i have a goldfish and 2 mollies the pet store said they would get along but...?

Question

the goldfish picks on and chases one of the mollies and in return that molly fights (or maybe plays?) back with it... that was last night and now today it looks like the goldfish and the other molly are teaming up on the other one. im wondering if this is normal... it doesnt seem like they are hurting eachother but im still a little concerned. any ideas on why they are doing this?

thanks Nad for your honest opinion but like i said the person who sold me the mollies told me they would get along with my goldfish. im a new fish/tank owner and im trying to learn. if i didnt care about my fish i wouldnt have asked now would i?

i just saw pictures online of mollies picking to death a poor goldfish so i will have to seporate them. i dont want any of my fish to die!

advise to all new fish owners dont believe what the pet store people tell you until you do some research on your own!!

Answer 1

It is not a question that a goldfish and molly kept together will fight or hurt each other. Both are peaceful fishes and can co-exist.

The fact is that goldfish are not tropical fish therefore, they do not require tropical temperatures, while mollies have to be kept in tropical temperature. Because of this it is not recommended to keep goldfish with other tropical fish. They do best with their own species.

By keeping them together, you cannot maintain temperature condition for both, thus you would be actually making any one of those kinds, suffer.

Answer 2

Those fish don't go together at all. Another example of a sale at a big box store over the quality of life for the pets they sell. Even very unexperienced people know goldfish only go with goldfish. The pet store knows this. They are trying to eat the mollies. You must research on your own, never ever trust a sales person. These stores are there to sell product and make money, they have no interest in keeping animals alive or healthy. I'd demand a refund for any dead fish. Its the stores fault. You are also to blame for not reading up on how to keep fish. Know before you go next time.

Answer 3

The first main reason they don't go together, is molly's beeing warmwater fish and needing temperatures around 76-82 degrees and the goldfish beeing coldwater needing temperatures aroun 68 - 72 degrees

That's where your first problem already starts

As for the one molly chasing the other, is pretty normal behavior if it's a female and a male, because the male will want to mate with her, that's exactly the reason whey they're suppose to be in a group of 1 male and 2-3 females together, because if you have them 1/1, the male might chase the pour female to death
to sex your mollies, check out the following
http://fishlesscycling.com/articles/how_to_sex_your_fish.html

Also your goldfish is much more likely to pick on other fish if the space he has is not adequate for him

A goldfish needs for starters a 10 gallon tank for only 1, and that only for starters with a good filter as well
http://fishlesscycling.com/articles/caring_for_your_goldfish.html


And for the mollies you should also have at least a 10 gallon tank, which is filtered and heated, and they also like some salt, i personally put into my 30 gallon about 6 tablespoons a week of aquarium salt, it also prevents from diseases

you're also suppose to cycle your tank, before you even think about getting fish
http://fishlesscycling.com/articles.html


Also you're suppose to do a partial waterchange of 25% weekly with a gravelsiphon



hope that helps
Good luck

Answer 4

The last statement you made is your best statement (about not believing the pet store people and to do research). Just because someone works in the fish department of a pet store does NOT mean they are experts, in fact, it doesn't even mean they know anything about fish. (I'm sure there are plenty of knowledgeable people working in these places too. I often ask a more complex question about fish (knowing the answer) to see what kind of answers I get....just for fun. You'd be amazed at some of the answers, but I at times have been impressed with the knowledge of the person answering the question.) Anyway, no matter what, it is ultimately up to YOU (the buyer) to know how to recognize a sick or healthy fish, know what type of fish go together, etc., then if anything goes wrong, you have no one to blame but yourself. Consider this a lesson learned and move on, don't beat yourself up over it. In the future just make sure you research IN FULL any fish you may be interested in PRIOR to jumping in to it. If you would have taken some time to research the fish you were interested in, and also what you should do with your tank PRIOR to adding fish (called "cycling" your tank), you would not have run in to this problem. Knowledge is power, and the more you know, the happier you and your fish will be. Best of luck to you. ;o)

Answer 5

And once again a need for research. Several good answers here, and the fact is don't mix goldfish and tropicals, no matter what others may say. If you like the color in goldfish, try platies, or some of the gouramis with your mollies.

Answer 6

HI LaidE Bright Eyes, The bad news is the advice you get from your average pet store employee is usually worse than useless as their goal is to separate us from our money with little or no regard for the poor creatures who get caught in the middle, the good news is you found out how to care properly for your fish before anyone got seriously hurt.

You might find the attached link of some help with your Goldfish.

Answer 7

Fish don't "Play" They instinctively, and intrinsically avoid death, and they will do whatever it takes to survive.
Gold fish are aggressive toward mollies, and pretty much any other fish thay can either fit into their mouths, or get out of their territory.
Mollies will fight and attempt to survive as you would. It isn't a game, and it isn't playing. It is the survival of the fittest.
I wouldn't stress my mollies so much by placing them in with koi carp, or goldfish.
It is a stressfull environment, and that flaky food you're putting in there is just pissing everyone off.
They are thinking, and feeling animals. Respect them as they would you. Don't put predators with prey. It's not funny, and it is really cruel.


Nad

Answer 8

I'm not much of a fish expert, but is it possible that something might be wrong with the mollie that would cause the other two to "pick" on it. Oftentimes in the wild, a creature with a deformity or disease will be excommunicated.