Axolotl Floating Upside Down

I have a year old axolotl and he is very sick. I had him in a 10 gallon with fine sand before, and everyday after I fed him (earthworms,soft axolotl pellets, red wrigglers) he would float as if he was constipated so I would wait a few days till he pooped and then feed him again. However, this most recent time, he never pooped and after 4 days, I fridged him. He has been in the fridge for another four days and still no poop. Except this morning I noticed he is floating upside down and sonetimes on his side. He is swimming and his gills are back. What is going on? Some people said impaction( maybe he did poop and I just didnt notice), some said they float due to under feeding(possible because I stopped feeding when I thought he was inpacted, and others say it is a swim bladder infection!!! Please help me

I know this is a fish forum but no one ever answers on axolotl forums. If you own an axolotl please help.

 

I know they can’t be kept with sand but that’s all I know about them. Pictures?

 

I don’t know much about them but it does sound like maybe a swim bladder issue but I’m not sure. Also I’m pretty sure a 20 gallon is bare minimum for axolotls

 

What are your water parameters like Caleb? Have you done any tests recently? What temp do you have the water at?

 

I know they can’t be kept with sand but that’s all I know about them. Pictures?

Axolotls can do just fine on any fine grain sands. Its mostly just gravel that's a problem.

I don’t know much about them but it does sound like maybe a swim bladder issue but I’m not sure. Also I’m pretty sure a 20 gallon is bare minimum for axolotls

Axolotls actually don't have a swim bladder(I just found that out) so idk where the people that suggested that as a problem got it from. I should have updated yall sorry. Ten gallons is the minimum while 20 is ideal. He is currently still very small about 5-6 inches which is about half sized. They also aren't terribly active.

What are your water parameters like Caleb? Have you done any tests recently? What temp do you have the water at?

well his tank was cycled. Then after a few days without pooping all my BB died off and now I'm back at square one. However I have an extra cycled sponge filter in another tank I'm going to move over as well as some of the filter media fromt that tanks HOB. Currently he is in a bowl in my fridge with daily 100% Wc.

 

Poor thing is in a bad way as you know...

I have lots of questions for you in hopes we can get this figured out and your axolotl well.
- How long have you had him?
- Has he ever been fed live foods like fish?
- Do you know if he has ever been kept on gravel?
- What are your PH/ammonia/nitrates readings?
- Can you test your water's general hardness?
- What temperature are you keeping the tank at?
- Would you be able to post a picture?

I have no idea why so many people recommend fridging so flippantly... Fridging an axolotl should only be done in life or death situations which unfortunately it seems like you are dealing with now. The stress of being caught, put in a container, cooled off in a dark place so their metabolism slows, then removed, and warmed up either quickly or gradually is a lot for a little amphibian's body to handle.


As you found out, they do not have swim bladders. Sometimes mine will swallow some air and end up at the top for a few days until they burp up the air or pass gas. The fact that this guy was consistently doing this makes me think he has been sick for awhile. A picture would be really helpful to see if that is the case. This year is the first in my 13 years of keeping axolotls that I have had to deal with illness! It seems to be going around unfortunately.

 

Poor thing is in a bad way as you know...

I have lots of questions for you in hopes we can get this figured out and your axolotl well.
- How long have you had him?
- Has he ever been fed live foods like fish?
- Do you know if he has ever been kept on gravel?
- What are your PH/ammonia/nitrates readings?
- Can you test your water's general hardness?
- What temperature are you keeping the tank at?
- Would you be able to post a picture?

I have no idea why so many people recommend fridging so flippantly... Fridging an axolotl should only be done in life or death situations which unfortunately it seems like you are dealing with now. The stress of being caught, put in a container, cooled off in a dark place so their metabolism slows, then removed, and warmed up either quickly or gradually is a lot for a little amphibian's body to handle.


As you found out, they do not have swim bladders. Sometimes mine will swallow some air and end up at the top for a few days until they burp up the air or pass gas. The fact that this guy was consistently doing this makes me think he has been sick for awhile. A picture would be really helpful to see if that is the case. This year is the first in my 13 years of keeping axolotls that I have had to deal with illness! It seems to be going around unfortunately.

