Molly Sick From Salt?

[dburns865]

My balloon molly has been acting strange since I got him a few weeks ago. He jolts around sometimes, he kind of seems like his belly wants to slowly float up but unlike swim bladder he can control it easily. Yesterday I noticed that his excrement was all clear and stringy. I decided it was time to try converting the tank to a brackish tank because I've read that helps with their health. So yesterday I got marine salt and a hydrometer. I added just 5 teaspoons to his water change because I didn't want to shock him with a sudden change to 1.005 like recommended. The amount barely registered with the hydrometer, it's just above 1.000.

Then today I wake up and he's just laying at the bottom until I come to the tank. When he sees me he starts swimming around like normal, but later he starts shaking for a few seconds then swimming around like a spaz.

Could the salt have made him worse or something? He has, like, fits, he'll be normal for a while then go lay on the gravel for a minute or jolt around. It's weird and I don't know what to medicate because he seems to have a bunch of different symptoms.

**Update** I just saw one of the guppies swimming into the gravel like he was itching himself.

 

[dburns865]

Just a little information.

The tank is a fully cycled 5 gallon with 2 lyretail guppies and ghost shrimp.

The temp hovers around 78.

He is still eating like normal.

I have been doing water changes 2-4 times a weeks because of his behavior.

I have been feeding him peas three times a week, the rest of the time I feed him flakes.

The guppies and ghost shrimp are fine, but one guppy has the stringy excrement as well.

 

[OldMan47]

Flashing is usually an indication of parasites. The salt will not have harmed the molly, they can be converted to full salt water at 1.020 SG fairly quickly, although the guppy will not survive that. I am going to move this to tropical emergencies sectio0n. There are people who hang out there that are far better at disease than most of us are.