Arg Im Not Sure Now

[LionessN3cubs]

Okay I posted a few days about about a molly with pop eye. Then I thought I was wrong. Now Im not sure again. His eyes just dont seem right to me. Im looking at my dalmation molly's eyes and they stick out a bit too but her eyes are normal..not bulging, just look like they should I think. Not flat to their heads or whatever. The dalmations eyes are clear looking too.

The thing with my black molly is that its eyes dont look much bigger but they aren't clear looking either. I wish I could get a good picture but its eyes just kind of blend right in with its body. They look like grey/black blobs stuck on its head The clearest picture I can take doesnt show the eyes at all.

So...should I treat for pop eye just in case? Just keep watching it? what do I do?

 

[backtotropical]

Hi Lioness,

If you are unsure, i'd treat with medication. A healthy molly should look healthy, not borderline (if you see what i mean).

I had a molly with pop-eye a while back and it does seem to come and go day-to-day.

I treated with Waterlife Myxazin and everything has been fine since. I'm not sure if Waterlife products are available in the US?

Its not really good practice to treat until you have a positive ID on the illness, but what you describe certainly sounds like a mild case of pop-eye to me.

Good luck

BTT

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i've found pop eye to be fairly common in mollies when they're not kept in hard alkaline water, while treatment should clear it up, you should take a look to ensure tank conditions are suitable to prevent it from re occuraing.

 

[backtotropical]

i've found pop eye to be fairly common in mollies when they're not kept in hard alkaline water, while treatment should clear it up, you should take a look to ensure tank conditions are suitable to prevent it from re occuraing.

That's interesting, MW. I always assumed that it was the stress of giving birth which caused it in my tank, but maybe the underlying infection was there already because the water isn't hard and alkaline enough, and giving birth just exacerbated it?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i've found pop eye to be fairly common in mollies when they're not kept in hard alkaline water, while treatment should clear it up, you should take a look to ensure tank conditions are suitable to prevent it from re occuraing.

That's interesting, MW. I always assumed that it was the stress of giving birth which caused it in my tank, but maybe the underlying infection was there already because the water isn't hard and alkaline enough, and giving birth just exacerbated it?

we tried a few times to keep mollies and they just repeatedly got pop eye and other infections, just my opinion but from everything i've read and experienced I just think if you keep them in the right water they're easy as anything, if you don't you will have nothing but trouble, repeated infections and so on

 

[LionessN3cubs]

well...I hadn't put any salt in the tank because the LFS I bought them from didnt use it. I guess I should just add some and see if that helps first before I medicate?


with the platys and the apple snail in there, how much salt is safe to add?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

it's not that the water needs to be brackish (with salt) so much as it needs to be hard and alkaline, the salt makes the water hard and alkaline and the mollies can tolerate it so it's one way of doing it. but remember not all fish can tolerate salt water so you shouldn't just rush in and do it.

what's more important is looking at the pH, KH and seeing if they are adequate or if they need to be altered?

 

[LionessN3cubs]

my ph is 7.6 and the KH is about 9

 

[backtotropical]

Salt isn't the answer here Lioness. Salt doesn't raise the pH or kH of the water anyway unless you use marine grade salt.

Better is to look, as MW says, at raising pH and kH. You can do this many ways.

1. Add coral sand / coral gravel as a substrate, or into the filter.

2. Add calcareous ornaments to the tank such as limestone, tufa rock, barnicle shells, crushed coral etc etc.

3. Buy a 'Malawi Salt Mix' and add that. (this mix isn't just normal salt, its a blend of mineral salts found in the hard alkaline waters of Lake Malawi).

You probably know already, but don't change pH or kH too quickly. Gradual change is the key.

Having said all that, i think your stats look ok for keeping mollies in. Have you had any water troubles or other fish chasing him, which may have stressed him?

HTH

BTT

 

[LionessN3cubs]

Salt isn't the answer here Lioness. Salt doesn't raise the pH or kH of the water anyway unless you use marine grade salt.

Better is to look, as MW says, at raising pH and kH. You can do this many ways.

1. Add coral sand / coral gravel as a substrate, or into the filter.

2. Add calcareous ornaments to the tank such as limestone, tufa rock, barnicle shells, crushed coral etc etc.

3. Buy a 'Malawi Salt Mix' and add that. (this mix isn't just normal salt, its a blend of mineral salts found in the hard alkaline waters of Lake Malawi).

You probably know already, but don't change pH or kH too quickly. Gradual change is the key.

Having said all that, i think your stats look ok for keeping mollies in. Have you had any water troubles or other fish chasing him, which may have stressed him?

HTH

BTT

Guess I'll get some crushed coral then...can I just put a layer or sprinkle some over my current gravel? My filter isn't really one that I can add anything to or it wont run right.


My water has been PERFECT until last night when a TRACE (tiny trace) of nitrite showed up. The eye problem started before that. I dont think its a water problem because the fry in the tank are fine and aren't they even more sensitive? None of the fish have harrassed him either...I have a quite peaceful tank except for the horndog platy that chases his mate 24/7. They leave the mollies alone, and the 2 mollies ignore each other as well.

Im not even sure there IS an eye problem. The mollies eyes just dont look "right" to me. They look like grey/blackish blobs sitting on his head. The dalmations eyes are clear and you can clearly see the pupil with a ring around it...not so with the mollie. The mollie doesnt seem to have any problems seeing so maybe there just isn't a problem and I should just let things be LOL I dunno...Im a newbie what can I say?