My axolotl fell on the ground :(

[Hannahlotl2987]

Hi all I know people post about this all the time but it's a little different,

My new axolotl Murphy fell on the ground today when she jump out of her net as I was transferring her to clean her tank.
I picked her up IMMEDIATELY and got her in the water.
She's swimming and moving her limbs and tail. She seems okay. I can't tell if she's bruised bc she's a melanoid.
I'm so scared that she might be hurt internally even though she's swimming around slowly like usual.
I don't want to fridge her prematurely.
She snaps at food but won't eat yet. She DID eat before she fell and maybe she's shocked and not hungry?
Idk I'm just really scared.
Do you guys think she'll be okay?

Lots of love and thanks from a concerned mama,
Ariel

 

[keiko]

They usually recover fine. Just try to keep her stress free and the water perfect. If she had already eaten then that might be why she didn't eat after that, try again tomorrow.
Do you transfer her every time you clean the tank? Most axies will learn to stay out of the way even if they are in the tank while cleaning.

 

[Hannahlotl2987]

I have been. But I bought a smaller siphon just now because I don't want this to happen again. She will stay in there as long as her water is at good levels.
I feel really terrible and I am making sure this never happens again.

She is still about three inches so do you think that eating once a day is normal for her (btw I say "her" bc I don't wanna say "it")?

My other axolotl is far larger and in a larger tank so his siphon was too big. Shoulda just bought this small one in the first place

But yeah eating once a day for her size is normal? I can't find a solid answer for that either.

Thanks Keiko I think you help me with her possibly swallowing gravel from the pet store. She definitely did not btw her tummy get fat when she eats XD

Ariel

 

[keiko]

All axies are different, some prefer to eat smaller portions twice a day and others eat a bit more once a day. Even if she goes a day or so with out eating every now and then, it's ok. As long as she keeps growing well and doesn't look too skinny, it's all fine.

Glad she didn't have any gravel in her!

 

[charleybambino]

My daughters axi did a flying leap out of the tank, through the open window and landed on the outside windowsill........and lives to tell the tale....well for me to tell the tale!

 

[Se]

I'm no expert, so take what I say with a grain of salt and other feedback.

I had one of my axolotls land on the carpeted floor while trying to transfer her to a bowl to get a good picture of her the other day. Ofc due to having two dogs in the house, she got quite coated in dog hair from the carpet and I had to take her to the shower in a bowl (under incredibly light pressure, aimed at the side of the bowl, to rinse her off. She may have gotten a couple minor chlorine burns from it but has recovered fine and is eating now and acting normal.

It's definitely stressful for them to be out of the water, but I know with mine, even though she is possibly sick or injured (I was moving her to a quarantine tank at the time when she jumped), she started acting normal as soon as she was in her new tank.

There are a lot of stories on these forums of axies jumping or falling out of tanks and being left out for hours, so I'd just try to keep your tank clean and balanced and try not to worry if she doesn't eat right away. I've had my axies not eat for a week when moved to a new tank, even with perfect temperature and ph/nitrate/etc levels, and they always were fine. But ofc it depends on the axolotl how hungry they want to get before eating again.

 

[Hannahlotl2987]

Great news guys! She is okay!!! She seemed stressed for a few days. However she went back to eating and now her color is back. She's very happy now and low stress.
Growing everyday too!
Thanks guys I appreciate all of the help
Ariel

 

[LSuzuki]

What a lovely axolotl! I'm glad she is OK. :happy:

 

[Hannahlotl2987]

What a lovely axolotl! I'm glad she is OK. :happy:

Thank you so much! my favorite is her grumpy face XD She always looks so pouty