suddenly ill axalotal

Hi
I have a pair of axalotals which have breed succesfully ive had them around a year and they seem to be thriving, however today i came home to find the female lying at the bottom of the tank motionless, her mouth is open slightly and her balence when she swims is very poor and she doesnt seem to be using her legs properly. Ocasionly she wiggles around really violently and then settles again. Her skin and gills seem fine and she isnt blaoted and doesnt seem to be stressed or have any lump or bumps where she shouldnt. I change 25% of the water every week with declorinated water theres also a large filter in the tank but i have made sure there is only a very slight water movement. the bottom of the tank is sand however there is gravel under large peices of slate for filteration but they should be able to get to it. im so worried i will be heart broken if she dies. she excepted food pellets earlyer but spat them out about 20mins later.

Re: Please help sudenly ill axalotal

If you don't see any issues... how about poo? I would say to fridge her immediately to buy some time to figure out what is wrong with her.

What is your substrate? If its gravel - I'll guess impaction.

After that - I don't have any idea.

Re: Please help sudenly ill axalotal

there is a small amount of gravel in the tank but i have covered it with very large pieces of slate and sand, i only put it in there so it could have an undergravel filter. could she have swalled a piece of gravel and be trying to sick it up??? there is sand covering the majority of the bottom can that cause problems. she hasnt moved for a long time now.

I know you said you didn't think they could get to the gravel, but perhaps she has? In my opinion the first thing I would do is put her in the fridge, it will help destress her and help her pass any blockages if there are any.
Can you post a picture of her? Maybe someone will get some ideas from a photo.
Also what are your water parameters, temperature, ammonia, nitrate, Ph etc?
I really hope your girl recovers, Kerry.

Hopefully someone with more experience will jump in soon.

Hi Charlotte,

Gravel impaction is definitely a possibility. Sharon and kerry both recommended what i would as well, to fridge and remove gravel.

However, i am also concerned that your axie might have a condition called infectious stomatitis. This is an inflammation of the oral mucosa of the axie due to an infectious agent, such as Pseudomonas. Because of this, i highly urge you to isolate and house your axie seperate from your other axie to prevent any potential spread. Fridging will thus serve two purpose, to heal as well as to isolate.

Axies with infectious stomatitis tend to first present with a perpetual mouth agape look. The throat region may then swell a bit and the axie would have difficulty swallowing and feeding. Would you be able to post any photos?

Cheers.

Hello everyone, sadly my lady axalotal has died, i seperated her from her partner who seems to be fine. My boyfriend said he could feel somthing hard in her stomach so i quess she must have eaten somthing. I need to no intraduce a friend for the male. what is the best way to do this???

Hi Charlotte,

Thats bad news, sorry to hear about your loss.

Firstly I would remove all the gravel. Then you would need to quarantine your new axolotl for at least 30 days before adding to the tank. this will ensure you are not introducing anything harmful into your tank.

Good Luck