Severely impacted Axolotl…

J

Jo’saxl

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We bought a full grown Axolotl from our local pet store. It appeared to be very healthy. I asked them what they had for information about where it came from, how and what it is eating… and so on. All they could come up with for information was they just got it in and they know it is healthy. They said they had not had it long enough for it to eat yet. This being our first time finding an Axolotl in the area, we bought it with no hesitation. I had the perfect shallow cold water setup just waiting for months for one to make it it’s home. Well, after two weeks the Axolotl still had not eaten. And now at this point I can see the lumps from the blockage. Now that I know what is happening I immediately go back to the pet store and ask more questions to a different employee. Come to find out, this Axolotl was surrendered by someone with its aquarium and full setup. And sure enough the substrate is white, half inch gravel.
Now it has been over four weeks. She was fridged for two weeks with daily water changes. A few days ago she passed a large chunk of gravel that had mostly disintegrated. Now yesterday in fear of doing anymore organ damage I slowly got her back into her 60 degree shallow tank.
I feel really bad. But she does not look super skinny. And she does not seem very stressed, no curled tail or leaning. And no labored breathing. But wants nothing to do with food.

Is there some sort of laxative that I can give her? Fridge? No fridge? Should I force feed? Is that even possible? Please, any help at all would be amazing. I have never done so much research with such little results. And I have no exotic vet within 5 hours.

Thank you, Jo
 
So the downside to fridging is that it slows metabolism. She may just be acclimating. Yes, there are articles on force feeding that you can peruse on these forums. Be cautioned, it is extremely stressful for your Axolotl. Try varying it's diet too.
 
Jo’saxl said:
We bought a full grown Axolotl from our local pet store. It appeared to be very healthy. I asked them what they had for information about where it came from, how and what it is eating… and so on. All they could come up with for information was they just got it in and they know it is healthy. They said they had not had it long enough for it to eat yet. This being our first time finding an Axolotl in the area, we bought it with no hesitation. I had the perfect shallow cold water setup just waiting for months for one to make it it’s home. Well, after two weeks the Axolotl still had not eaten. And now at this point I can see the lumps from the blockage. Now that I know what is happening I immediately go back to the pet store and ask more questions to a different employee. Come to find out, this Axolotl was surrendered by someone with its aquarium and full setup. And sure enough the substrate is white, half inch gravel.
Now it has been over four weeks. She was fridged for two weeks with daily water changes. A few days ago she passed a large chunk of gravel that had mostly disintegrated. Now yesterday in fear of doing anymore organ damage I slowly got her back into her 60 degree shallow tank.
I feel really bad. But she does not look super skinny. And she does not seem very stressed, no curled tail or leaning. And no labored breathing. But wants nothing to do with food.

Is there some sort of laxative that I can give her? Fridge? No fridge? Should I force feed? Is that even possible? Please, any help at all would be amazing. I have never done so much research with such little results. And I have no exotic vet within 5 hours.

Thank you, Jo
Click to expand...
what have you been trying trying to feed her with?
when you say adult size how big?
what is the condition of her gills?
can you post a picture.
if her size was good even with gravel in the gut then she was eating at one point it might be that she doesn't recognise the food given.
put some frozen bloodworm blocks in the tank over night and see if that will tempt her.
look into using modified holtfreters solution, john's solution might be the better one because of the magnesium sulfate which will act as a mild laxative, info here Axolotls - Requirements & Water Conditions in Captivity
food to try, frozen.. boodworm, krill, brine shrimp, mysis, chopped cockle, chopped mussel, chopped prawn, chopped king prawns, live food.. shrimp, small live bearing fish ie.. platys, guppies etc.., you can also try live worms.
 
So one of the signs of stress in an axolotl is inappetance. And keep in mind, your axolotl has been in at least three different homes by now, maybe four or even more. This is incredibly stressful for your axolotl. Try to offer her the food in the way that wolfen suggests. I don't think she's impacted as she clearly can eject the gravel. It's possible she had floating problems in the past and the previous owner experimented with using gravel as a gastrolith to help her. If she continues refusing food, you can definitely opt to force feed, but that should be last resort. When fridged, an axolotl's metabolism slows so I don't think you should be fridging her. That was probably a mistake, but I don't know.

If you can upload pictures, it would definitely help.
 
This was two weeks ago when I noticed the lumps and could see them when I would shine a light through the body.
 

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This is now… I have tried different sinking pellets, just because I had assumed that is what my pet store used, night crawlers, there are some feeder guppies in the tank, and I have tried some raw fish. I will try the bloodworms overnight though. It is in a twenty gallon long right now. Should it go in something smaller for the bloodworm cubes? Or just put a few cubes in?

Thank you for the help.
 

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This is the 20gal long it is in now.
 

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On the feeder guppies, are you quarantining them? Live food should be examined and quarantined for parasites and other diseases...that said...

WOW! You've done a great job nursing her back to health! Her gills look really shriveled in the first photo indicating there was something wrong with the water in her old home. Now they look really healthy. Just keep offering her food, try feeding her at night, and if it gets serious, you may have to resort to force feeding.
 
As far as feeder fish go, yes quarantined and I actually breed my own feeder guppies. They go from fry tank to a one month quarantine and then from there they go straight to different aquariums to feed my different pets. I never go from tank to tank. I am putting a couple blocks of bloodworms in now for the night. Then tomorrow we are going to work on the water quality as someone instructed in an earlier comment. Right now everything tests good as far toxins and such. But I will add the extras in to try and boost its health as much as possible.
Thank you all so much for all the help and support. I will keep you updated every couple of days or if there is any sort of change.

Thanks again,
Jo.
 
Definitely keep us updated. She looks a lot healthier than when you got her, that's for certain. So she looks to be headed in the right direction, keep it moving that way.
 
Jo’saxl said:
This was two weeks ago when I noticed the lumps and could see them when I would shine a light through the body.
Click to expand...
looking at the gills I can see why it loaded it's gut with gravel, reduced/regressed gills would mean either lack of oxygenated water or poor water conditions causing the axolotl to have to get air from the surface resulting in floating, hence the added weight.
looking at the recent photos her gills are coming along brilliantly and you are doing a great job.
 
Sorry it’s been a while. Our house got COVID. I just wanted to tell everyone that our sick Axolotl is doing a bit better. The first night I did the blood worms I saw her eat a small little piece. But she would only eat them if they fell practically in her mouth. And once they hit the ground she won’t touch them. So I added a few more guppies to the tank. But, the guppies won’t go anywhere near her. So I added a few small comets to the mix. And almost instantly she grabbed one. This was about three days ago now. But being that she is full grown, I am guessing I don’t have to worry about daily feedings.
I did the “John’s” mixture for her water, and it seems to be helping tremendously for her gill growth.

Thank you all so much…
Jo & Axolotls
 
Jo’saxl said:
Sorry it’s been a while. Our house got COVID. I just wanted to tell everyone that our sick Axolotl is doing a bit better. The first night I did the blood worms I saw her eat a small little piece. But she would only eat them if they fell practically in her mouth. And once they hit the ground she won’t touch them. So I added a few more guppies to the tank. But, the guppies won’t go anywhere near her. So I added a few small comets to the mix. And almost instantly she grabbed one. This was about three days ago now. But being that she is full grown, I am guessing I don’t have to worry about daily feedings.
I did the “John’s” mixture for her water, and it seems to be helping tremendously for her gill growth.

Thank you all so much…
Jo & Axolotls
Click to expand...
Sounds like you've found her favorite food😋

Some can be pretty picky eaters.
 
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