First time molly breeder? Any suggestions?

[optimusprimesgurl]

Originally Posted by mandi85710

No it's fine ask away. I would say on cycling set up your tank and use some of your water from your main tank in there as well as water from the tap. Add all the chemicals to remove chlorine and all of that stuff. I always take some rocks from my main tank and put them in panty hose and stick them in my filter behind the cartridge to help the bacteria you need in your tank build up faster. Also I use stress zyme which adds bacteria to your tank and filter to get the right bacteria in there for your fish. I would do that then put a little food in their once a day and let it run like you have fish in it. The food helps the bacteria as well. But the rocks and using some water from your main works on speeding things up as well. Not everyone recommends doing that so if you choose to normal cycle then that is a little different.

Put water in and add all of your chemicals for chlorine removal ect. Then everyday put a little food like you have fish in it. Then also everyday do about a 25% water change. You would need to do this one for about a month to 6 weeks to get it cycled. I did mine the other way and my fish are all fine.

As far as moving them to the 10G do it right away. As soon as you see them get them moved if you want to keep them. That way there are less eaten. When I first started I thought I would let mother nature take its course until I saw them and now I am a breeder...lol.

As far as the square it is really hard to tell on them unless they are in front of you. Sorry I thought maybe you would be able to see it a little bit. I will look and see if I have any pics of any of my fish in labor. I thought I had one of my silver molly and you can really tell but I have to look b/c it wasn't in my normal spot I save my pics too. You can do it however you want to as far as getting them out it really is up to you. I can't tell you what to do on that one. But yes on the water change and make sure you check your levels to watch for a spike in the ammonia levels. I have to run to the store really quick before they close so I will try and jump back on when I get home but if not I will check back in the morning. I finally got an answer on what to give my fish. First time any of them have ever been sick. I will talk to you soon.

Awesome! Thanks again soooooo much! I'll probably do it your way since it's easier and less time consuming. :3 I'm not quite sure when I might have some little ones. So basically...
Maybe the next time I do a water change on the big tank (usually about a 25%) put that in the 10 gallon along with some tap water. I've got some conditioner for the water. It's strange since it says "Use Monthly"...I don't know lol. I might get a different one that isn't so...fish. Hehe. I usually add some aquarium salt, just what it says for the freshwater guys. I don't do it every water change, but would you recommend adding it for these guys? I'll also take the gravel to get that bacteria like you said and plus the Stress Zyme. My filter seems a little strong, so I'm not sure if that will cause some trouble.

Also for the plants, would plastic ones along with the floating ones be alright? And would you recommend hideouts or like the air pump with the bubble stone?

I also have a master test kit so as it cycles, just keep an eye on that. Another thing I've been wondering. I know like for bettas, people are very very picky on the breeding. But these guys I got from a local petstore, not like Petco or Petsmart, but a small, family-owned and operated one. I hope they're alright to breed with.

Thanks again for everything!

[mandi85710]

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Awesome! Thanks again soooooo much! I'll probably do it your way since it's easier and less time consuming. :3 I'm not quite sure when I might have some little ones. So basically...
Maybe the next time I do a water change on the big tank (usually about a 25%) put that in the 10 gallon along with some tap water. I've got some conditioner for the water. It's strange since it says "Use Monthly"...I don't know lol. I might get a different one that isn't so...fish. Hehe. I usually add some aquarium salt, just what it says for the freshwater guys. I don't do it every water change, but would you recommend adding it for these guys? I'll also take the gravel to get that bacteria like you said and plus the Stress Zyme. My filter seems a little strong, so I'm not sure if that will cause some trouble.

Also for the plants, would plastic ones along with the floating ones be alright? And would you recommend hideouts or like the air pump with the bubble stone?

I also have a master test kit so as it cycles, just keep an eye on that. Another thing I've been wondering. I know like for bettas, people are very very picky on the breeding. But these guys I got from a local petstore, not like Petco or Petsmart, but a small, family-owned and operated one. I hope they're alright to breed with.

Thanks again for everything!

