Refuses to eat...

L

lisa

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I've been reading up on this for the last week or so, and spent most of today going through everyones posts here. So I'm sorry if I'm repeating someone, but I just don't know what to do.

My 3 year old wildtype Johnny has been refusing her food. It's been almost a month and a half and she's only had one piece of beef liver. I've been madly rushing around town buying up every sort of food I can to make sure she's just not being fussy. I've tried lean beef strips, beef liver, beef heart, and earthworms. When I wiggle the food infront of her she takes notice, she'll look at it, and follow it but wont actually take a bite. I'm going out tomorrow to buy some mussels and prawns, see if they interest her.

I thought it may be stress as I did have a fungal outbreak in the tank a month or so ago but she stopped eating before then. And even when it all cleared up she wouldn't eat. The last time she ate properly was when I had feeder fish in the tank, and I think she got one or two....
And for a few months before then she'd refused to eat anything but mealworms. Much to my dismay i recently read that the meal worms can internally damage axies, and now I'm feeling very very guilty and sad.

The other axy that lives with her is fine, lovely long gills, eats everything I offer her, very healthy. When I had the fungal outbreak she didn't seem too stressed, kept eating as usual.}

Recently the fungus returned and Johnny (the sick one) and Bob are now in a small 40 litre quarantine tank being treated with Pimafix. There is a corner filter with filter wool and ceramic noodles. The temp sits at about 20 - 24 degrees. Water quality is perfect, and the fungus is clearing. I'm planning on slowly lowering the temp to about 18 degrees over the next few days.

From what I've been reading the only thing that has a chance of working is to remove the affected axie and place it in a container with 6 - 8 degree water for a period of a week or so.
I'm assuming a refridgerator is cold enough.

So failing her eating the mussles or prawns I buy tomorrow she's going in the fridge. I'm rather uneasy about this, but it seems to be my last hope.

I'm so worried, she's starting to get noticibly skinny, I don't want to lose my Johnny, she was my first axie and I love her to pieces. I just don't know what to do anymore.

Any ideas would be eternally appreciated.

(Message edited by lisapie on January 21, 2005)
 
Lisa - a month and a half is (to me) a long time for an axolotl to go without feeding.

I will try and address some of your points, however I do not claim to be "the axolotl whisperer".

You said the temp is 20-24 degrees, I will assume Celsius since you are in Australia. 24 Celsius is 75 degrees Fahrenheit and too warm. The stress from that alone could make it stop eating. You can try floating containers of ice in the tank and using a fan to blow across the top of the water to lower the temp. You need to find a way to lower the temp and not let it swing up and down.

I would stop feeding the liver, heart and strips of steak. Though the older information on feeding axolotls recommended those very items as a food source, it has since been recommended that no mammal meat is used as a staple food source.

Night crawlers and soft moist salmon pellets seem to be the recommended foods of choice.

I read the same thing about meal worms possibly harming the insides of the axolotl. Axolotls are great regenerators, perhaps they can recover from that. I do not know.

You said it had feeder fish in with it, it is possible it caught something from the fish. I do not recommend feeding feeder fish unless you have raised them your self and are sure they are healthy. And even then I would only feed them once in a while for a treat.

Could your axolotl of swallowed a rock or other decoration in your tank?

Let us know how things go.
 
The water temperature doesn't seem to bother the other axolotl who is in the same tank. As I mentioned she is perfectly healthy and always eats everything she's offered.

I've trying to find some salmon or trout pellets at the moment, although I'm not having much luck.

I doubt Johnny could have swallowed something, the pebbles in my tank are pretty big.

I'm coming to terms with the fact I might have to put her to sleep. Could anyone recommend a humane way to do this?
 
I would not give up yet. The advice at www.axolotl.org (the sister site to caudata.org) says :

44. "My axolotl has stopped eating - what's wrong??"

This is a common result of the axolotl being kept at too high a temperature (over 24 or 25 °C / 77 °F). Often it's caused by a bacterial problem. If you're really lucky, cooling it down to a more reasonable temperature (somewhere between 14 °C (57 °F) and 22 °C (72 °F), or at most, 25oC ( 77F) will let it recover and it should begin to eat again. If this doesn't work after a few days, it may be worth keeping the Axolotl at a temperature between 5 and 10 °C (41-50 °F) which can aid the Axolotl's recovery. Below about 12 °C, you won't need to feed the Axolotl. Keep it this way for a 10-14 days and then slowly warm it back to a more normal temperature (14 °C / 57 °F to 22 °C / 72 °F) and then try feeding it again. If this doesn't work, the axolotl may need antibiotic treatment (see the Health Page).

You could try and find a vet to assist you in the selection and administration of antibiotics. A vet could also xray and see if there is a stone in Johnny's gut.
 
Does anyone know of a vet in Melbourne, Australia who would know how to give antibiotics to an axolotl?
 
She took a turn for the worse and I had to put her to sleep this morning, thank you to everyone who tried to help.
 
I'm so sorry to hear that Lisa, its terrible news.

Is Bob still in good health?
 
Thankyou. Bob is just fine, although I think she's a little lonely. I thought I might post some pics.
29700.jpg

Bob
29701.jpg

Johnny and Bob, a couple of weeks ago.
29702.jpg

Johnny, RIP
 
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