Drooping tail, fish dying

Feb 18, 2008
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#1
Last week I lost a fish to an illness I have not been able to find in a book. His tail fin compressed and then started drooping down. There were no other visible symptoms. Now my black molly is exhibiting the same behavior and I am not sure what the culprit is.

I have a 20 gallon, established tank. Nitrates 20, nitrites .5, hardness 150, no chlorine, alkalinity 40 (low) and pH 6.8 neutral. Water temp is 78-80 degrees.

I have just done a 40% water change, and have begun medicating with Lifeguard All-in-one treatment. Any suggestions on what my be the causing this problem?
 

MissDanni

Large Fish
Feb 12, 2008
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#4
I know exactly what you are talking about!

I brought home 2 dalmatian mollys and the larger on started drooping her tail, as if she wasn't really using it, sort of loss the use of it ... she soon passed.

The following day the other molly showed the same symptoms, drooping tail ... next day she was gone.

Now my molly female that I have had for some time started with the droopy tail about a week ago.

So I have been doing 50% water changes daily and adding Melafix to the water along with the water conditioner.

She is doing much better and this hasn't effected any of my other fish (Including one black molly male) ... this leads me to believe this is something that effects the female molly's only. At one point she was stuck to the filter and we thought she was dead, when we reached in to get her she quickly swam away. Scared me the little bugger!

Now its been a week and I have stopped the Melafix and she seems to be doing better, she is eating and swimming when needed, but her tail does drop downward from time to time. I'm afraid whatever was wrong with the other 2 molly females was passed to her.

She is on the road to recovery as far as I can tell.

Now I have searched until my fingers were sore from typing and I have found nothing about this until I read your thread here.

Is this something new? "Molly Droopy Tail Syndrome" ?
 

Selina

New Fish
Jun 4, 2016
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#5
I have had this problem. Most of my fish losses have been due to this. Started with my platys but have lost mollies to this. Is there a preventative or a cure?
 

CAPSLOCK

Elite Fish
Jul 19, 2004
3,682
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Cape Cod
#6
That is clamped fins, which is really a symptom of stress in fish and not of a specific disease. It can indicate that the fish is sick or deteriorating water quality (which then often leads to a disease).