Urgent help needed! :(

[karipatra]

Hey everyone,

So my co-worker, who took 2 of my babies axies, had one leap into her sink and end up in the drain portion. After a little careful struggle, she got him back into a spoon and into a cleaned tub with water. He was slightly banged up, but moving okay and eating that night. The next day, all of the red swollen areas looked normal.

But today, she told me he is now not eating, hasn't for the last 2-3 days, looks pale, not moving much and also looks like he's shedding on one side of his body.

I'm guessing he needs a salt bath and possibly put in the fridge, but never done that before, so can someone verify this for me so I can get her going on this when she gets home?

Hoping it's not too late.

 

[Bellabelloo]

If they are still tiny, I wouldn't try salt baths. I think cool clean water, keep covered and maybe even dark and wait and see. If you have Indian almond leaves, maybe add one. I have rescued the odd larvae that has gone down the plug hole :/

 

[karipatra]

He's a juvi, not a larvae, about 3 inches, born in February.

 

[Alkylhalide]

Salt bathes are stressful and only should be used for fungus. Try black tea bathes. I just add a cup to my tank and do 20% water changes every other day. My lotl got really scratched up and lost a big piece of his tail and i just put tea in the tank and he is healing right up!

 

[karipatra]

Black tea baths? Huh! Do I have her add 1 cup of made black tea after steeped? And should she fridge him? She's very worried that he's not eating and thin.

 

[sabre]

Hope this helps!

Caudata Culture Articles - Illness Part 2

Tea bath for axolotls
Contributed by Daniel Weiner, August 2007.

I mainly use teabaths for minor skin problems. It may also be used with fungal problems but on that account I prefer salt baths. Tea has a slightly antifungal and antibacterial effect (resulting from tannins) and additionally it closes the pores in the skin a little bit (mainly resulting from tannin and caffeine). The skin tightens and gets some kind of protective layer, making it harder for fungi and bacteria to intrude the body. On the other hand it makes it harder for salt or medicine to reach pathogens which are already inside the body - that is the reason I do not use it on fungal infections, although a tea bath is sometimes recommended as a cure for fungal infections by some people.

The medication is as follows: I take one bag of black tea without any additional aroma (it is important to use black tea because this kind of tea is fermented and so it has tannins) for every 10 litres of water (preferably used in a quarantine tank). This tea gets dashed with boiling water in a seperate bowl - I leave it there for at least 10 to 15 minutes so the tannins are resolved into the water. The tea has to cool down and is finally added to the quarantine water. After a week I make a bigger change of water (60% at least), the rest of the tea is removed over time by normal water changes. If you have to make more regular water changes (f.i. in a small bowl or tank) the tea concentration can be refilled. As far as I know there are no negative effects even for long term treatment.

A similar effect (although not as strong) may have the addition of dried oak or beech leafs now and then as a precaution.

 

[Alkylhalide]

I just steeped a tea and added it to my tank, since the injury didnt happen from a tankmate i left both together.
1bag 1cup water steep and then let sit to cool then add. I added it to 25gallons so you can adjust if youd like. I then did small water changes every day lr every other day till the tea got diluted out.

No dont fridge him he is still to small. Try to get the water cooler if possible it will help! But unless there is fungus no salt baths and dont refridgerate unless not doing so will hurt him more because it will.

Hey i sucked a 4week old baby in the turkey baster by accident once an he lost all his gilLs and i didnt dont anything orher then keep his water cool and clean and 9weeks old you cant tell he was ever injured

Cool clean water and maybe a tea bath if you feel like he cratched up his slime coat it just helps soothe the skin

 

[Alkylhalide]

If you can get water parameters and pictures that would be great! I want to make sure the advice im giving you if the right one. This is if there is no fungus or bad water quality!

 

[karipatra]

My friends has him. He is still in a very large Tupperware container, does partial water change one day, full the next, scrubbed out well on the full change day.

It took a bit of manipulation to get him out of the sink, so think he got hurt a bit in the process. It sounded like he was pretty well recovered the next day, as far as the redness, activity, and eating, but I think it must have affected him more than she thought.

Haven't seen a pic of him, but thought to ask if it looked like he was shedding and she said yes, on one side.

 

[Alkylhalide]

Its probably just his slime coat so the tea bath should help it recover. When texas scratched himself up somehow the tea bath helped within the day!

 

[karipatra]

Called my friend last night and let her know what you all said for her to do. She wasn't able to get him in tea last night, so I was dreading calling her this morning to see how he was.

He ate 5 blood worms this morning! whew

I think that their healing ability is amazing, albeit scary when they shut down to do so.

 

[Alkylhalide]

Really, as long as he is in cool clean dechlorinated water they should heal fine. The tea is there to help soothe their slime coat, its like you putting aloe vera on a sunburn. And it has small amounts of antimicrobial effects too to help keep away infection.

 

[karipatra]

I told her she still needs to do the black tea bath even though he's eating, so hopefully he'll be back to normal soon!

Thanks for all of the help!