Please can someone help, my molly has all of a sudden been swimming funny today and I have noticed split fins. Iām unsure if this is injury from fighting or fin rot, I did my research and made sure all tank mates are compatible to the best of my knowledge. I have 3 balloon mollies, 5 neon tetra, one male guppy and one assorted molly, and a bristlenose bottom feeder. Any advice would be so helpful thanks!
Poorly Balloon Molly
- Thread starter Elmo1738
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His tail is ripped up, and as a severely deformed fish, he is vulnerable to tankmates. The balloon mutation is a cruel one (and I am certain you didn't realize that when you bought him). His shortened body and twisted spine cause a compression of the guts, which leads to blockages and gas problems as they age. Gas problems affect swimming.
Fish, like birds, will often pick on the injured, and that probably explains the tail.
There's not much you can do. The deformity was a commercial breeder's choice, and the physical problems that go with it shorten the lives of the afflicted fish considerably. I wish I could say something encouraging, but I hope people reading this will avoid purchasing these mutant fish, to avoid being in the situation you find yourself.
Fish, like birds, will often pick on the injured, and that probably explains the tail.
There's not much you can do. The deformity was a commercial breeder's choice, and the physical problems that go with it shorten the lives of the afflicted fish considerably. I wish I could say something encouraging, but I hope people reading this will avoid purchasing these mutant fish, to avoid being in the situation you find yourself.
And it cannot be said often enough...please, do not buy any "balloon" varieties be they mollies, rams, or any other aquarium fish. The only way to stop such inhumane treatment of a living creature is to not buy them so those making money from this cruelty will think twice.
How long has the tank been set up for?
How long have you had the fish for?
-------------------
Check the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH.
Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.
-------------------
The floating could be from too much air, which they swallow when taking dry food from the surface. Or it could be a swim bladder problem.
Stop feeding dry food for a week and feed frozen or live foods instead. If the problem fixes itself, then it is air in the intestines.
If it doesn't get better, then the fish has an internal problem that cannot be fixed.
-------------------
What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).
Depending on what the GH of your water is, will determine what fish you should keep.
Angelfish, most tetras, barbs, Bettas, gouramis, rasbora, Corydoras and small species of suckermouth catfish all occur in soft water (GH below 150ppm) and a pH below 7.0.
Livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), rainbowfish and goldfish occur in medium hard water with a GH around 200-250ppm and a pH above 7.0.
If you have very hard water (GH above 300ppm) then look at African Rift Lake cichlids, or use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH and keep fishes from softer water.
How long have you had the fish for?
-------------------
Check the water quality for ammonia, nitrite, nitrate and pH.
Do a 75% water change and gravel clean the substrate every day for a week.
Make sure any new water is free of chlorine/ chloramine before it's added to the tank.
-------------------
The floating could be from too much air, which they swallow when taking dry food from the surface. Or it could be a swim bladder problem.
Stop feeding dry food for a week and feed frozen or live foods instead. If the problem fixes itself, then it is air in the intestines.
If it doesn't get better, then the fish has an internal problem that cannot be fixed.
-------------------
What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?
What is the GH (general hardness), KH (carbonate hardness) and pH of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website or by telephoning them. If they can't help you, take a glass full of tap water to the local pet shop and get them to test it for you. Write the results down (in numbers) when they do the tests. And ask them what the results are in (eg: ppm, dGH, or something else).
Depending on what the GH of your water is, will determine what fish you should keep.
Angelfish, most tetras, barbs, Bettas, gouramis, rasbora, Corydoras and small species of suckermouth catfish all occur in soft water (GH below 150ppm) and a pH below 7.0.
Livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies), rainbowfish and goldfish occur in medium hard water with a GH around 200-250ppm and a pH above 7.0.
If you have very hard water (GH above 300ppm) then look at African Rift Lake cichlids, or use distilled or reverse osmosis water to reduce the GH and keep fishes from softer water.
Thankyou so much for the educational reply, I had no idea! My boy passed away in the night and after reading your reply heās probably in a better place. I definitely wonāt be buying another balloon molly again
Agree with the replies above regarding any "balloon" fish; in a perfect world, the shops would stop selling them
On a side note, you have soft water and hard water fish combined in one tank, not a good idea...do you know your source water hardness?
On a side note, you have soft water and hard water fish combined in one tank, not a good idea...do you know your source water hardness?
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