Sick female molly and possible gourami with bloat

[Ilikemollyz]

Hello their,i joined this website to conversate with fellow fish owners,and also ask for help.I have a fifty-five gallon tank that was a couple days ago stocked with 3 gouramis,3 mollys (2 adults,one juvenile)Plus a assortment of snails. For the molly case,my female molly who gave birth around 2 weeks ago has a odd grey spot on top of her head,a white-ish ring around one eye,and has been swimming awkwardly(almost lopsided,sometimes upside down even!).I've had her for about a year,she's had 2 different fish fry litters.I'm concerned for her health,she hasn't been eating well for about a week or so.
The gourami problem confuses me.I've had a trio of dwarf gouramis for about 6-7 months,been doing fine.They have great colors,about 3 days ago i found one dead behind my fish fry breeder net! They had almost none of their awesome color,and their stomachs looked like they were carrying fry (even though they were a male.The next day,one was dead on the sand floor,both with same synthoms. I woke up in fear that my last would be dead,but their alive-they too look bloated. I did a large waterchange yesterday. Any help would be appreciated,feel free to ask for water parameters and etc-

 

[Ilikemollyz]

1~What type of fish is afflicted? In addition, please describe what is wrong with the fish to the best of your ability (i.e. cotton like growth, bloated, etc.).already answered
2~What are your tank parameters (ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, temp, pH)? Please give exact values.ammonia-0ppm,Ph-7.2,temp-around 80,
3~ How large is the tank? How long has the tank been set up?55 gallon,around a year
4~What type of filtration are you using? Please give the name and number (i.e. Fluval 304) and amount of gph if known.Topfin 75 gallon filter
5~How many fish are in the tank? What kinds of fish are they and what are their current sizes? answered above
6~When is the last time you did a water change and vacuum the gravel? How often do you do this? How much water do you remove at a time?I did a 40 percent water change yesterday,usually do 20 percent change weekly.I have sand and haven't been vacuuming recently
7~How long have you had the fish? If the fish is new, how did you acclimate it/them?I've had the molly since the tank was cycled,gourami for about 6-7 months
8~Have you added anything new to the tank--decor, new dechlorinator, new substrate, etc.?added one artifical plant a month ago,same declorninator brand as always. I added a breeder net last month
9~What kind of food have you been feeding your fish, have you changed their diet recently?fluval bug bites,i switch between pellets,flakes,and color enhanching flakes.I also have algae wafers.

 

[Andy Sager]

If it's male Gouramis that are bloated, that's usually an internal bacterial infection which causes the organs to fail and creates the bloat ( a.k.a. Dropsey) which can happen when their diet is not correct or they get constipated. Unfortunately, with Gouramis, there are many of the Dwarfs that carry the iridvirus so that can never be totally eliminated from the cause.
Because you are losing the Gouramis and the Molly at the same time however and the fish are not new, sounds more like an environmental issue combined with a nutritional one. ( Environmental for the Molly, Diet for the Gouramis.) There seems to be too much protein and not enough vegetable matter. Mollies eat a good amount of greens in their diet as do the Gouramis. You need to add an Algae flake or some foods with chiton ( found in the shells of foods like brine shrimp and insect larvae) daily to help keep their "systems" flowing.

You need to get a water sample from just above the sand. To do this, just cap the test vial and bring down to the bottom of the tank then release the cap to fill the vial. Recap the vial then remove to test. One of the issues with sand is that it can compact so it creates unhealthy conditions due to lack of circulation through it.
Post those results and we can move on from there.

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

Any chance of pictures of the dead and live fish, and one of the entire aquarium?

How often and how do you clean the filter?

Do you dechlorinate the new water before adding it to the aquarium?

What is the nitrite and nitrate level in the water?

What is the GH (general hardness) and KH (carbonate hardness) of your water supply?
This information can usually be obtained from your water supply company's website (Water Analysis Report) 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).

