Pregnant Molly

[Calm13]

So I just bought a pair of mollies this past Saturday notice one little fry in my QT this morning, so apparently one of them is a pregnant female.

Now that I look closer, one definitely does look bigger.

Doing some reading, it seems we should be expecting more fry? I've never bred fish and didn't have any intention of having the fry in there. I'm not sure if I should separate them or just let nature take its course. Any suggestions?

 

[uelissa]

Yes, prepare yourself for more fry!

Depending on how old she his and how many times she has dropped fry, she could have anywhere between 6-200 babies.

If you could, get yourself a breeder/breeding box. If you want, you could put the pregnant one in there, and when she drops, the fry will slip through the divider under the momma, and be safe in there. Or unless you want her to eat some (or most) don't get one.

Feed the fry crushed up flake food, so crushed up that it is kinda like a powder. Feed them 2-5 times a day, hardly food at all each feeding if you feed them a lot per day, and a tad more if you aren't gonna feed them that much. If you want them to grow faster, feed a variety of food. If you are going to feed them different types of food, too, frozen or newly hatched brine shrimp works great, and so does frozen blood worms. The more food, the quicker they will grow.

They should be fully grown in about three months. Males will be sexually matured at about 2 months, females at 3.


(I know this because I breed mollies as well as guppies)

Any more questions, feel free to DM me!!!

 

[Calm13]

Went ahead and got a breeding box. Figured the fry could stay in the QT for a while after the mollies leave.

Haven't seen any more fry at this point though. How long does it usually take between fry? Like I said, I wasn't trying to breed so I have now idea if my water conditions are conducive to breeding or anything like that.

 

[BBradbury]

Your Mollies

So I just bought a pair of mollies this past Saturday notice one little fry in my QT this morning, so apparently one of them is a pregnant female.

Now that I look closer, one definitely does look bigger.

Doing some reading, it seems we should be expecting more fry? I've never bred fish and didn't have any intention of having the fry in there. I'm not sure if I should separate them or just let nature take its course. Any suggestions?

Hello Calm...

I would drop some stem plants into your quarantine tank. Livebearing fish get a sense of comfort if they have a bit of privacy and the fry need a little hiding space. If you've selected your fish carefully by checking the skin for blemishes, bumps, lumps and the fins for tears and not clamped close to the body and a plump body with good color and energetic activity in the water, your chances of getting an unhealthy fish is remote. So, a quarantine tank isn't needed and you never have to net the fish. Netting can be stressful for you and the fish, especially if you're not good at it. I also check to make sure there are no dead fish in the pet store tank.

Livebearing fish don't require it, but prefer a bit of standard aquarium salt added to their water, especially Mollies. A teaspoon or a bit more added to every 5 gallons of new, treated tap water is enough.

I always keep all my Livebearers in the same tank and heavily plant it and feed often if I see fry. Adult Livebearers are much less likely to bother their fry if they're well fed.

Just some suggestions to think about or not.

B

 

[chilyt17]

I have a black mollie who is plump but acting strange. It used to be spunky and rule the tank but now it's as if it's to heavy to swim. It swims up and then sinks down. Can you advise?

 

[chilyt17]

You can s
Disregard what I wrote because it just died.

 

[corylover]

no way that sucks.

 

[chilyt17]

It dies because my dog Bella loved it. I have to find the video of her and the fish.

 

[corylover]

well I'm in the same boat I had 2 neons die yesterday and then now the premature fry didn't make it

 

[chilyt17]

It's nice to have another to chat about this with. I don't even know how to find my messages unless someone responds to them. Maybe we can learn from each other ? The tank gives me a good hobby. It takes away my stress and relaxes me until this stuff happens lol. Thomas

 

[corylover]

well so we don't clog this thread I sent you a pm. to check you messages look at the top right of the site. you see your name. under it it says private messages just click on that.