why is my molly dying? HELP!!!

[squishifishi]

Ok...so I carefully acclimated a juvie molly to marine a week ago. he was doing great, eating, swimming around, totally normal. I was watching him in the tank with the flow off while I fed him. He went from totally normal to near-death conditions in just over an hour! it started with him scratching. on occasion I noticed him flip himself against a rock, which is ok because fish can get itchy too. But then the scratching got more intense and more frequent to the point where he was stuffing himself into holes, rubbing up and down the glass, and practically burrying himself in the sand! then the shaking started...that was thescary part. he was quivering, vibrating, and twitching like he was having some sort of a seizure. Like he had absolutely no control over his body. it was very strange because I could tell that he WANTED to be doing normal fishy stuff, like he'd swim past sone algae and try to bite it but his body would drag him away...does that even make sense?
next he seemed to loose equlibrium. he swam tilted to one side and could only turn one direction. he started bumping into walls like he was blind and disoriented. then he got to the point that all he could do was shiver and swim in blind, tiny little circles. all the symptoms came on SOO fast and I was freaking out. but, I figured there was nothing I could do to help and I had to get some sleep so I went to bed, assuming in the morning I woud find him; dead.
This morning I wokeup, peered into the tank, and there he is, swimming about,happy, active, and totally normal again! I thought perhaps it hadjust been a strange phase that had passedor something? so I went to work. when I got home again, I lookedin the tank for him.
he swam cheerfully outof the cheato up to the front of the glass and said hi. then, he promptly floated up to the top of the water, wobbled sideways, flipped upside-down, then sunk,nose down, as his breathing slowed to a stop. My molly died.

Soooooo...my question is what happened????

[squishifishi]

sorry for the incredibly long, novel lenght post. All the details are important I think and let me know if you need any more info.
Thank you sooo much for any help you can offer.

[squishifishi]

any thoughts?

[Barrel Dreams]

What are you water parameters? How did you go about acclimating it to saltwater? Some fish just don't make it, even hardy ones. Sorry to hear about the loss.

[squishifishi]

3day acclimation w/a bucket & airline tubing until the salinities matched. The symptoms don't seem to match with that of salinity shock...but I'm a newb so I could be wrong I guess.

[hollister]

Low oxygen levels. Water flow is what brings Oxygen in from a gas exchange at the surface. Low flow and or covered tank means low Oxygen levels. Whene you turned flow off it went below healthy levels and stressed them out.

Check flow rate and good open space on top.

Also listing your specs in your profile really helps like tanks size , equipment used and tanks age and stock.

[squishifishi]

I hadn't thought of that! you think it could've dropped that fast? The flow was only off for like 1hr and I do have chaeto in the display for added oxygen.
Thnx for the tip, I'll go update my sig

[hollister]

If O2 levels already low and u turn flow off then yes i think it would..

[squishifishi]

ok, so for the general health of my pico reef, what is the best way to raise the oxygen level in the water? thanks!

[squishifishi]

any thought on oxygenating?