fish stuck in filter intake

[mollymama]

This morning I noticed one of our 2 mollies was plastered to the filter intake. I thought she was dead, but then she gave a little gulp. I gently pushed her away and she detached and started swimming...a bit unsteadily, but now she seems fine. Strange. She hasn't seemed ill or lethargic...but she is the fish that suffered pretty severely from ammonia and/or nitrite poisoning when the tank was cycling about about a month and a half ago. Is this uncommon? Should I worry about her health? The tank is a 10 gallon and the filter is an appropriate size. I need to re-check water parameters this morning so I'm not sure what those are right now. Thoughts?

[HalfMoon B]

Have you thought about a sponge pre filter? I use it on both of my tanks with shrimp/bettas

[firteen888]

Pick up one of these

Amazon.com: ProClear Aquatics Replacement Round Prefilter Sponge for ProClear Aquatics Wet Dry Filter 5.5 in x 2.75 in: Kitchen & Dining

[HN1]

A healthy fish won't get caught in the intake. A pre-filter could help, but I'd suspect the fish already had issues.

[mollymama]

Originally Posted by HN1

A healthy fish won't get caught in the intake. A pre-filter could help, but I'd suspect the fish already had issues.

That's what I read when I googled stuck fish...but now that she's acting normally I guess I just need to keep an eye on her.

Thx all. I may look into something to put around the intake slots.

[mfdrookie516]

I agree with HN1.. and I'll add that water changes should be in order if it's not too late

[mollymama]

Oh no, she's stuck again. There def. is something wrong. What should I do?

[siva]

She may just be too damaged from the cycling to make it. At this point all you can really do is keep the water prestine unless you notice other symptoms. Unfortunately IME once you notice someone is getting stuck to the intake, they probably don't have much longer It would be hard for her to thrive in that tank long term though. Mollies can reach up to about 5" and have large bio-loads. They really aren't appropriate for 10 gal tanks.

[mollymama]

Well, she didn't make it. I detached her 2 more times today and after the last time she just sat on the bottom of the tank until I found her a couple hours later. My 5 y/o is pretty upset...these are her fish.

So now that we have 1 molly in a 10 gallon tank, is that a better situation? Any chance of adding a couple smaller, compatible fish? A few folks responded to other questions of mine that 2 mollies in a 10 gal tank were too much and that the tank needed to be bigger. Thank you once again, pet store people. I swear everything they told me was wrong. Argh.

[adadkins1]

I am very sorry for your loss.

I am not experinced with mollies, but I do know (like siva said) they have high bio-loads and get way to big to be suitable for a 10g. Is there any chance that you could re-home her or take her back to the store? I know it would probably not make your child happy, but then you could re-stock the tank with fish that could thrive in it.

If this is not possible, you might could try a school of 6 neon tetras, but this would be overstocked more than likely.

[mollymama]

Thanks...it's been a very emotional night at our house!

After having this one die my daughter would have a breakdown if we tried to return the fish that's left...but a larger tank might be an option. A friend said he had one he was looking to unload a while back. Maybe I should look into that. And now that I know a fishless cycle is the way to go, I wouldn't have *that* problem again!

[adadkins1]

I would definately try to upgrade to something like a 29 gallon tank. This is what I have seen reccomended as the minimum for mollies, and I would think you could put other fish in with them too. Maybe 3 mollies and a school of small tetras or something of that sort.

[marchmaxima]

Awww, i can imagine. So sorry this has happened. It's never fun when this like this happens with the young one quite distraught.

But if you have the means, upgrade. It would be best outcome for your daughter and for your remaining Molly.

And never be concerned about asking for advice here instead. All of us were newbies once. And many of us have all been the recipients of advice we would have been better off not receiving.

Hope it goes well