Is my black molly sick

Question
Hi.  I just got given some black molly fish that some are to be pregnant.  I have one fish that is swimming around sideways and has something white hanging out of her. Is my fish sick?  I have never raised black mollies, I do have some gold fish in a larger tank that I have never had a problem with.  Can you please let me know about this fish so I know if I have this problem again what is wrong.

Thank you.

Answer
Hi Dina,
Hard to diagnose always without being able to see the fish. The best I can do is make an educated guess.

The white hanging out of her could simply be poo. Mollies can be prone to constipation, they are high herbivorous fish, they really enjoy greens in their diet. The sideways swimming sounds to me like a swim bladder problem. The swim bladder being an organ that controls their equilibrium and digestion problems can often put pressure on the organ and cause all different kinds of swimming problems.

I would try offering her some thawed and mashed green peas to help if she does have a digestion problem. It will usually help fish that have this issue and coinciding swim bladder problems. Hold back feeding her the regular food for several days and offer only peas.

Try to incorporate more vegetables and vegetable based foods in her diet. Goldfish also love lots of vegetables in their diet as well.

Mollies are sensitive fish. They tend to be more prone to problems than other common species.

Best of luck and hope this helps!
Karen~