Sick Axolotl- Gills curled/ lethargic

[rads]

Hey there everyone.

I have two juvenile axolotls in a 20 gallon tank (separated). One of them is expressing lethargicness, minimal appetite, and curled gills. I took it out to feed today and noticed it wasn't quite acting right and swimming around per usual. I also noticed it had some trouble staying upright (it would kinda roll over and take a minute to get back upright). And then I noticed the gills. I checked my water parameters immediately (listed below) and found them to be all within the appropriate range aside from temperature. We've been having a heat wave and unfortunately I have the hottest room in the house. I run a fan for my room and then the tank has its own desk fan going over the top of the water. It's worked well enough and I've had no issues up until this point. My other axie in the same tank under the same conditions is completely normal with a voracious appetite, no curled gills, and great color. I only noticed this starting today.

This axolotl is on the side that does not have the filter as it's a bit smaller than my other one so I don't believe current is an issue.

I got this axolotl from the same place as my first one a few months later (so I got it May 12th). When I got this one it was missing a back leg and a front hand (which grew back lovely by the way- amazing little creatures). No signs of sickness, lethargicness, etc. and has been totally normal up until now.

The biggest issue is that I work 12 hour shifts four days a week so I can't manage the temp with ice cubes or whatnot when I'm not home for that long. I read it was best to keep it at a constant temp vs a fluctuating one.

I'm not sure which route to go whether I should throw it in the fridge and hope for the best or ride it out and take extra steps to keep the temp down. This is my first time dealing with a sick axie so I'm a little frazzled. The rolling thing had me partly worried of some kind of neuro injury but maybe it was just part of its lethagicness. There's nothing it could've possible injured itself on in the tank and its not handled ever besides a net scoop. It also seems unable to or doesn't want to utilize its back legs right now. The EMT in me first thought was some kind of stroke...

Attached below are pictutes.

Tank parameters:
20 gallon, mix of live plants and fake
Diet: Frozen blood worms for both
Fed daily or bi-daily
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 20 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
pH: 7.4-7.8
Temp: 73.4 degrees F (23 degrees C)

 

[AMurry24537]

One of the things I thought of immediately was oxygen deprivation. This is entirely a theory, as I have never dealt with anything like this personally, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

Cold water holds more oxygen than warm water, so with a temp hike, you've already lost some there. Then, as you mentioned, this one isn't on the filter side, which means there's not as much surface agitation to oxygenate the water. An axolotl might go to the surface to gulp extra oxygen from the air, but if it goes into the stomach instead of the lungs, I imagine it could be causing the rolling problems.

Again, this is theoretical based on what I know of oxygen exchanges. I think it could definitely be worth it to try fridging (be sure to look up a guide) since there's not a lot else you can do at the moment. Also, I don't think it would be, but just in case it is some kind of contagious thing, this would also help quarantine the one from the other.

Anyway, I hope someone else can give you a more solid answer. Keep us updated on how it works out!

 

[rads]

One of the things I thought of immediately was oxygen deprivation. This is entirely a theory, as I have never dealt with anything like this personally, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

Cold water holds more oxygen than warm water, so with a temp hike, you've already lost some there. Then, as you mentioned, this one isn't on the filter side, which means there's not as much surface agitation to oxygenate the water. An axolotl might go to the surface to gulp extra oxygen from the air, but if it goes into the stomach instead of the lungs, I imagine it could be causing the rolling problems.

Again, this is theoretical based on what I know of oxygen exchanges. I think it could definitely be worth it to try fridging (be sure to look up a guide) since there's not a lot else you can do at the moment. Also, I don't think it would be, but just in case it is some kind of contagious thing, this would also help quarantine the one from the other.

Anyway, I hope someone else can give you a more solid answer. Keep us updated on how it works out!

Thank you for the answer! I could see that being a thing. I actually noticed some receding/shortening on my other axolotl's gills of the fluffy filaments. When I read up on it it says it could be genetic or due to very well oxygenated tank (so they recede as they don't have to be as plentiful to process the oxygen in the water). I wonder though... it's just a mesh screen separating them but it still might be just enough to cause that.

I might wait to fridge until I see what some other people say as it's usually a last ditch resort and stressful on the axie. I'm already in the process of getting everything ready though just in case. I placed it in a feeding cup in front of my big fan until then to keep it cooler and noticed it perking up a little bit.

 

[SirTorro]

Stress, probably. Do you dechlorinate/treat your water? I’m no expert, but I find that fridging is a good way to reduce stress. If you’ve already fridges them and their behaviour hasn’t changed at all, I would suggest taking them to a vet. Sometimes stress can be caused by something more serious.
You can also usually reduce the temperature of your tank water by doing a water change. 45-50% is good enough. Filling it back up with cold water can usually reduce the temperature by 3-4 degrees (Celsius).
Hope this helps :^)

 

[rads]

Stress, probably. Do you dechlorinate/treat your water? I’m no expert, but I find that fridging is a good way to reduce stress. If you’ve already fridges them and their behaviour hasn’t changed at all, I would suggest taking them to a vet. Sometimes stress can be caused by something more serious.
You can also usually reduce the temperature of your tank water by doing a water change. 45-50% is good enough. Filling it back up with cold water can usually reduce the temperature by 3-4 degrees (Celsius).
Hope this helps :^)

Thank you for the response! Yes, I treat all water that goes into the tank. The fridging definitely helped. Appetite returned but still seems a smidge lethargic.

 

[rads]

So the axolotl in question recovered from its original bout. Kept a very close watch on tank parameters and temp, everything remained within the perfect ranges. I came home from work a few days ago and went to feed the crew and found Lil Smoke seemingly lifeless at the bottom of the tank. Upon closer inspection I found its heart was still beating. I threw it in the fridge for a few days and crossed my fingers but unfortunately it was too late. No signs of trauma, all tank parameters in order, there was no obvious reason for sudden decline and death. I’m devastated.
I’m thinking perhaps it was a congenital thing in the end.

 

[SirTorro]

So the axolotl in question recovered from its original bout. Kept a very close watch on tank parameters and temp, everything remained within the perfect ranges. I came home from work a few days ago and went to feed the crew and found Lil Smoke seemingly lifeless at the bottom of the tank. Upon closer inspection I found its heart was still beating. I threw it in the fridge for a few days and crossed my fingers but unfortunately it was too late. No signs of trauma, all tank parameters in order, there was no obvious reason for sudden decline and death. I’m devastated.
I’m thinking perhaps it was a congenital thing in the end.

This is terrible… I am caring for a sick axie myself and would be devastated if anything happened to him. I wonder what it could have been? Maybe an infection of some sort? I know that infections tend to cause stress and lethargy, sometimes abnormal behaviour as well…