I have a white molly that looks bloated and seems to be having difficulty swimming up to the top of the tank. He/She does also not to be using his/her tailfin to swim. I dont like to see the fish in distress and wondered if anyone had any ideas!!
Mollys
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Carl the Crimson Wonder
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What are you water perameters (ph, ammonia, nitire etc), and which kind of molly is it? How long have you had the molly? and how long have you had the tank set up?
No idea about the perameters although I did get the water tested in a shop just after the tank was set up. They told me the water was a little nitrate heavy although this was a couple of months ago now. I changed some of the water and all seems well since then with the other fish. I have other mollies and they are ok. The tank has been set up three months now. Thanks
Truck
UKAPS
are you doing weekly water changes? and i reccomend buying yourself an API liquid master test kit
LauraFrog
Fish Gatherer
Do you understand the nitrogen cycle and do you know if your tank is cycled? It would also help if you told us how big it is and what other fish are in it.
If you repost this in the emergency section, you might get a faster response.
If you repost this in the emergency section, you might get a faster response.
First, hello and welcome to the forum. 
I will move this to the Emergency section for you.
I would agree that investing in a liquid master test kit would be a good idea. It's important to know what the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH are in a new tank. When you had the water tested before adding fish, it would naturally be ok since it is basically straight from the tap. There was no ammonia source to create problems. Once the fish were added, you start to get ammonia and later nitrite both of which are toxic. In the mean time, keep up a good water change schedule of about 25% at least once a week.
Back to the original topic, if you don't know the parameters and all the other fish seem ok, then I would say it sounds like possibly swim bladder or constipation although the bloating could be a sign of other problems. There is no cure for swim bladder but constpation can be cured by feeding cooked peas with the hull/skin removed. You can do enough for the whole tank as they will all eat them. Since he is having problems swimming, you wil probably have to isolate him to get him to eat.
I will move this to the Emergency section for you.
I would agree that investing in a liquid master test kit would be a good idea. It's important to know what the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH are in a new tank. When you had the water tested before adding fish, it would naturally be ok since it is basically straight from the tap. There was no ammonia source to create problems. Once the fish were added, you start to get ammonia and later nitrite both of which are toxic. In the mean time, keep up a good water change schedule of about 25% at least once a week.
Back to the original topic, if you don't know the parameters and all the other fish seem ok, then I would say it sounds like possibly swim bladder or constipation although the bloating could be a sign of other problems. There is no cure for swim bladder but constpation can be cured by feeding cooked peas with the hull/skin removed. You can do enough for the whole tank as they will all eat them. Since he is having problems swimming, you wil probably have to isolate him to get him to eat.
guppy fan
Fishaholic
Are the scales on your fish sticking out kind of like a pincone? If so it could be dropsy.
joshrm115
Fish Crazy
post water stats if you can please.
First, hello and welcome to the forum.
I will move this to the Emergency section for you.
I would agree that investing in a liquid master test kit would be a good idea. It's important to know what the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH are in a new tank. When you had the water tested before adding fish, it would naturally be ok since it is basically straight from the tap. There was no ammonia source to create problems. Once the fish were added, you start to get ammonia and later nitrite both of which are toxic. In the mean time, keep up a good water change schedule of about 25% at least once a week.
Back to the original topic, if you don't know the parameters and all the other fish seem ok, then I would say it sounds like possibly swim bladder or constipation although the bloating could be a sign of other problems. There is no cure for swim bladder but constpation can be cured by feeding cooked peas with the hull/skin removed. You can do enough for the whole tank as they will all eat them. Since he is having problems swimming, you wil probably have to isolate him to get him to eat.
Hi - when you say the molly is not using its tail fin to swim, do you mean that it looks rather clamped and stiff? If so, then this is usually a sign of a bacterial disease. Depending on how far gone it is, you may or may not be able to treat it with medication, such as Myxazin or Pimafix.
As suggested already, try feeding it some crushed pea as this may help stabilise any bloating due to constipation. If the bloating is due to an internal bacterial problem, though, the pea probably won't make much of a difference. Worth a try, though!
Yes, I agree with the others that it's a good idea to get a test kit - but in situations like this where you have a very sick fish, by the time you've gone and bought a kit, done all the tests etc, reported back on here, waited for responses etc...you may lose the fish by then.
I would buy some meds - it's always a good idea to have some indoors anyway, for emergencies like this. When you visit the LFS to buy the meds, maybe you could take a sample of your water and ask them to write down the results for you (you want ammonia, nitrite and nitrate if poss). You can then purchase your own test kit at some point. For now it's more important to get meds and your LFS can usually check water stats for you on the spot.
Hope your molly makes it. They prefer brackish water, so some people add aquarium salts to their tank water when they keep mollies as they are prone to illness such as this, pop-eye disease and the "shimmies".
Good luck - Athena
As suggested already, try feeding it some crushed pea as this may help stabilise any bloating due to constipation. If the bloating is due to an internal bacterial problem, though, the pea probably won't make much of a difference. Worth a try, though!
Yes, I agree with the others that it's a good idea to get a test kit - but in situations like this where you have a very sick fish, by the time you've gone and bought a kit, done all the tests etc, reported back on here, waited for responses etc...you may lose the fish by then.
I would buy some meds - it's always a good idea to have some indoors anyway, for emergencies like this. When you visit the LFS to buy the meds, maybe you could take a sample of your water and ask them to write down the results for you (you want ammonia, nitrite and nitrate if poss). You can then purchase your own test kit at some point. For now it's more important to get meds and your LFS can usually check water stats for you on the spot.
Hope your molly makes it. They prefer brackish water, so some people add aquarium salts to their tank water when they keep mollies as they are prone to illness such as this, pop-eye disease and the "shimmies".
Good luck - Athena
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