a bunch of noob questions

[LoudSaxo]

ok, i have read loads of stuff on here, and really didnt wanna post some lame noob post, but, alas i have come to a point that i feel i should just ask rather than mess up what i am doing.

basically, i have a small hexagon tank, i spent a week running it, adding some water preperation chemicals and stuff (i know i didnt do a proper fishless cycle but i tried to make it as harmless to my first fish as poss) i got 2 black molly's after that, they swam around happily for a week or so, so i thought bonza, hooked up 6 ickle neon tetras, so now i have 6 neons and 2 black mollys, the peeps at the petshop said tat should be cool, and to be fair they dont seem to be having any probs with eachother. Using the guide of how many fish you should have in the faq on here i decided i could have about 10 fish of about 5cm length - i am well under that at the moment as the neons are teeny.

however, at the moment keeping these little fish is more stressfull to me than relaxing, which is why i got them in the first place, so i need some help.

i think one of my mollys has got a problem, tho i dunno how to actually describe it, it just seems that its swimming is jibbed out a bit, it dosnt have problem going up or down or generally moving, its just that when it swims it seems to be alot less efficent than the other one, its head is moving from side to side as it swims and it seems to struggle staying in one place without moving back and fourth a bit - am i just making it up cos it looks fine physically and none of the other fish seem to have issues (also it seems to harass the other molly alot - even tho the people at the shop said they are happy together)

my next issue is that i am really scared i am feeding them too much or not enough, i mean there isnt ever food obviously uneaten around the tank, they seem to pull the flakes off the surface of the water and then sink them then eat them off the ground, the neons didnt seem to eat alot, should i crunch the flakes up a bit to make it easier for them to eat? also any suggestions as to how much i should be feeding 8 little fish?

i am sure there was something else i wanted to ask but i cant think of it - any help would be most appreciated.

chaz

 

[Mr Miagi]

Hi there!

In my mind, the only 'lame' person, is the person who didnt ask the question, whos fish suffer because of it, so youve done the right thing by askin!

Im not sure about your black molly. She is aparently acting quite weird by your description. Id say view her from above, and see if you can see any obvious differences between the two black mollies. For example, Pine coning (where scales stand, rather than lie down) Another thing about your mollie is that it might be beginnig to show signs of a swim bladder infection, which i really dont think is the case. Cause otherwise it would not be able to swim.

As for feeding, its good you know what to look for, cause obvioulsy u dont want any food sitting on the bottum of your tank. I keep harliquins, which are slightly larger than neons, and i have no trouble crunching food in my fingers, placing it on the surface, and they either wait for it to come o them, or they rise to the surface. Neons shouldnt realy be any different. They will eat when the food starts to sink, or they will come to the surface.

Glad u asked once again, but it seems like youve got your head around things pretty well. And this hobby does get relaxing, so its gonna get better! And itll get addictive!

 

[LoudSaxo]

nice one - i just went and looked at it some more - and it looks fine, the only thing is that it seems to sit there and always be paddleing (prolly not the right term) with its fins on the sides and its tail isnt as spread out as the other ones, that said when i took the top off the tank it zipped about like the other ones, i do think something is wrong with it, but i dunno what, i hope it dosnt die - if it contiues to look a bit ropey what should i do? i dont have another tank or anything so i cant seperate it from the other fish - hmmm, i dunno, i guess i shoudlnt worry really as its only one little fish, but i didnt buy it to kill it - i guess it could have had whatever is wrong with it when i got it from the fish shop - even tho it didnt appear to have anything wrong with it (i guess it still dosnt other than the fact its constantly paddleing)

anyway - thanks for your help

chaz

 

[annka5]

Don't panic so much!!! The molly with the odd swimming style may or may not have the start of an illness. probablly the best thing is to test your water in the tank, and do a part water change. You do need to keep an eye on things but personally think you could be suffering from Fishy Hypochondria by Proxy. Which is a LOT better than not caring, though!!
As to feeding, try feeding them two or three times a day, an amount which they eat enthusiastically and finish it off in a couple of minutes - then that should be about right. I've HEARD that a fishes' stomache is about the same size as its eye, so that gives you an idea of how much at a time, anyway.

 

[black angel]

Does the fish look like its swimming fast but actually not going anywhere? could be something called shimmy or shimmying. Mollies like a brackish tank but as you have neons then thats not possible. What temperature is the water?

 

[LoudSaxo]

i believe the temp is 24-25degrees

i dont really know what a 'brackish' tank is

yeah it kinda looks like its swimming but not moving, or moving when it looks like it wants to stay still.

this arvo i came in and found it kinda laying on the floor of the tank just chilling, thought it had croaked, but on closer inspection its gills and mouth were going, then it kinda 'got up' and started going about doing its finned impression of a seisure victim falling down the stairs.

i dunno what i can do about it, its really bugging me as i really want to look after them well, and i have asked the pet shop people on every occasion and all the other fish are ok but now this poor little bugger seems to be a bit crocked.

i guess its just a case of just leaving it and seeing if it gets better?

chaz

 

[black angel]

Livebearers are prone to shimmying as they lose the minerals they need from salt such as aqualibrium.
As you have neons then i dont think you can add the salt. A seperate tank is needed and salt added to 1 teaspoon per gallon to begin with.

 

[Macracantha]

i dont really know what a 'brackish' tank is

Basically a fresh water tank with some salt!