Stringy Fungus On Gills

[Goon]

So i notice my one of my axies gills became white string like and what ive read up so far it seems to be fungus infection. i was wondering with constant water change and temp at 66-68, would the fungus go away or would i absolutely need to give him a salt bath? also i do see the fungus fall off and floating in the tank which i plan on doing a massive water change and remove majority of sand substrate to attempt to remove any bits of the fungus that are in the sand.

also are there any tips on preventing this in the future? ive had him for close to 2 months and hes literally grown 2.5-3 inches within that time period his behavior hasnt changed either he is quite active and always playing in the bubbles of my air stone. the only the thing i could think of causing this was a ornament ive added and recently feeding him shrimp pellets

 

[Donna001]

I've only been keeping axolotls for around 2 months, so can't give advice based on experience, but have posted these links, which I hope will help.
Caudata Culture Articles - Illness Part 1
Axolotls - Health & Diseases
Please post some pictures of your axolotl so that the more experienced keepers can give their advice, and keep s updated on progress.
best of luck.
:happy:

 

[Skudo09]

Fungus is usually present in most aquariums but does not usually cause any problems unless there is a breach in the protective slime coat of the axolotl. This can happen due to injury or trauma, secondary to another illness or infection or poor water quality. So it is probably not necessary to remove the sand if this is a fungal infection. For mild fungal infections, salt baths are usually not necessary and if you can solve the fungal issue without salt baths this is preferable as salt baths are irritating to the skin. Firstly though, it is important to ensure that we are dealing with a fungal infection and not something else. Does the stringy stuff appear fluffy (like cotton wool)? Post some photos here so we can get a better idea of what we are dealing with. Secondly, it is usually best to work out why there is a fungal infection present (assuming this is the correct diagnosis). Testing the parameters is both important to rule out water quality and correct any issues there and to ensure optimum water quality to promote healing. Mild fungal infections may simply go away by ensuring optimum water quality. But post some photos and your parameters here and we can get a better idea of what we are dealing with.

 

[Goon]

my sand substrate was well over 3 cm, i removed it last night and it had a rotting/fart smell which definatly could not be good . i knew i had to stir it up to prevent anaerobic gas/ bacteria but i just kept on forgetting and was not able to keep it stir weekly that is the reason why im removing majority of the sand but not all.i also think its the reason why the fungus has occur. i cant really post pictures right now due to not being home but im 90 percent sure its fungus on the gills from reading and comparing the pictures in the info to my own axies.

his gills dont look severe at all, i couldnt tell until a sibling came in with a flashlight to look at him (i dont use light in my tank). i am hoping to stick this out without using a salt bath

 

[Donna001]

I hope that you can get through this without salt baths too. :happy: