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New tank,pregnant marble molly

23 14:37:46

Question
Hello,
I purchased a 10 gallon tank about 2 days ago, and not knowing that we should have bought the tank well before the purchase of fish, we bought 5 goldfish and 2 marble mollies just to get things started. Well the female molly is obviously pregnant, until all 7 fish have been just fine. The water is cloudy of I read is normal and will resolve on its own, but the mollies are swimming really low and staying near the glass, sometimes together and sometimes apart. The goldfish are carrying on as usual, but are the mollies dying and is there any chance of the babies living if she does? How long do mollies stay pregnant? What in the world should I do?

Answer
Hi,
Firstly, before putting fish in a tank you need to cycle the tank, which takes around 4 weeks usually. This is done to make sure the nitrite and ammonia are constantly at 0.0, as it is poisonous, and ensure the filter can cope with the waste in the tank.
Goldfish are coldwater fish, and Mollies tropical. One or the other will die, so I recommend rehoming the Goldfish, as they need 10 Gallons each.
Yes, cloudy water is just normal for a new tank.
You should buy test kits for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. The nitrite and ammonia, as I stated before, needs to be 0.0 , but in an uncycled tank I doubt it will be. Do 20 percent daily water changes until they are 0.0.
The nitrate is safe at levels under 20ppm. Live plants help lolwer it.
When the water parameters are perfect, they should be ok.
They are pregnant for 3 to 4 weeks, and have 10 to 20 fry.
You need to put them in a breeding net as the parents will eat them. release them into the main tank when they are 2cm.
Good luck,
Kathryn