Help..... babies with fungus. 5th time!

[shane]

I got home this afternoon and the babies in one of the three tanks has fungus all over them!. its happened before ive given them salt baths each time which gets rid of it really fast but there are always some casualties. unfortunatly but luckily only one this time... one of my favourites...thats the second time one of my favourites has died from fungus. most of the time their gils and tails curl and are covered in fungus. i have some pics ill find later. i lost 14 at one time like that. but this time it was really bad they had clumps of it all over them, all but one seem to have recovered.
i just wanted to know what is causing this!!! and how i can prevent it!. this time its only been in one of the three containers, other times in all three or just two. it happened enogh times that its just not a one of thing. something is causing it but i dont know what!!!.

 

[jennifer]

I would not say that they necessarily died of fungus. When a larva dies, the body is immediately covered by fungus (sometimes the fungus invades before the larva is completely dead). That doesn't mean the fungus killed it.

The fact that only some of the containers are afflicted gives a clue that it's something infectious. I would suggest trying a broad-spectrum antibiotic. I had a massive die-off of this kind and was able to avert it using a combination of kanamycin + nitrofurazone; the combo fights both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. You should be able to find some type of fish antibiotics that fight both types.

If that doesn't work, you might want to try some type of anti-fungal medication. It is possible that fungus is the primary culprit, though I've never had that experience.

 

[shane]

hey thanks for replying. one more died this morning. its sad cause they are so developed now and some have "personalities" well i like to think so lol. i have some pice here of the last time it happened.

does anyone know what it might be if its not the fungus. but it seems like it is ever time it has been the same. the loal aquarium said that there is probably fungus in the water its just when the tank is too hot or when they are stresed it affects them. is that right? it sounds possible it has been hot lately.

with the broad-spectrum antibiotic is that just for when they are covered in the fungus? a salt bath gets rid of it straight away i just cant stop it from happening again. argh!

i was also wondering should i use a filter? im going to put them into bigger containers for summer so that it doesnt get really hot which im sure it will, its so hot already. and guess it will make cleaning a bit easier.

oh just another thing when an i begin to sell them? i know pet shops probably wont buy them until they are a decent size \. mine are about 5cms. they are begging to have less n less limbs left. this is a pretty bat question i know they ar kinda canabilstic but do they actually eat each other or just they limbs thinking they are food. im not sure if ill need to sepparate them further.

 

[jennifer]

I guess what I was implying is that it could be a bacterial infection, with the fungus moving in afterward. But a feature of bacterial infections is that they usually spread quickly, killing off the entire container in a few days. The antibiotic would prevent any further deaths.

What is the water temperature? High temperature coupled with fungus could be the killer.

Another change you might consider is cleaning out the inside of the container regularly. Transfer all the babies to a clean container of clean water every day or two and see if this helps. The logic here is that traces of food will sometimes stick to the bottom of the container and breed fungus and other nasties.

I wonder if there is some way to keep them in a weak salt solution all the time as a preventive measure?

 

[scotty]

im having a similar problem.. i think i have eggs but im not sure... i left them in there for a couple of weeks and there was no change so i got rid of them... im not exactly sure wat they are but they dont change or start to devolp like any of the photos i have seen on here. at the local fish shop, they dont really no about axolotls and breeding but they said it sounds like i have a fungie around it. i have pictures, but there really bad quality and i was wondering if any one could help me..
Theres a single one ontop of the filter

And there are some more on the bottom of the tank, they do have fuzz around them but its not clear in the photo

 

[shane]

hey thanks for replying. i unerstand what you mean now sorry. it would make sense being a bacterial infection as once one got it it spread really really fast, but it is only the fungus that is noticable. ill have to try and find that antibiotic. how does that work and how often would i have to use it?
with the temperature it hasnt been too hot lately but its going to be so hot this december

i do clean out the containers regularly, especially as they are starting to get messier and messier. i usually get rid of all the waste left behind every morning or afternoon before i feed them and a full clean once or twice a week.
they are making more of a mess now though.

I thoght about the salt thing occasionally put a tiny bit of salt water in with them. nothing that will harm them but ive noticed when i havent the fungus has come back. when they were little the had some salt from the brineshrimp gave them and about a week after i stopped them totally on brineshrimp the "thing" first happened. how much salt though would make a weak solution that s you said woul be a preventive measure.

thanks though for replying.

 

[shane]

hi scoTty i guess they do look a bit like albino eggs. its a bit hard not to notice if they are eggs or not. if you have a male and a female in there then its possible. the pics are a bit blurry. if there is a fungus around them i would remove the fungus-y ones so that they dont infect the others. but if they arent developing then i guess they werent properly fertilized. they should have a clear jelly thing around them but not fuzzy :S. if u can get clearer pic that would help.

 

[jennifer]

Scotty, eggs will get fungus on them like that if they are infertile. I would bet that the eggs were never going to develop. It's not the fault of the fungus; there's fungus everywhere, but most of the time fungus only grows when something is already dead.

Shane, if the problem happens again, it would be worth trying ANY fish antibiotic. Fish stores sell them, but I don't know what kinds you'd have in AU.

I have no idea for the exact amount of salt. Try a web search for information about salt and aquarium fish. Some people do add salt to freshwater tanks, and that amount would probably be safe to try.

 

[shane]

Thank you for all your help. its the worst thing to happen hopefully i cant stop it from happening again.

thanks