That sounds great. I know what you mean about it saying once a month but that is usually just the upkeep. It should say when starting a tank use it and when you do your partial water changes to use it as well. If it doesn't then you need one that is a booster. Your first dose you want to do a double dose when setting up the tank. Before I forget yes you do want to have an air stone in with the fry tank. Also as far as your filter goes if you have one with the long intake that goes down into the tank they sell at petsmart a little sponge that goes over the part that has the slits on it so the fry do not get sucked up into it. The waste still goes through it too which is great. Several people suggest using panty hose and putting it over that part but nothing can get through them so your tank will stay messy and you need it to filter b/c they will not eat all of their food. Also you can buy veggie algae wafers and put a piece of one in the tank and they sink but my fry love them and it will last for a few days. Just make sure you don't put too big of a piece or your water will get cloudy. But still give them the flakes on occasion to help with their color!

I def would recommend making the water brackish with the aquarium salt. Molly's do a lot better with it in my opinion. 1 tablespoon per 10 gallons is how you want to do it with them just starting the tank. And even with no fish I would add it and when you are ready to add the fish add it again once you are cycled. But whatever you have your main as you want to keep your fry tank the same b/c the fry will be used to that type of water if you are going to net them out. Keeping the same water type will caise as little stress as possible. Also I use a Stress coat in my water with them as well to help keep their slime coats well to protect them. The aquarium salt also helps with healing if they ever get scratched or one of the others attacks or pokes at them for no reason. It also helps clean your tank and you can do less water changes. But you don't have to add that until you are ready for fish. The brands I buy are all by API. The Stress Zyme was $4.99 or less and so is the Stress Coat. The stress coat one by them also removes chlorine, chloramines and heavy metals. It has aloe vera in it as well for the slime coat. If your fish ever get hurt add a dose and it will help. I know on the bottle it says use when setting up a tank but that is b/c it has the stuff to remove the chlorine and metals in this one. Also you want to add it when you do your water changes and also when you add a new fish to your tank you always want to add a little b/c it will help the stress on that fish.

I just bought some Aqua Safe by Tetra. It is a monthly maintenance but it says should be used when setting up your tank also. So that might be something like you have. It then says to use it with monthly partial water changes. I do partials once a week b/c it gets so hot here and since I started doing that it seems to keep the temps down. Except today. It was 90 outside and my tanks got up to 82 so I had freezer bags filled with cold water floating in my tanks to try and bring the temperatures down slowly. I had to change the water in the bags every 20 minutes and after about 2 hours all my tanks were back down to 78f. So thats a tip to use if you need to cool your temps down in your tanks. Never just dump cold water or put ice in the water b/c it will drop the temp to fast and you might end up with some dead fish.

OK here is the other video I was talking about. She is a Balloon Molly and they are always big and round so it is hard to tell when they are pregnant even. I didn't even know she was until all of the sudden I saw her have one. I had her in the breeder as I was reorganizing my tank. But you can see how her belly is flat at the bottom not really round. She is always super round. It is still kind of hard to tell but she might be a little easier to see it on. Here is that video.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrQ_-ghpONg&context=C4eb8fd3ADvjVQa1PpcFPu5Anf2-4V3ULNxnO_mqOVT1IPKGmY4GY=]Balloon Molly Having Her Babies - YouTube[/ame]

[optimusprimesgurl]

Yeah! I can see her it! There is a hint of the bottom of the belly being flat. Is that what you mean by square?

Also right now my mollies are with my bristlenose pleco who is an inch at most, in a freshwater set up. I usually add the recommended amount of aquarium salt for goldfish in there since I used to have goldies in there. Should I do the same for the fry tank?

The water conditioner I have is the same kind exactly lol. So that is alright to use? Oh and the stresscoat is the one thing I always have on hand lol. I usually aim for API products anyways too.

[mandi85710]

Yes that is it!!! But on a regular molly it will go up higher and not just be mostly at the bottom.

I am not sure what the dose for goldfish is with the aquarium salt. But your pleco will be ok with the one tablespoon per 10G. They can live in brackish water I just googled it to make sure for you before I said anything b/c I didn't want to be wrong.

Adding the aquarium salt then makes your tank brackish. Which is in between fresh water and salt water. It helps with healing and in nature they are in brackish water also. But whatever or however you do your main you want to do your fry tank in order to keep the transition smooth for them. Also after you get them all moved if you are netting them over add some more stress coat to the water as well to help out with them. Also it is common for several fry to die after they have been a live a couple hours. No one knows why they just can hold out for a little longer I guess.

