sick molly?

[adagiolove05]

i brought home three mollies the other day, and i noticed today that one of them has developed 2 small white lumps on her side. i also noticed today that she was swimming up and down the side of the tank really fast like she was being bothered by something. the lumps aren't big, but they're not as small as ich dots- what is this? should i get some medication for it?

 

[adagiolove05]

nvm- i looked at her again closely- it looks like a couple of missing scales... what should i do about that? im thinking she got picked on at the store

 

[Lotus]

As long as the water is clean, the scales will grow back. Keep an eye out for any signs of infection (white cottony growth, redness), but it should be fine.

 

[adagiolove05]

uhm- it's white but not fuzzy in any way- is that normal for a missing scale?

 

[Lotus]

It's normal to see the flesh underneath where the scale should be. Is that what it looks like you're seeing?

 

[adagiolove05]

if the flesh is white then yes- that's what im seeing- it doesn't look fuzzy. at first i thought it was protruding, then i looked closer and it looks like it's inward- so i concluded that it was missing a couple of scales. it's hard to tell because she moves around too much

 

[adagiolove05]

dang it- it's definately raised so it's not a missing scale. im still not sure what it is though- just a tumor? help please

 

[Lotus]

It sounds like it might be some kind of fungal or bacterial infection. There are some images here that might help you ID it: http://www.fishpalace.org/Disease.html

I would recommend using Jungle Fungus Cure if you think it's one of these. It would be better to treat in a hospital tank, if possible.

 

[adagiolove05]

ok- would malachite green work?? i dont know if i can set up a hospital tank on time. the spots are tiny compared to the pictures on that webpage- but i know it's not ich it's like two spots about the size of this O. i can't really tell if it's fuzzy, but it's too small to tell- i do think it's fugus though.

 

[adagiolove05]

yah that was really bad sentence structure sorry

 

[Lotus]

Malachite green will work on fungus, but probably not bacterial infections. It can also be a dangerous med for sensitive and scaleless fish. What else do you have in the tank? It can also stain decorations and gravel, just to warn you.

 

[adagiolove05]

just 3 mollies and a 4" pleco in a 20 gallon- she doesnt have bacteria *knock on wood*

 

[adagiolove05]

what else does malachite green fix? tumors or things like that?

 

[adagiolove05]

blah- alright do fish with fungus act healthy in EVERY other way? those two white spots are driving me NUTS. (i know it's not ich because i've treated that a couple of times already at work and with a pleco that i saved from walmart.) i started medicating yesterday, and it hasn't gotten any worse since then, but it hasn't gotten better either. of course, i'll give that time. But she acts totally normal. She eats well and is always swimming around, her fins are nice and spread, she chases her tankmates for a couple seconds at a time... i can't understand what those dots are. is that normal for a fish with fungus?

 

[Lotus]

They usually act "normal" for a while, until the disease starts getting worse.

 

[adagiolove05]

ok- thanks lotus. well my manager at the petshop told me to use melafix, so that's what i'm doing. hopefully the little girl will get better.

 

[Lotus]

Melafix may or may not work. Only one way to find out I've had it work on some cases, and not on others.

 

[adagiolove05]

i think i caught the dots early- does that make a difference? i'm really sad that she's sick because i think she's also pregnant.

 

[Lotus]

Hopefully she'll be OK. Try the Melafix for a week, if she doesn't seem to improve, you will want to swap for something stronger. Livebearers seem prone to fungal/bacterial infections like this, sometimes I think the constant pregnancy is stressful for them.