-I have had him about 8-9 months I believe.
-No, I feed him worms as staple but never live fish.
- I keep him on sand and I believe the breeder I bought them from kept them on bare bottom tanks though I'm not sure.
- my tank was cycled at 0 Ammonia/0 Nitrite and less than 20 Nitrate until he stopped pooping and my tank lost its cycle.
- I don't have the hardness test strips although I do know my tap water is pretty hard.
- My temp stays almost a constant 63 but may range by a degree throughout the day.
I will post a picture.

The weird thing is that he is still interested in food. Ik that if he is impacted, that will only make it worse, but somd people say if they are underfed they will float too. Should I try feeding him?

 

My axolotls have been with me a long time so they have been through the up and downs of life, so sometimes I have had ones get a bit thin. I have never had one float because it was thin. This is of course IME.

All my adult axolotls are on sand, and my sub-adults will be once I get a chance to get their tanks set up again after dealing with a nasty bacterial infection and nuking the tanks. They are all currently tubbed... so over tubbing.

Before I would suggest feeding/not feeding, I will wait until you are able to post a picture. My guess is that you are dealing with an infection.

 

The weird thing is that throughout this whole thing, he still has an appetite and shows no signs of stress

 

Thanks for the pictures. The only thing I can tell for sure from the pictures is that he is thin (his middle section should be about as wide as his head) and a little small for his age. If you are not feeding him daily, I would change to daily. If you are already feeding daily, I would up how much you are feeding him.

IMO, I would stop fridging him, but would keep tubbing him with the daily 100% water changes with a fake plant or hide so he doesn't feel too exposed. Because he is still interested in food, I am not sure if I would treat with an antibiotic. However, is his skin peeling or flaking or are there any fluffy white areas? If you notice any of those things, you may need to use an antibiotic.

Would you be able to get a picture that is closer up and lighter so I can get a better look at his skin?

 

Thanks for the pictures. The only thing I can tell for sure from the pictures is that he is thin (his middle section should be about as wide as his head) and a little small for his age. If you are not feeding him daily, I would change to daily. If you are already feeding daily, I would up how much you are feeding him.

IMO, I would stop fridging him, but would keep tubbing him with the daily 100% water changes with a fake plant or hide so he doesn't feel too exposed. Because he is still interested in food, I am not sure if I would treat with an antibiotic. However, is his skin peeling or flaking or are there any fluffy white areas? If you notice any of those things, you may need to use an antibiotic.

Would you be able to get a picture that is closer up and lighter so I can get a better look at his skin?

I was feeding him every other day because it seemed like eveytime I would feed him, he would float so I would wait for him to poop to feed him again. The problem is, my mom just now told me that we are going up to my grandparents for thanksgiving. So I will be gone for four days. My options are either to fridge him during this time or move him back to his ( now uncycled) tank. Also should I feed him. I will try to post better pictures

 

Sorry, you are in a tough spot. IMO if those are your only options, I would fridge him while you are gone. I would feed him as much as he will eat over the next two days before you have to leave. Do you have any friends that could do the 100% daily water changes while you are gone and feed him?

If by some miracle your tank cycles, you can buy some ghost shrimp to put in with him in the tank while you are gone. I hope he pulls through!!!

 

Sorry, you are in a tough spot. IMO if those are your only options, I would fridge him while you are gone. I would feed him as much as he will eat over the next two days before you have to leave. Do you have any friends that could do the 100% daily water changes while you are gone and feed him?

If by some miracle your tank cycles, you can buy some ghost shrimp to put in with him in the tank while you are gone. I hope he pulls through!!!

I do have someone coming to take care of him and all my other reptiles and fish and stuff. I also have another tank with an extra cycled sponge filter in it so I can just use that If he gets better. I am going to try feeding him and seeing if that makes a difference. Wish me luck.

 

Update: I fed him in the hopes that if he had trapped air or something it would help. He did seem to burp quite a bit but it might have been where he had taken air while biting at the food. This morning, he seemed to have sunk which gives me some hope but I also noticed some weird kinda growth thing on his gills which is concerning. I left today for Thanksgiving and will be back Saturday. I have someone coming Thursday to check on him so we will see..