Mollies do best in hard water with a GH above 250ppm and a pH above 7.0.
Dwarf gouramis do best in soft water with a GH below 150ppm (preferably below 100ppm) and a pH below 7.0.
Your pH isn't an issue but the GH might be affecting one of the species you keep.

 

[Ilikemollyz]

If it's male Gouramis that are bloated, that's usually an internal bacterial infection which causes the organs to fail and creates the bloat ( a.k.a. Dropsey) which can happen when their diet is not correct or they get constipated. Unfortunately, with Gouramis, there are many of the Dwarfs that carry the iridvirus so that can never be totally eliminated from the cause.
Because you are losing the Gouramis and the Molly at the same time however and the fish are not new, sounds more like an environmental issue combined with a nutritional one. ( Environmental for the Molly, Diet for the Gouramis.) There seems to be too much protein and not enough vegetable matter. Mollies eat a good amount of greens in their diet as do the Gouramis. You need to add an Algae flake or some foods with chiton ( found in the shells of foods like brine shrimp and insect larvae) daily to help keep their "systems" flowing.

You need to get a water sample from just above the sand. To do this, just cap the test vial and bring down to the bottom of the tank then release the cap to fill the vial. Recap the vial then remove to test. One of the issues with sand is that it can compact so it creates unhealthy conditions due to lack of circulation through it.
Post those results and we can move on from there.

Okay so i did some tests and the ammonia is 0ppm,ph is 7.2 when i did the sand test.I current don' have a nitrate test kit-i'll purchase one when i can.for the nutrition i'll have to look into that,i currently have algae-eater pellets (They are quite large)And they are for my snails and the algae eaters i was planning to get.The sand does look slightly dirty,would a good vacuum like ones from the python suffice? And how would i go about fixing the enviormental issue?

 

[Andy Sager]

Okay so i did some tests and the ammonia is 0ppm,ph is 7.2 when i did the sand test.I current don' have a nitrate test kit-i'll purchase one when i can.for the nutrition i'll have to look into that,i currently have algae-eater pellets (They are quite large)And they are for my snails and the algae eaters i was planning to get.The sand does look slightly dirty,would a good vacuum like ones from the python suffice? And how would i go about fixing the enviormental issue?

For these fish types, an Algae flake would be a better option than pellets or even live plants with soft leaves that are digestible would be good as would the spiralina infused frozen brine shrimp fed daily.

As for fixing the environment, doing routine water changes and stirring the sand bed at each water change will help keep it from compacting as will having animals that dig in the sand to keep it stirred up. You mentioned having snails but what kinds of snails do you have? While they can overload a tank, Malaysian Trumpet Snails are great burrowers so would be an asset in a sand substrate tank. You just need to periodically dispose of some before they over populate. ( This would be the preferred method vs getting snails to eat the Trumpets as they won't stop until they are all gone. :^0 ) Another option would be corydora catfish species if you can keep a pH between 7.0 and 8.0, alkalinity between 3° and 10° dKH (54ppm to 180ppm) and temperature between 74° and 80° F. These parameters are best for many Cory species but not for all of them so you need to research any types you might be interested in before purchase. ( https://www.planetcatfish.com/ is a great resource for info) Another option would be Yo-Yo loaches as they too prefer these parameters only with a preference for the warmer water so 78 degrees+. ( Beware tho that not all loaches will do well under these parameters so research any species you are interested in prior to purchase. ) Both Cories and loaches will sift the sand for food constantly which helps keep it from compacting. Having good water movement at the bottom of the tank will also be a benefit for these fish species.

 

[Ilikemollyz]

Thank you,i will try some of those methods later.what do you think is wrong with the molly? (In terms of condition,is it a fungal or parasitic condition?)

 

[Andy Sager]

Thank you,i will try some of those methods later.what do you think is wrong with the molly? (In terms of condition,is it a fungal or parasitic condition?)

A picture would be a better way to diagnose.