Hot weather and looking for signs of stress

[KayDee]

I have had my axolotl for 6 months (first time owner). So far we have done well with his care.

My issue is we are in the midst of a heatwave and at 5.15am it is currently 27 degrees. Our top temperature is forecast to be 41 degrees and yesterday it topped 38 degrees.

I do not have a chiller but my axolotl lives by himself in a large 4ft tank. We have evaporative cooling and our house is a very good design for reducing heat but the last couple of days have been extreme and our cooling system is struggling.

My tank was reading 24 degrees yesterday and i floated ice bottles in there but they melt so quickly. I covered his tank with towels but left the top open but it doesn't do much. A big fan was also added to assist but again, little change in temperature.

My axolotl seems absolutely fine and greets anyone he sees rather enthusiastically. He doesn't seem stressed, wants feeding constantly, wanders around his tank and pretty much shows no sign of stress.

What should i look for in case things change today? Do they show certain stress signs due to heat? I am working today so won't be home but my teenagers said they will check him throughout the day.

Do they rapidly go downhill, or should he be ok if he has made it through so far? Can they handle heat better if they have always been in warmer climates?

My other option is to tub and move him into our cellar which is cooler but he seems fine thus far so do not want him stressed out unnecessarily.

 

[AnimeDan]

Your doing what you can and that’s all you can really do short of buying an expensive cooler. Stress signs to look out for would be a lack of appetite, lethargy, and itchiness. If you just have a fan blowing on the glass of the tank it won’t do much. To have any real effect the fan needs to be blowing on the top on the surface of the water to encourage cooling by evaporation.
another thing to watch out for is fungus on the gills which occurs more commonly the warmer the water is.

 

[KayDee]

Thanks for your reply.

Fan is blowing on surface of the tank. His tank is reading 27 degrees but it might be taking it from the outside of his tank as it is one of those stick on thermometers and I am unsure of the accuracy of them.

I just got home and he came flying out of his cave as soon as he saw me and started begging for food. I gave him a very fat worm and he ate it. Then begged for more so he obviously isn't worried too much at the moment. His tail is straight, his gills are fluffy and not curled. He looks fine.

Right now i can feel him staring at me, begging for another feed.

 

[AnimeDan]

They do get hungry more often if the tank is warmer since their metabolism is faster, which is probably why he’s asking for food so much. But glad to hear that he’s still happy as can be. 27C is certainly warm and I’d be sure the temp doesn’t get much higher than that but he should be fine as long as the tank stays clean and you keep an eye on him.