My Molly Is Trying To Kill Herself

[Hackett]

I had to move my tank today couldn't be avoided so i stocked up on water in various containers all pre treated and ready to go in.
I emptied say 80% of my water and then moved the tank, within minutes i was letting new water back in in the tanks new position.

Basically now my molly who is usually mindlessly skimming the top of the tank is now lying on its side on the bottom, all my other fish are fine including my other molly. i watched it for a bit and saw it swimming into rocks and scratching its side on them so all its scales are now off and its turned clear instead of bright orange.

The other fish are absolutely fine and my water parameters are all spot on.

Any one help??

 

[ShoC]

Sounds like Ich there is many topics on it,
Search google.

 

[afishdude]

i would say ich also, is there any white spots on it, or white fuzzy stuff?

 

[Hackett]

i would say ich also, is there any white spots on it, or white fuzzy stuff?

none at all just scales coming off where its scratching on rocks. To be honest last couple of hours its picked up a bit but still not 100%

 

[-germ-]

Why Ich?

Can it swim properly when not scratching?
Any damage to its fins?

Isolate the fish if possible.
Did you notice it during your water change, any chance it got pushed about, stuck in some decor?
Therefore simple environmental damage?
Or maybe a stress response?
Did alot of 'crud' get strirred up during the tank maintenance?
Maybe irritation caused by waste matter in your substrate....

 

[GuppyDude]

Look at her from above, are her scales sticking outward "pinecone-ing" ?

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Note to people which have suggested Ich: Fish flicking and rubbing themselves against stuff in the tank is one of the symptoms of ich, but it is not specific to Ich and it can be a symptom of MANY problems, from parasites like Velvet, to ammonia problems or even stuff like bad chemicals in the tank etc.


Hackett, Have you tested the tank for ammonia, nitrites, nitrates and ph at all and if so, what results did you get exactly? You did a very large water change, its posible the large water change caused the tank to mini cycle which is causing water quality problems and making the molly feel very uncomfortable.
Do any of the fish appear to be breath rapidly or heavily, or have particularly red looking gills etc? Do any have fine metallic dust stuff on them, or have white strongy poop? What do you mean exactly when you say "and its turned clear instead of bright orange"?

 

[Hackett]

Right thanks for all replies sorry for delay been at work.

Right well she seems to have perked up a little bit, there is no pineconing of scales.

water perameters are 0 for ammonia and nitrite and nitrate very low as to be expected after water change. No other fish are showing any signs of illness, no white spot nothing, everything is normal. I didn't add any new ornaments and my substrate is sand which gets vacuumed every other day to remove surface waste.

When i say shes gone clear i mean rather than having orange scales she has rubbed them off although only on her rear half so from a distance looks half her normal size and up close looks clear.

I wonder if maybe the water change might have really stressed her out or something, i have to say i expected it to be dead when i came home from work but she's still very much alive.

Thanks for your help guys

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

To be on the safe side, i would advise treating the tank with melafix (to help prevent secondary infection from setting into her wounds) and "Anti Velvet and slime" by Interpet (which is basically a general anti external parasite med) to kill off any parasites that could be under her scales if she continues to flick and rub herself against objects, as because if she continues to do so for more than a day or two after the big water change then parasites could be to blame for her itchyness.
Also removing any rough or sharp objects in the tank would be good too to help cut down on the damage she is doing to herself from the flicking and rubbing she is doing, also keep a close eye on the water quality in the tank as well.


What sorts of fish do you have in the tank?

 

[Hackett]

I've got....

2 mollys
6 zebra danios
4 Silver tips
Angel fish
Gourami
Rainbow shark

I know some will say the shark may nip it but trust me the shark never goes near the others, he has his own cave that he quite happily swims around and in and leaves everyone alone, all my fish get on fine and i've never had a problem.

The mollys usually stay up top skimming the surface all day so they are never near any others which makes me think it can't be bullying.

Hope that helps.

 

[Tokis-Phoenix]

Once you have the molly problem sorted out, i would advise working on the stocking to make it more ideal as it has a few things about it that could be better;
a. The tetras would be better in a group of 6+, make sure you have lots of planting in the tank to help create some shade as silver tip tetra's do best in shady tanks.
b. Mollys are sociable fish and do best in trio's or more. What genders are your two mollys? If you have two females, i would add one more female, however if you have a male and a female i would get another female.
c. What type of gourami do you have? You should get it ID'd.


How many gallons is the tank and what is its length, width and height ?