Arrived home to a sick axie!

C

casey

Guest
Well, my brother didn't seem to be home much and it seems like Martini isn't doing too well.

She has a few very red spots on her and seems like she has a little bit of white fuzz. The end of her tail looks damaged and my family told me that she only ate 2 worms within the last two weeks.

I have her in a bowl on her own now and am about to put her in the fridge and maybe give her a salt bath, but I would like some advice first.

She's eaten 3 pellets so far and seems to be moving around a little more, but is very lethargic. When I picked her up out of the tank she barely struggled - she doesn't usually struggle too much anyway but this time she barely even tried to get away.

Please help - I really don't want my little girl to die.
 
Okay, I've put her in the fridge and I've taken some photos of her red marks so that you can maybe diagnose?

Here they are:

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You can't really see any of the white fuzzy stuff in the pic, it's not really that prominent.

I know she really looks skinny too and her gills seem to have shrunk quite a bit. Will putting her in the fridge make her skinnier?

Does anyone have any advice for me? I'm really worried about her. Please help!
 
The fridge won't make her skinnier as long as she's still eating. Try to get more worms into her. Is she in the tank by herself, or with a tankmate? The red spots could be wounds from a hungry tankmate. If not, then some kind of infection.
 
She has a tankmate in there with her, but the wounds don't look open - could they still be bite marks?

Her tankmate, Stella, seems to have been very hungry lately, scoffing food down as soon as it's offered to her.

Should I give her some salt baths?
 
If there is any sign of fungus, yes, a salt bath is in order. I think what she really needs most is to be separated from Stella so that she can eat without being intimidated.
 
septicemia? (sp?) salt baths sound good, should clear it up in no time
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I have been salt-bathing Martini twice a day and she is in the fridge, but her red spots don't seem to be improving all that much.

She still hasn't eaten and is looking very thin.

I think I might create a dividing line in the tank using my plants and rocks and I'll keep my axies separate, the warmer temperature (19-21c) might stimulate Martini to eat again.

Some feedback would be appreciated.
 
She doesn't swim really fast and bang into things does she? I dunno it just looks like some blood vessels have burst but what do I know.

If she is in a smallish container and putin the fridge that apparently take the stress off and she does look very skinny.

Have you tried dangling some things infront of her face or is she just not interested..might be because the waters cold she doesn't want to eat to.

http://www.axolotl.org/faq.htm#44

There are some FAQs on why axolotls aren't eating..
 
Sometimes she swims fast and bangs into things, but I've never seen her do it to the point that she hurts herself, I've also never seen my other axie attack her. I agree Cake, it does look like some blood vessels have burst.

She's in the fridge, but it's my Dad's bar-fridge and he needs it for Christmas day so I might need to put her back in the tank.

I've tried dangling worms, fish, even beef heart in front of her and she just turns away.

I'll check out the FAQs. It's only been a week, so I'm not too worried yet.
 
Just remember that salt baths won't heal skin lesions over night. And while she's in the fridge, she won't be as hungry. Have you picked up some Stress Coat? This contains aloe and might help her regain her slime coat after you quit giving her the salt baths.

My guess is that once she warms up to room temperature, she'll eat again. You'll just have to keep a close eye on her. Feed her small meals frequently, instead of a few large meals.
 
have you checked the ammonia levels in it's tank? shrinking gills and appetite loss can be caused from that. you said the other one was ok though..better check anyway.
 
Yeah, I have no ammonia in my tank, all my levels are fine, I check them once a week.

My nitrate was a little high when I came back from holidays (40) but I've done a waterchange and it's okay now.

I've got Dechlorinator/Stress Coat, which I've been adding to the water for my daily water changes.

Should I stop the salt baths or keep giving them to her until they clear up? The red spots really look like red bruises, will they just heal with time?

Do you think it's anything that she would pass on to Stella if I put her back in the tank? I just don't want to find out that it was some sort of disease that is contagious and that I could be putting Stella in danger.

Thanks for the advice.
 
i dont think it will pass anything on... but then again i havent heard of every axie disease in the world...
keep up with salt baths just in case, either way it will keep her skin free of ickies so that her body doesnt have to waist energy trying to deal with them its self, so it can concentrate on healing her 'bruises'. have these bruises changed shape/size at all?
 
How long have you been doing the salt baths? I wouldn't do them for longer than 7 days or so, otherwise you can do more harm than good. If the wounds aren't getting any worse, then I would stop the salt baths. They really do look like bite marks to me. I would keep her in a seperate tank until she shows signs of improvement. It's just easier on her.
 
If they are not open wounds, and there is no sign of fungus, I'd say stop the salt baths.

If you do move her to the big tank, try the divider idea, although I think they will get through it. And be sure to let her water temperature change very slowly. A rapid temperature change, especially from cold to warm, is dangerous.
 
The wounds aren't open and haven't changed size or shape really, at least they haven't gotten any bigger, they may have gotten lighter or smaller, but definitely not bigger.

I've been doing the salt baths since Friday, so that's about a week. I might see if I can get a proper plastic divider from the petshop because my Dad needs his fridge for Christmas Day celebrations, that way she's separated from Stella, in case it was her that had a little nibble.

Her temperature in the bucket is 10c and the temperature in my tank is between 19 and 21 degrees celcius, so I'll leave her out on the bench until she warms to 19 degrees, then I'll put her in the tank.

I really appreciate everyone helping out. It's so great to be able to use this site to post pics and stuff and get a variety of opinions.

Thanks guys!
 
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