometimes, I'll notice that he is right side up, but it's only sometimes. A few of my other babies have had gas bubbles in the past, but they've expelled them and are fine now. The point I'm making is that when my other babies had gas bubbles, the air bubbles in their stomachs were clearly visible. This baby, however, does not have any visible air in his stomach. He just seems to be "fat". But he's eating and moving around, so I'm hoping that this issue will come to pass.

All of my babies are kept in separate containers, so they never come in contact with each other. Also there is nothing in their containers (gravel or other things) that they could have swallowed, aside from their food (bloodworms). Each container holds one axolotl, some bloodworms, and some water. That's all.

Please help. I don't know what to think.
 

Kerry1968

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Hello, I don't know the answers to your queries, but I know the first thing that'll be asked by the more knowledgable here is can you post any photos?
The first baby, is it just his stomach fat or is he fat all over? He's not just a well-fed baby? Have you noticed if he's still passing motions? (poo)
The second baby, my thoughts are to refrigerate him, but probably difficult with a young larva as they need to eat every day. Sorry, I just had another look at your post, I think at 5 months old it might be safe to fridge the second baby. That's what I would do with a 'floater', I hope someone with more experience/knowledge jumps in soon, good luck.
 

Darkmaverick

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Hi Velaria,

Have a look at this site. http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/why_larvae_die.shtml
(Also note the sophisticated, elegant and newly revamped layout and marvel in awe).

There is a picture there of a case of bloat. Does this look similar? I will not be surprised if there are other deformities affecting the internal organs. It doesn't have to be restricted to only the stomach. Liver, kidney, heart problems etc. can all lead to a case of metabolic dysfunction and bloat.

I would try transferring the floating axie to shallower waters with plenty of floating plants.

Cheers.
 

Darkmaverick

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Hi Velaria,

I think i got some bad news for you. I found this while researching for an answer for you.

"Short toes is a recessive lethal mutation involving the kidneys, the Mullerian ducts and the limbs. It was first described by Humphrey (1967b) and has since been of interest especially to researchers who study limb development and regeneration (e.g., Mescher, 1993; Tsonis et al., 1993). Mutant animals can be readily identified by their short limbs and, especially, the reduced number of phalanges once front limb development is complete. Ascites, due to the incomplete development of the Mullerian ducts, becomes apparent only in the older juvenile. Homozygotes die of renal failure at about one year. "

Have a look at this link. There are pictures there that somewht resemble your axie. http://www.ambystoma.org/AGSC/mutantslist.htm#s

At this point of time, euthanasia is a valid option. You should consider that option to avoud putting your axie through all the suffering and misery.

Regards.
 
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