New Molly Shimmy

[Tom Greiner]

I just got three new sailfin mollys. I did not notice anything strange about them in the store. I drip acclimated them and I put them in a 4 gallon quarantine tank (a clear plastic tote) when I got home. As I unusually do with new fish, I dosed the tank with paraguard, and ich medication.

First day, everything seemed fine.

Second day, two of the three adopted the in place shimmy. This concerns me.

My water is well water, and typically off the charts hard, and so I did not test it again. Ph is about 7.8. Ammonia and nitrite are zero. Nonetheless I added some Prime and Stability. I also added some aquarium salt.

Day three, this morning, I was pleased to see that they were still alive. At least one of them is eating. But, now all three have adopted the shimmy.

I suppose all three could feel a little crowded in the 4 gallon tank, but I've never seen problems with other fish being temporarily crowded in a quarantine tank.

I have one other sailfin molly (in a 75 gallon tank that is also the intended home of these new three) and 3 balloon mollys in a 20 gallon tank. I never saw this shimmy behavior in any of them.

So, does anyone have any idea what is going on here? Am I right to be concerned? Is there something else I can, or should, be doing?

 

Thanks for reading.

 

 

[Minanora]

It depends on what you mean. Are they flashing and rubbing on things? They may have flukes or something. I'd do the full course of paracleanse in this case.

[Tom Greiner]

They are wiggling in place. Undulating like they are trying to swim, but are staying in one place. Pectoral fins by their sides. 

Tank temp is 78 degrees, so I am pretty sure they are not cold.

[Colu]

When livebrearers have Shimmies it usually cause by low KH if it more like flashing behavior that could indicate parasitic infection what is your KH symptoms of a parasitic infection rapid breathing hanging near the surface listlessness not eating rubbing on objects in the tank white stingy poop

Edited September 30, 2022 by Colu

[Tom Greiner]

KH is 240+. No flashing that I have noticed.

[Colu]

On 9/30/2022 at 7:29 PM, Tom Greiner said:

KH is 240+. No flashing that I have noticed.

Your KH is fine do you use a water dechlorinator like prime when doing changes and have you tested for ammonia 

[Tom Greiner]

As stated above, prime added daily. Ammonia is 0.

 

[Colu]

On 10/1/2022 at 12:43 AM, Tom Greiner said:

As stated above, prime added daily. Ammonia is 0.

 

Missed that what I would do is monitor them for a week if  start to show any of symptoms I described I would treat with paracleanse 

[Minanora]

Still on team paracleanse here.

[Tom Greiner]

Update,

The three Mollys are still alive. 

I went the paracleanse route, and five day treatment period is now up.

I don't seem the shimmy anymore, or rather not as much, but I still don't know what was, or is, wrong with them. I don't know if the paracleanse helped, or if they would have gotten better anyway. 

They've got a least another week to go in my normal quarantine procedure.