Oh aye, plenty of us are herp lovers! I personally currently have snakes and lizards of several species, and in the past have also had newts and frogs. As others have stated, protecting yourself (and your other animals) from salmonella really just comes down to cleanliness and keeping your herps away from your face. If you wash their decorations in your sink, make sure you sanitise it afterward; I have specific brushes to clean each of my herps' dishes and belongings, which are kept separate from other cleaning utensils and which get disinfected after each use.
With an axolotl I'd imagine you're not nearly as likely to contract salmonella as with other species, just due to the fact that they're aquatic and you're not going to be routinely handling them. Wash your hands and arms thoroughly any time you go into the tank to do maintenance, and you'll be A-ok.
Axies are really fun little guys, if you do end up getting one I'd love to hear some updates about them!