Rescued Axolotl Sick Need Help

This one is a sad guy. I went to purchase an Axolotl and the lady had a few sickies that had been brought back, due to poor ownership of course. This guy was actually abused by a guy who was making him jump out of the water to be able to eat. His girlfriend felt so bad she brought him back. The lady told me he was eating worms but I’ve only been able to get him to eat once. I was worried about him so I’ve had him in the fridge the last two days. It seems that his bloating has gone down a little as he was on his back but now he is floating on his side. There’s not an Axolotl experienced vet in my area and I hope what happened to him isn’t normal so I’m looking for helpful suggestions or advice.

I also wanted to note in the shaded picture it looks like a dark purple huge bruise but that’s just the shading which is why I attached the pictures in the light! His veins also used to be a lot more red and he appeared to have a red rash look on his tummy that is now gone. Just wanted to add that info in case it helped with a diagnosis!

If there's no vet you can only do what you can and hope for the best. I hope axie keepers will weigh in.

Is he pooping? and I noticed they are floating enough to be above the surface of the water, or is that just to take better pictures? if they are floating to the point that half the body is above the surface you will need to figure out a way to keep them moist, that's why i ask.

The redness really worries me, redleg or other infections can lead to bloating and not knowing the conditions they were in before makes it a bigger possibility.
Personally, I would treat with furan-2 and 100% holtfreter's solution if possible to cover all basis, I'll link a site that goes over other safe treatments and symptoms of infections.
http://www.axolotl.org/health.htm

KumquatSquats said:

Is he pooping? and I noticed they are floating enough to be above the surface of the water, or is that just to take better pictures? if they are floating to the point that half the body is above the surface you will need to figure out a way to keep them moist, that's why i ask.

The redness really worries me, redleg or other infections can lead to bloating and not knowing the conditions they were in before makes it a bigger possibility.
Personally, I would treat with furan-2 and 100% holtfreter's solution if possible to cover all basis, I'll link a site that goes over other safe treatments and symptoms of infections.
http://www.axolotl.org/health.htm

Click to expand...

He wasn’t eating since I got him but the lady who raised him said he was pooping when she had him back. Yesterday was the first day he finally ate for me and this morning but he hasn’t pooped. I figured it was due to an empty belly before and now it hasn’t been a full 24 hours since he started eating for me so I’m not too worried about the poop yet. I was worried about red leg but he looks nothing like any of the pictures I found but I was worried it might be something bacterial anyway and was actually looking into using furan-2 as soon as I got my paycheck tomorrow or the next day as per the site you sent actually. I couldn’t find a dosage though. Would he receive the same dosage as the bottle says or less since he’s an amphibian?

KumquatSquats said:

Is he pooping? and I noticed they are floating enough to be above the surface of the water, or is that just to take better pictures? if they are floating to the point that half the body is above the surface you will need to figure out a way to keep them moist, that's why i ask.

The redness really worries me, redleg or other infections can lead to bloating and not knowing the conditions they were in before makes it a bigger possibility.
Personally, I would treat with furan-2 and 100% holtfreter's solution if possible to cover all basis, I'll link a site that goes over other safe treatments and symptoms of infections.
http://www.axolotl.org/health.htm

Click to expand...

Also yes he is so bloated his belly sticks above water but he’ll flip around sometimes and his stomach seems to be staying moist everytime I look at him.

Did he make it???