Black balloon molly

[Danielle26]

I have 2 black balloon mollies which I think both are pregnant. They are both in a breeding box in the tank. They have been in there for about a week now. When I checked the tank this morning, I noticed both mollies, one more so than the other is covered in white spots. Does anyone know why this is??

 

[Calypso77]

Sounds like maybe they have ich, can you post pictures? It's not a good idea to leave fish in those breeders long, the water can't circulate well in them and they will get less oxygen in there as well.

 

[Bettafanatic]

If you only have two mollies and they're both girls how did they get pregnant? Also it's a bad idea to put them in a breeder box too early because they will absorb the fetuses. You should wait until they look ready to burst.

 

[Calypso77]

If you only have two mollies and they're both girls how did they get pregnant? Also it's a bad idea to put them in a breeder box too early because they will absorb the fetuses. You should wait until they look ready to burst.

I would assume before she got them they were with males. That the only way mine were pregnant, I didn't have mine with males once they were mine.

 

[Danielle26]

Hi. Thanks for the replies . It is indeed white spot. Went to buy the treatment yesterday. Fingers crossed they all survive. Both mollies were confirmed pregnant by the shop I brought them from. (After a week I brought them) they were kept with males

 

[Calypso77]

When you buy a female Molly the chance of them being pregnant is at least 95%. Usually no doubt they are unless the store separate the males and females which in that case they probably don't have enough tanks to do that. .

What do the spots look like on them? Does it look like they are covered in salt? You have to be careful medicating if they are pregnant and you want those babies.

 

[Danielle26]

Yes looks like salt. I noticed all the fish had it yesterday so went straight off to get advice. Don't want this to sound harsh but would rather the fish I have to survive. I didn't set out to have babies, so figured if I could get the others better it was best to do it that way. The shop said to take a water sample down if the spots haven't gone by Saturday. I'm planning on changing the sand and filter Saturday too. Am I doing it right?

 

[Calypso77]

If you search on this forum there is a way you can add AQ Salt and slowly raise temps to get rid of ich disease with out meds.

It's not harsh at all Hun, what ever you want to do it your call.

How long have you had your tank set up for?

 

[Danielle26]

About 2 months at mine. I brought the tank from eBay, with the fish. Brough 3/4 of the original water and added the last 3/4 over 2 weeks. Everything has been running smoothly until yesterday

 

[Calypso77]

Ok have you been testing your water at all?

 

[Danielle26]

Only tested for ph!

 

[Calypso77]

I would be testing Ammonia, Nitrites and Nitrates. Those are the 3 most important things to test for.

 

[Bettafanatic]

Don't forget to test for KH too. pH is only half the story when it comes to water hardness.

 

[Danielle26]

So what should the results be for the ones mentioned?

 

[JerseyGirl1385]

Ammonia should be 0
Nitrites should be 0
And your nitrates should be between 0-10 ppm ( that's the advice I've been given on this forum and that's what I maintain my tank at )

Your pH is your pH just make sure it is consistent. If you test it and its 7.2 make sure it's always 7.2. Consistency is healthier for the fish.

To test your tap water, put water in a cup and leave it for 24 hours and test. This is your tap waters true pH)

 

[Bettafanatic]

Ammonia should be 0
Nitrites should be 0
And your nitrates should be between 0-10 ppm ( that's the advice I've been given on this forum and that's what I maintain my tank at )

Your pH is your pH just make sure it is consistent. If you test it and its 7.2 make sure it's always 7.2. Consistency is healthier for the fish.

To test your tap water, put water in a cup and leave it for 24 hours and test. This is your tap waters true pH)

Same for KH too.

 

[Calypso77]

So what should the results be for the ones mentioned?

Kh is not really a big deal to a lot of people, if you want to test it go for it but not everyone does.

 

[Calypso77]

If you have an overly high Ph and you want to lower it then it is good to test to Kh and Gh in the tank.