Can Axolotls Have Ich? How to Treat this Disease?

Ich can be a big problem both for fish and axolotls. Yes, axolotls can still have ich, although they will normally not have the same symptoms of ich that some other fish or animals have.

When an ich infestation happens, then you have to act quickly. It’s important that you give the axolotls some medications that your vet gives you. Or, you can try some other treatments such as a salt bath, but we’ll talk about treatments in more detail later on.

Axolotls will normally not develop the same symptoms of ich that fish do. They will still have white spots all over their bodies, which is a common symptom of ich. However, the difference here is that the fish will start behaving in a weird way, as they might start to swim upside down, for example.

Axolotls won’t have that but whiteness on their bodies is a good indicator of ich. It’s also possible for your axolotl to get ich from the fish they might eat. So it’s important to make sure that the fish you feed to axolotls don’t have ich in the first place, and that they don’t have other parasites, too.

How to Treat Ich in Axolotl Tank?

The most important thing here is to examine for some symptoms of ich in your axolotl tank. The most obvious one will be the white spots on your axolotl’s body, which is an ich infestation starting to form on their skin. This infestation will eat up away from their skin, which can cause a lot of harm for their bodies.

Then, you must start to take action immediately. Because when ich starts to develop, it will spread like wildfire, especially if you don’t take action immediately and if the conditions are right.

• The first thing you’ll want to do is contact a vet, which will give you medication for treating axolotl ich. Hopefully, these medications will suffice at first, although if they don’t, you can still take other actions, too.
• Alternatively, you can use a salt bath treatment. Basically, you will enter some salt into the tank until the infestation goes away. This will also require you to do regular water changes.
• The ich life cycle will develop faster in warmer waters, so making sure the water is slightly colder can halt the infestation at least for a bit.
• Make regular water changes – you might even need to do them daily to eradicate the ich infestation in the tank. This takes time, so keep doing it for a few days or even weeks until the ich is gone.

Can Your Axolotl Die from Eating Fish Infested with Ich?

Yes, it is absolutely possible.

In fact, it is one of the most likely scenarios you might encounter when you feed fish to your axolotls that are not vetted. You must make absolutely sure that you don’t feed them fish with ich, or you’re risking the health of your axolotls massively.

Fish can carry ich and other diseases that can be terribly harmful to your axie. These diseases or parasites will transfer to your axolotl as they eat the fish. So making sure the fish you feed them are free of such parasites is very important.

Make sure you only buy fish from reputable sellers who track and vet their fish. Ask them about their health condition, and make sure they are vetting the fish they sell. Also, look for potential white spots on the fish – it’s a common sign of ich infestations on fish, so you can quickly spot parasites that way – others are not as visible straight away.

Can Ich Cause Skin Lesions on Axolotl?

Ich itself will probably not cause lesions on your axolotls. Although if the infestation is severe, you might see these problems occur with your axolotl. Because ich will suck onto your axolotl’s skin, it might cause lesions if the ich is more severe.

But skin lesions are far more common with other diseases, such as the disease called Chytridiomycosis. It’s a fungal disease that spreads very quickly and is so strong that it might cause sporadic deaths in amphibians. This disease is very deadly and it might be unsolvable in some cases.

Conclusion

Ich is a potential disease for your axolotl, so you might want to know a thing or two about it. Quick prevention and quick action is necessary to eradicate the infestation as quickly as possible. You will do well to get some medications from your vet.

You can also try a salt bath if that doesn’t work. Colder water will also stop the infestation from spreading very quickly.

Ich can have severe consequences for your axolotl, so it’s important that you act on it and try to eradicate it as quickly as you can.