Leopard Molly - Strange Tailfin Action

[imajes]

Hi,

So i hope i haven't bought a dyed fish - but one of my two new leopard mollies has a transparent tailfin... lost the leopard spots. Is this just transient? or is this sign of illness, or ?

help!

(thanks).

(nitrite, ammo and ph all read OK)

 

[WILDER]

Could be can you get a pic up, any signs of laboured breathing or flicking and rubbing against objects, what does it look like when the fish goes to the toilet.
How many fish do you have and which kind, what the ratio of livebearers you have.

 

[imajes]

Can't get any good pics - haven't figured out how to do water shots yet properly!

no signs of laboured breathing or rubbing. Looks forlorn. The tail fin seems skeletal - looks like the fin is removed with just spines left...

I have two leopard mollies, two black baloon mollies (one's a male and seems quite aggressive) two cardinal tetras and one cory reticulatus.

 

[WILDER]

How many gallons is the tank, as tetra should be kept in no less than a group of six, and corys should not be kept in no less than 3.
Can we take a look at your water stats, and how often do you do a water change and gravel vac.

Livebearers should keep 2 females to every male.

 

[imajes]

Interesting. I went on the advice from my lfs - hence just the one cory.

I had 3 tetras - got two more on monday, however they died within an hour of being in the tank, and took one of my original tetras with it. i've had two days without any deaths. Returning to the LFS the stock of cardinals was down quite a bit - and i got a hasty offer of replacement, however i declined and took a credit note instead.... wanted to give the tank some time to settle.

i've had some problems keeping the water stable, as I had a peak where it was very full of nitrites. Right now - the ph 7.5 ammo - 0 mg/l and nitrite about 0mg/l all seem fine.

i'm feeding every other day (again, advice from LFS).

the water change - i have been keeping that to a minimum, taking the water readings as a guide, especially as it's been settling down (it's a 2 month old tank, first one). some advice might help guide my changes better.

it's a 10gl tank.

 

[WILDER]

Once a tank has cycled you have to do a gravel vac and water change one a week, i do 20% water change.
The fish that died did they show any symtoms before they died.

 

[imajes]

the three tetras that died were gone very quickly - no symptoms...

i will get a gravel vac...

also: is my every-other-day feeding advice correct?

(thank you for helping )

 

[WILDER]

I feed mine every day, with flakes, frozen foods, and veg.
A good varied diet is the best for fish, keep them healthy, and there colours bright.

Frozen foods.
Brimestrimp
daphnia
tubilex worm
micro worms
bloodworms
there is also a pack of frozen foods with 5 different foods in it try and get that.

Veg.
Peas
grated carrot
lettuce
cucumba
spinach
sproats
cabbage
even fruits

Algae tablets or flakes most fish will eat them as well.

 

[Greg13]

are these foods ok with all fish? do you just pop them str8 frozen? just thinking about my dwarf go's a pea would seem to big for them to eat!

 

[Annastasia]

Did you buy it like this, or did it happen between when you bought him/her and now?

It's not unusual for Dalmations to change in color, it may be nothing to worry about. Do you happen to have a picture?

As for the food, yes most fish will eat those. You want to defrost the frozen food first, and for veggies, it's a good idea to steam or blanch them to soften them up. Peas need to be shelled before you feed them, and you can cut them up a bit for your fish.