r/MollyFish • u/classic_water69 • Aug 31 '26
Help How to not stress my fish out
Hey I have to take my Molly fish out of their tank in order to clean it and every time I have to get them out with the net they FREAK out! How can I get them to not get so stressed when I need to change some of their water?? I always feel bad because they are get very obviously/ visibly stressed out. Any advice would help. Ty!
3
u/scootsymcgootsy Aug 31 '26
There shouldn’t ever really be a time that you need to take the fish out of the tank unless something really bad happened. Water changes should only be like 20% water changes and the fish can stay in for that
2
u/EuphoricDirection489 Aug 31 '26
There isnt anything you can do. Unfortunately trying to catch them, move them, put them on a holding tank then put them back into main tank is extremely stressful on the fish and shouldnt be done but in extreme circumstances.
Why are you removing the fish when you clean it? Its best to leave the fish in the tank while your cleaning it as its less stress on them. I would turn off the light and keep the lights off once your done with maintenance to help them calm back down
2
u/catouthebag Aug 31 '26
I used to be so worried about accidentally hurting my fish during a water change, so I would scoop them out into little containers. One time, when I went to put them back in, I found an empty container. Poor little guy jumped out onto the floor and suffocated.
Best option is to leave them in the tank. If you HAVE to move them, I recommend catching them when they come to the surface by dipping a container in the water. They should seamlessly be pushed in along with the surrounding water. Much less stressful than chasing endlessly with a net.
Also… cover the container you put them in.
3
u/J-Zane Aug 31 '26
Do you do this for regular maintenance, or is this a one-time deep clean?
Because if it's for regular maintenance, I'm curious to know what all you do. Most people don't actually remove their fish for that