Axi not eating for 5 days, mouth open, curled tail looks dead!!

[Boomsloth]

I have read on here a lot of people with juvenile axolotls seeing health issues with really cold water. I'm taking a long shot on this because my only experience with raising young is gray treefrogs but I'm sure that axolotls in the wild had laid their eggs in the winter months to let them hatch in the spring where food would be at its highest. The axolotl would have the warmer months to develop and grow. Keeping your axolotl super cold is fine when they are adults but I'm thinking it might be better to keep them closer to 18C when they are growing.

 

[Flee]

I have read all posts in this thread and dont see how your water temp is at 7.. Im in melbourne and Im having a huge amount of trouble getting my temp below 20 (i know its too high) I am trying everything and even now with melbourne being cooler my temp is 18 at its lowest.

Maybe your reading it wrong or its faulty??

 

[tipnatee]

Oh no!! I hope she is still alive!!!

I am dealing with over hundred of baby axolotls right now (along with 4 adults and 3 young adults in other tanks)

Sadly to say , I always have and must assume that mouth to be open/ gills all frizz curl / not moving or eating more than a few days / with substrate coming out of her mouth mostly indicating death like 90% dead. ( it's the harsh truth but I have to prepare my self for it everytime)

In the case of under freezing temperature , not looking so well can mean parasite, such as ich (ick) attack but your water was just too cold to notice from the outside look and also can be the bacteria decease which mostly both are directly from the feeder fish and because of fish nipping gill (especially when you are not looking) for the axolotls to stay this long (about a week) with out body falling apart?, The only thing we can be sure probably is to do the final test to see if she is still alive and the best way is the salt bath (mostly use for axolotls ick cure). If she still not moving or coughing out anything , worse case the funny sticky feeling on her skin and no longer the healthy slim she used to have? I am sorry to say that even if she might not be 100% dead but she doesn't have much of time. ( use table salt 1/3 of the fresh water in the bucket that fit her body then dip her in for 5 minutes)

And this is my personal opinion , to me... feeder fish are not food that should be swimming free in the same tank longer than a minute cause they are to fast for the cold water slow moving axolotls to easily catch or protecting them self form the fish attack of decease/ sneaky nipping habit which is one of the mainly cause for their native axolotls to became extincted in the wild in the lake of Mexico city by Tilapia . ( complimentary from the Mexican gov.) Beside getting caught and eaten by human, water toxin from the local framers chemicals and the weekend famous fiesta cruise mariachi boat bands. And yes I did watch that documentary on youtube.