That water conditioner is perfect to use in both tanks. Always great to keep the stress coat stocked up b/c you never know what can happen. OK I am off for the night I will ttys!!! Good luck! Maybe you will wake up and have some babies due to the stress of them coming home. You can even use your plastic plants that you put at the bottom in the gravel and have some float by taking the weights off instead of buying the expensive floating plants. Even the plastic ones are pretty pricey!!! OK TTYS!!!!

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Yeah! I can see her it! There is a hint of the bottom of the belly being flat. Is that what you mean by square?

Also right now my mollies are with my bristlenose pleco who is an inch at most, in a freshwater set up. I usually add the recommended amount of aquarium salt for goldfish in there since I used to have goldies in there. Should I do the same for the fry tank?

The water conditioner I have is the same kind exactly lol. So that is alright to use? Oh and the stresscoat is the one thing I always have on hand lol. I usually aim for API products anyways too.

[optimusprimesgurl]

Great idea! And thanks for all the information. I'm glad just removing the weights on the plastic plants will suffice. Gee if I find babies tomorrow morning...well I'm not quite sure what I'd do lol. Another weird thing is my gold molly (the plump one) is always nudging against my female dalmation one lol. I don't know lol, but while they're active the male is just alone at the surface. He moves around a lot, but just is alone. Do you think he's not interested in my females or maybe just the stress from being brought home is making him a little uneasy. Anyways, later I was gonna try some brine shrimp. Maybe that will get him going. :3

[optimusprimesgurl]

Ahh! I see her gravid spot! It's really big and black. No wonder she is picking on my other female.

[optimusprimesgurl]

Sorry! I also noticed that she has some stringy feces, some whitish. Is this normal for the pregnancy? And she seems to be moving around rather fast and is always after my other female. I haven't fed her since she was bought. She could've picked at some algae I guess, but I'm not sure.

[optimusprimesgurl]

Or...she could just be constipated from what they were feeding her. Not quite sure...sorry for all the random, short updates. :/

[mandi85710]

The whitish could mean she just had a fry or it could be from food. If you feed them brine shrimp they will get white poo. But also when they drop a fry sometimes there is white stringy stuff that stays there until the next one comes out. So it all depends on if you see any fry swimming around or how recently you fed them.

As far as your male goes it could be because of the stress of just bringing them home or he is sick. Most likely since he is still moving a lot just by himself he probably is just stressed out from the move. He also is probably not interested if both females are pregnant. Some males are like that. Mine is so not like that. He is constantly going at my females and I lowered it down to one male with 4 females. He was also trying to do my platy's. Is that a bad way to say it? LOL Sorry if it is. He also tries to mate with my platy's...lol.

But it sounds like everything is fine with them. Just watch for any signs they are sick if he acts funny still now since it has been a few days. If he has any white spots or looks like he has sugar and his scales then you need to worry about ick and other things. Hopefully everything is going well though.

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Sorry! I also noticed that she has some stringy feces, some whitish. Is this normal for the pregnancy? And she seems to be moving around rather fast and is always after my other female. I haven't fed her since she was bought. She could've picked at some algae I guess, but I'm not sure.

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Great idea! And thanks for all the information. I'm glad just removing the weights on the plastic plants will suffice. Gee if I find babies tomorrow morning...well I'm not quite sure what I'd do lol. Another weird thing is my gold molly (the plump one) is always nudging against my female dalmation one lol. I don't know lol, but while they're active the male is just alone at the surface. He moves around a lot, but just is alone. Do you think he's not interested in my females or maybe just the stress from being brought home is making him a little uneasy. Anyways, later I was gonna try some brine shrimp. Maybe that will get him going. :3

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Ahh! I see her gravid spot! It's really big and black. No wonder she is picking on my other female.

Originally Posted by optimusprimesgurl

Or...she could just be constipated from what they were feeding her. Not quite sure...sorry for all the random, short updates. :/

[optimusprimesgurl]

Yes he is doing very good. :) He has fit in with his new home and both of my girls are doing good. I actually called up the pet store and they said it was most like the food from the store and the stress. Everyone is eating and personalities are definitely showing haha. I've fed them some brine shrimp and I gave my pleco a wafer and they seemed to be nibbling on that as well. They'll search for algae a lot too and my flake food containing spirulina. I think the female is a ways off too so that should give me some times to cycle the 10 gallon.