Rotting/attacked limbs: disease or companion?

[sliemm]

I came back from a weekend away to find one of my axolotls, Howard, with two rotting forelimbs - one of which is quite useless, and hanging - and the end chunk of tail missing. He has a larger companion, Vince, and they've gotten along wonderfully for over 3 years; Vince, however, has always eaten more than Howard, and outgrown him over the years.

I wonder if Vince hasn't attacked him - if so, it's been done repeatedly. The forelimbs are quite massacred, with flesh hanging off.

What should I do? I've separated Howard into a bucket and covered it with a towel for darkness and cool. I'm hoping his limbs either heal, or drop off and regrow, and the same for his tail - although it'll be difficult for him to swim with no forelimbs.

I'm also unsure whether it was Vince that did this, or whether it is some sort of disease.

 

[Hayleyy]

I am almost 100% sure Vince has gone for a few chomps. It has happened to me (well, not me but Bucky lol) when I kept two different sized axolotls together. A chunk of tail was also taken out recently with two axolotls of the same size
The good thing is Howard should recover completely for the most part. They're not rotting but are probably just stripped. Post some pics so we can see them, and have a point of comparison as they heal.
Keep Howard in a tub where you can change the water every day (having 2 tubs is a good idea so you can just transfer him when changing the water). Keep it cool, under 18 degrees. A small fan should help if you're having trouble with temps.
Depending on damage the limbs will either heal over or fall off then heal. I'll post a pic of Bucky halfway through his healing and now so you can see Regeneration is a really cool thing to watch, although circumstances are not great lol They may not heal 100% perfectly, either size differences and/or less/more fingers, but it adds character.
How big is the tank, how many hides are there and how often are they fed? If there is a considerable size difference it probably is better to either have them in different tanks or use a sturdy divider, even if they have lived together for so long without incident.

 

[sliemm]

Thanks for the reply. Pics are attached of Howard's forelimbs and tail. Over the past year or so the difference between he and Howard has been growing; Howard just isn't a great eater, he's stayed very small and skinny while Vince has packed on the pounds and grown in length. I'm hoping it's not a case of Vince bullying him from now on.

I'll keep Howard in a separate tub for now (it's about 50cm x 35cm) and change the water - I'm guessing every 2 days or so?

I have read about fridging, and I'm prepared to do it if it will help him heal. Do you think this is necessary?

 

[Hayleyy]

Poor guy! It doesn't look as bad as I initially thought so you should see it heal pretty well. You don't need to fridge unless you can't keep his tub at a cool temperature.
If you can you want to change the water every day, just to make sure there isn't any ammonia building up. Prepping some buckets with dechlorinated water on a day where you have more time helps a great deal so all you have to do is make sure the temperature is the same.
Do you feed them by hand or put food in for them to hunt out? And what do they usually like to eat? Maybe Howard isn't too keen on what he is being offered lol

 

[sliemm]

Howard's a fussy eater, and over the past year or two his appetite has really lessened, whereas Vince could eat a horse and go back for more. I feed them both fresh earthworms; unfortunately I also supplemented it with axolotl food cubes and Vince found a liking for them and won't go back to worms.

Howard eats both worms and cubes, but he eats very infrequently. Sometimes twice a week if he's feeling chipper, but there's been points he's refused food for a fortnight.

I've got two tubs on the go and I'll keep changing him over to fresh water every night. Poor Vince seems to have retreated to his log and looks pretty guilty....

 

[Hayleyy]

Are you using the red wriggler worms you get from bunnings/pet stores/digging from the yard? They can emit a nasty taste/smell so a lot of axies will refuse them. I feed nightcrawlers daily and supplement with frozen cubes once a week or so. You can't get nightcrawlers in store usually so I can give you some online suppliers I have used if you need it!

 

[sliemm]

I use earthworms - I have a worm farm out the back and Howard is usually right into them. I'm only offering small ones to him, but he hasn't eaten in about a week. He just point blank refuses food. I'm hoping he comes around soon.

 

[Hayleyy]

See if you can get some nightcrawlers from bait stores (check that they aren't farmed with chemical additives) or online. It's worth a try, and some places have small quantities so you don't have to buy a huge box in case they aren't keen on them. If they don't eat them you can always put the extra worms in your worm farm.
My old axie Dany would eat earthworms but my new 2 will swim away from them haha. Maybe try blanching the worms if you haven't tried that?

 

[sliemm]

Thanks for the tip. Things are looking a bit better. Howard's eaten twice in the past week ... axolotl cubes, which aren't as good as worms or nightcrawlers, but will hopefully fatten him up a tad.

One arm has almost gone - all that's left is a bone. Freaky. The other arm may survive I think - it looks massacred but it's only the flesh, not the bone, that's damaged, and I think it will end up surviving, if looking a bit manky.

He's doing OK. I'll post photos soon.

 

[Hayleyy]

Good to hear there is progress!

 

[sliemm]

Sad news unfortunately ... Howard died today. It's tragic; he'd been making OK progress, eating sporadically. The 'bone' arm dropped off and I was hoping a new one would grow and he'd be OK.

But unfortunately he stopped eating, and his gill feathers shrank right down, so I knew he was stressed. I made the water as cold as possible and changed it daily. But I don't think he really dealt with being attacked so viciously, and his poor little constitution couldn't take it.

Thanks for all your help Hayleyy. I'm sad but I have Vince (the vicious bugger!) and maybe one day soon we'll get another adult his size to join him.

 

[Hayleyy]

Oh so sorry to hear that! I lost Bucky a few weeks ago so I understand what you're going through. If you do get a new buddy post a pic so we can see