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Illness/Sickness: help!

ashleyyy

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i wasnt sure where to post this as i am new

i have a black axolotl named tofu and i think shes really ill
ive tried everything to make her feel better
30% water changes each weekend
anti fungus treatment.. the lady from a pet store told me that would work, was a temp fix for her
ammonia - acid preventative
i get all the uneaten food from the tank
i have a clamp on the filter so the waters not moving so much
ice bottles to keep the water temp down

she had been eating good up untill last night when she strated freaking out, trying to get out of the tank. this morning i noticed she got really thin over night.. if thats even possible :s (picture below)
she hesitated to eat today for the first time since ive owned her and shes just over all lifeless
when she goes to get air she floats back down upside down

i also have a white axolotl and he is fine, nothing wrong with him at all, im really worried about her :(

please help

this picture is of her (the black one) on the 1/12/08, she isnt thin

11208.jpg


then this is her today; 2/12/08

21208.jpg
 

Kal El

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G'day, Ashley,

I can see what you mean by 'thin'. Your axolotl could be suffering from emaciation, which is characterised by the extreme loss of fat and tissue that are needed for survival. Generally, speaking a healthy axolotl's body width should be approximately the same as the width of its head. For now, I suggest you remove your axolotl from the tank with the intention of practical refrigeration:

http://bigapple.uky.edu/~axolotl/pdf/28large.pdf (page 22)

anti fungus treatment.. the lady from a pet store told me that would work, was a temp fix for her

Your axolotl doesn't appear to be suffering from a fungal infection, so you should stop using this treatment. In fact, this treatment could very well be making your axolotl more ill. Also, when you administered this medication, did you pour it directly into the tank?

ammonia - acid preventative

You should also stop using this as well. Most of these products aren't effective at reducing the amount of ammonia in the tank. They simply act as a band-aid for the solution.

ice bottles to keep the water temp down

What is the current temperature in the tank? Ideally, the temperature should be below 20 degrees Celsius. When using ice bottles, you will have to be very diligent, i.e. replace with a fresh bottle as soon as the previous one has thawed out. If you allow too much time to elapse in between bottle changing, this will cause the temperature to fluctuate, which will be stressful for your axolotls.

Keep us posted, and good luck.

Jay.
 

ashleyyy

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yesterday morning her body was the same width as her head. then i seen how thin she was this morning is what really made me worried

i am no longer using the fungus treatment, she did have fungus when i was using it tho.. it cleared it all up
it was a pill i dissolved in a glass of water and just tipped it into the tank

so, the ammonia - acid preventative? a no go. i guess people at the pet shop will tell you anything to make money, hmm alright

ive always had trouble with the water temp. ive just recently moved my whole room about to put them on the wall that isnt on the exterior wall, its helped but it still gets warm
its normally about 23c, thats why i use the ice bottles and yep, i change them as soon as they are thawed out so i dont cause them any stress
doesnt help that we have roasting days in summer -_-

im going to do the fridge thing as soon as i finish reading it

thank you jay! ill kepp you posted :)
 

ashleyyy

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shes in the fridge now.. does it matter what temo the fridge is set to? its on 5
i feel bad for leaving her in the dark fridge all by herself :p

shes moving around move now thats shes in there
 

Kal El

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Hi Ashley,

As long as followed the instructions outlined in the above article, every thing should be fine. Five degrees Celsius is fine. Hopefully, you read the article very clearly, and understood that your axolotl's metabolism will be slowed down. A decrease in metabolism is not a problem, but it may prove to be difficult when feeding her. You can always throw in a worm into the container, and if she eats it, then excellent.

i am no longer using the fungus treatment, she did have fungus when i was using it tho.. it cleared it all up it was a pill i dissolved in a glass of water and just tipped it into the tank

How long ago did you give the medication? It isn't a good idea to add any medication directly into the tank. Even with partial water changes, it may take some time to remove the medication from the tank. The best way to remove medication from the tank is to use activated (must be activated) charcoal. You can purchase this from the pet store, but don't let them make you purchase another filter- they're quite artistic that way. Instead, you can place the activated charcoal into a pair of stockings, then submerge that into the water. Be sure to wash the activated charcoal thoroughly, i.e. until the water runs clear.

doesnt help that we have roasting days in summer

I think all Australians are in the same boat (probably not Tasmanians though :p). When I was battling through the heat, I used two 15 cm desk fans, one aquarium clip on fan, placed styrofoam sheets on the back and sides of the tank. All this kept my tank at a comfortable 18 degrees Celsius. I also used frozen ice bottles. You should take a look at this article:

http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/cooling.shtml

Jay.
 

ashleyyy

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yup, i read it all very carefully.. dont want her to suffer anymore then she already is
ive never tried feeding them worm, just blood worms and pellets which both axolotls seem to love

i used the fungus treatment about a month ago.

how long do you think i should keep her in there? just untill shes put more weight on and becomes more active, orrrrr?

when i heard the gold coast was going to be having a wet summer i was happy :p
just asked my dad where he kept the styrofoam sheets and now im going to put some around the sides so my other little axolotl doesnt get too hot :)
 

ashleyyy

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day 3 in the fridge, she hasnt eaten.. you're right, its gonna be hard to feed her :p
she seems to be going well

as for my other axolotl. is it possible for them to get depressed?
he doesnt do anything now that shes gone
he normally has a pretty silly personality but now he has none
 
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