Urgent - Pregnant Fish

[Trixibelle]

Hi

Just come back from a two week holiday, and my pregnant Mollie fish who i thought would have had her babies by now is struggling to swim. she keeps going vertical in the tank (head at top)and is struggling to get back to horizontal. Don't think she's had babies before. I have done a 50% water change as they were left for two weeks, being fed by a neighbour.

Does any one know what is wrong with her, or what I can do for her? Please respond asap

thanks!

 

[iffles]

does she still look fat (full of fry)? she might have a swimbladder problem if she cant maintain balance - maybe internal bacterial or maybe its due to the fry. Wilder would probably be the best person to figure this out though.

 

[WILDER]

How many gallons or litres is the tank.
How many fish and which type.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.
What do you feed the fish?

The fry could be resting on her swim bladder.
But also need to look at water stats and diet.

Is she still eating. If so try some shelled peas.

 

[Trixibelle]

How many gallons or litres is the tank.
How many fish and which type.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.
What do you feed the fish?

The fry could be resting on her swim bladder.
But also need to look at water stats and diet.

Is she still eating. If so try some shelled peas.

Hi
Thanks for replying!!!! There are 27 gallons in the tank.
3 fish - two female and one male all Mollies.
Ammonia 0, nitrite 0.05 (tiny bit pinky but nowhere near 0.1), Nitrate 0 PH 7.5
These test results were taken about 3 hrs after 50% water change
Fed Nutrafin livebearer food, and occasion (not recently) dried brine shrimp.

Have had them since start of September no new additions, added new plant about 3 weeks ago. Had a few snails in the tank and now they've gone bananas!!

Will try a shelled pea - what do I do? take one out of the freezer, let it defrost and take skin off? Will they all be OK eating peas?

Am a bit worried that they might have been over fed whilst on my hols. Both females were pregnant before I went away and we can only find 3 surviving fry. Am assuming that all the others much have been eaten by the Mollies and they've been fed as well!!

Would this produce these symptoms? She is covered in little brown/black specks (she is a white fish) and looks heavily pregnant but I am thinking now that she probably isn't because I can no longer see the black anal spot which she had before I went away. She swims for a minute OK and then goes vertical struggling to keep horizontal and looks like she is going to go over backwards. This is happening about every minute.

Would like to starve them for a few days? but there are fry in the tank and don't want to starve them. I could move the fry into another tank with two month old fry but am worried in case the Mollie has something contagious, as don't want to potentially infect two tanks....

Ideas?
huge thanks!!

 

[WILDER]

Water change.

Inprove the fish diet with frozen foods like daphnia and brime shrimp. To many freeze dried foods can lead to constipation and swim bladder.
Also introduce some green veg into there diet like peas, broc, sproats, cabbabe, spinach, lettuce,

Cook frozen peas for a few minutes, let cool down and pop out of shell. Mush into small pieces and add to the tank.

Do you mean tiny black spots on the fish as that could be the snails.

 

[WILDER]

Black Spot

Symptoms:

Your fish will have small black spots measuring about 2 millimeters in diameter. These can be found anywhere on the fish’s body and fins. Cysts may be found in the internal organs. It is typical for African Cichlids, however, to constantly have little black spots, especially around their mouths. These black spots should not be mistaken for "Black Spot." These are scabs, which have resulted from digging in the gravel or from fighting.

Cause:

Larvae of parasitic digenetic flukes, Cercaria and Metacercaria. The spots seen contain larval stages of digenetic flukes. The life cycle of these parasitic flukes begins when fish-eating birds and other animals ingest fish infected with the parasites. Once ingested the parasites mature in the intestines of the host animal where they produce eggs. The eggs are then deposited into the water where they hatch and infect the livers of aquatic snails. The parasites then develop into a second and then third larval stage before leaving the snail to seek out a fish host. This type of parasitic infestation is most common in wild caught fish and pond fish.

Treatment:

Remove all snails from the aquarium or pond to end the cycle of infection. Treatment is rarely necessary and can be difficult if not impossible. Minor infestations may clear without treatment as the larvae will eventually die and be absorbed by the host's immune responses. Copper Sulfate may be helpful in severe cases.

 

[Trixibelle]

Thank you so much!!!!!
Am busy putting all into action...
Fingers crossed

 

[WILDER]

Let the forum know how you get on if you don't mind.
Good Luck.

 

[Trixibelle]

Let the forum know how you get on if you don't mind.
Good Luck.

All of my three Mollies are now poorly and not wanting to swim, either staying near heater or hiding under things but all staying pretty much motionless. All my water stats are fine. Don't know what to do.

Have found 7 surviving fry now in the tank that seem fine.

Sorry it's not a lot to go on, but I can't see whats wrong with them. Any other ideas really urgently needed, they are not looking good.

 

[WILDER]

Have you preformed a water change.
I would get all the snails out of the tank.

Any signs of flicking and rubbing or darting around the tank.
Hows the fish breathing.

 

[Trixibelle]

Have you preformed a water change.
I would get all the snails out of the tank.

Any signs of flicking and rubbing or darting around the tank.
Hows the fish breathing.

Hi
Thank you for your help with this!
I did another water change about 30%. How big a water change do you think I should do?
Have had pieces of cucumber and manually by hand removed loads of snails and will get a load more when they start climbing back up the glass later.

No signs of flicking etc. They are just hiding and motionless most of the time and have the occassional swim around. The white fish is not going vertical so much now. I haven't fed them for a couple of days except for peas. My orange Mollie is spending a lot of time still at the top of the water and her breathing is rapid. The tank is airated by the big fluval filter. The fry all seem fine.

I have noticed lots of little white wiggling things on the glass (about 2mm) which I think are probably baby snails?

The fry (8 at latest count) all seem fine but I'm worried they'll get poorly too.

Should I do a massive water change?

 

[WILDER]

Are you sure the things on the glass are not these.
http/www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Ali_Planaria_Worms.html

 

[Trixibelle]

Are you sure the things on the glass are not these.
http/www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Ali_Planaria_Worms.html

Hi

Thanks for the link Wilder, but my computer wouldn't open it! Am fairly sure they're snails having looked at other sites re: worms.

All fish in both tanks now have black spots so I am on a major snail mission!!

Although obviously unwell the fish all seem a bit perkier this evening

Will keep you posted

Trix

 

[WILDER]

Thanks for the update.

Have you got all the snails out of the tank now.

 

[Trixibelle]

No - there are hundreds of them and many the size of a tip of a pen. It's going to be a lengthy process using lettuce etc. Getting there though, doing my best!