how much to feed the fish

Question
QUESTION: hello,
thank you for your help.....
i think my molly is pregnant and lately has been staying at the bottom of the tank. is she pregnant? is she giving birth? (she does swim around as well- but recently on occasion has been found sitting at the bottom of the tank
thanks again
iris

ANSWER: Hi Iris,
If your Molly is pregnant, she would be quite chubby.  Mollies need at least a 10 gallon tank, and more is better when they are about to give birth.  Never put a Molly in a hatchery.  She needs room to swim.  Let her swim freely in the tank.  You may lose some fry, but that is life, not all the fish will survive.  Put lots of silk plants, and some will make it.  The fry know to stay away from their mother, or other fish.
She may also be sick.  Observe her.  If she is eating, this is a good sign.  Do you have aquarium salt in your tank?  Mollies need aquarium salt.  If you only have Mollies put 2 teaspoons of aquarium salt to five gallons of water, if you have other fish, put one teaspoon of aquarium salt to five gallons of water.  Always dilute the salt first.  You can find this salt at the pet store, or Walmart.  Mollies will not survive without salt, and many finish their days in salt water.
Feed her plant food, as Mollies are vegetarian.
I hope this helps.
Lynda

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QUESTION: thank you for your prompt reply. do mollies lay eggs or have babies?
another question s one of my mollies is more aggressive then the others.... any thoughts on the cause?
thank you again
Iris

ANSWER: Hi!
Mollies have live baby fish.  They are livebearers, just like guppies, platys, and swordfish.  Mollies, must be kept one male to 3 females.  Keeping too many males with one female, the female will be harassed by the males, and the males could wear her out, and she may die.  Maybe your little female is hiding at the bottom because she is afraid, or tired if there are too many males in the tank.  If you have only males, one could show aggression.  Sometimes, it is play, other times it is domination.  Observation is the key.  If you have no torn fins, or tails, then there is nothing to worry about, but check if you have more males than females.  The male has a gonopodium near his anal fin, the female does not have one.  This is like a little "pick" or a very small toothpick.  
Lynda

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: hey
thanks again, we had no idea about how many men to women ratio. it turns out we have 2 men and 2 women mollies.
just to tell you about our tank we have a 29 gallon tank with 8 fish. 6 are mollies or plattys and 2 are angelfish.
i wanted to ask, how much should we be feeding them. and often should i be adding aquarium salt- we were told every 3 weeks when we clean the water.
thank you again!

Answer
Fish should be fed 2-3 times a day in small amounts.  Example:  2 pellets, or 2 flakes each.  6 teaspoons of aquarium salt should be added to your tank.  Be sure to dilute it first.  If you change 25% of the water, then add 3 teaspoons of aquarium salt.  Always add salt according to the water you remove.
25% of the water should be changed weekly, always using a good water conditioner.  This is to ensure that you have no ammonia, or nitrites in your water.  Ammonia is the number one killer of fish.  It would be a good idea to buy an ammonia test kit.  You can buy it at your pet store, or Walmart.  Sometimes you can find ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates in a kit set.  These are all important to have.  When you have ammonia, or nitrites, or nitrates in your water, you must do water changes to remove them.  This is very important when keeping fish.
I would also like to mention that Mollies, and Angel fish do not mix.  Angel fish live in acidic to neutral water, and Mollies live in alkaline water.  There is nothing you can do about this.  They must live in the water that is meant for them, or their lives are cut short.  Angels live in 6.5 -7.0 PH.  Mollies live in 7.5-8.0PH.
I hope this helps.
Lynda