[Matt Cramer]

Yep - I was thinking it must be a full floating rear end. In that case, "pulling the axle" really means pulling the axle shaft, not removing the entire axle assembly. There's six or eight bolts that hold the axle shaft to the hub, then you give it a few taps with a hammer, and it slides right out. That's the nature of a floating rear axle - the axle isn't carrying any weight on either end, just transfers the torque.