New Mollie Tank

[DeniseMcNabb]

I've had my tank for three weeks. We have 1 black mollie, 1 silver, 2 starburst,1 guarmie dalmation, and I just had my female dalmation to give birth and die. So far I have collected 7 fry and put them in the breeder. I've been feeding my fish flake food, and the babies ground up food. What do I need to do ,to insure they all survive. I have a 10 gallon tank with a heater and filteration system. Any help appreciated.

 

[jo3olous]

make the 10 gallon tank a fry tank, and upgrade to a 20 or 30G tank.

10G is just too small for the fish you have to begin with, eventually they may all have problems and it will be hard for any fry to survive in there with them.

 

[BlueStraggler]

I agree...look for deals on craigslist for bigger tanks.

This is an addictive hobby and if you are to successfully raise those fry, you have no room to put them as of now.

It is not uncommon for a female to die after giving birth. But it is a strong indication that there are other stress factors at play. For example ammonia in the water. There are a lot of stickies that can help you in this situation.
You are doing a "fish-in cycle" and will need to do partial water changes to remove toxins from the water and help your fish to survive.

Raising the fry can be a lot of fun. Feed them frequently. Good luck : )

Your situation reminds me of my first freshwater experience.
A relative showed up with a tank as a gift and some mollies and platys.
After setting it up, the next day the molly went into labor prematurely (from the stress of an uncycled tank) She died soon after.
I nurtured the fry for a few weeks before the last one died. It was sad because I became attached to them.
You've had yours set up for three weeks so maybe the mollies aren't premature but your tank is still not cycled yet.


Good luck again. Hope it works out.

 

[Matt Nace]

Mollies require clean water so keep up on water changes weekly and do not over feed.
Make sure the water is closer to 80 and don't allow it to fluctuate.
Make sure you have vegetable foods in the mollies diet. They may eat algae also off the decor and even glass.

You might want to consider upgrading as suggested..of course that is not always possible. If you can not..you maintenance will need to be more often.

I also had a female die a long time back in the middle of birth. It was her 3rd pregancy and she was my favorite molly.

Good luck.

 

[MissFishy]

Unfortunately, it sounds like this tank is new and not cycled which means your adult fish don't stand much of a chance at survival, let alone your fry. You need to read up on cycling a tank which will make you soon realize your tank is way too small for the number and type of fish you are keeping in it.