10 Gal Tank Got Knocked Off Of Stand- Help!

I just started keeping fishies a couple of months ago, so I'm not 100% sure what I'm doing. I was given a fully set up 10 gal tank with some black and yellow fish (mollies, I determined via google) and mosquito fish for my birthday in April. They all were happy and thriving, until my fat dumb cat tried to wedge himself between the tank and the wall- a four inch space, tops. He's a Maine ****, and gigantic, so the tank fell like the Berlin wall. I was home when it happened, luckily, but in the end I was only able to save two mollies (Charleston and Humberto) and one mosquito fish (David Gerber) (I saved three initially, but two did not survive the shock). I don't get paid until July 7th, and the only tank I had in my house was a 1/2 gal one I used to grow beetles for my students last year. I know this is far too small but I literally have no other options until I can buy a new tank! Any tips or ideas on how to keep my babies alive until then? They have been in the temp tank for two days- the mollies are fine, but David Gerber is kind of listless and pale. I'm doing daily water changes but I'm worried the constant fussing with them is doing more harm then good. I tried to upload an but the file is too big!

 

So Sorry this happened
Do you have any largish plastic food containers? Those are usually safe for fish as long as you wash them out well and would be better than the 1/2 gallon. If you have a cycled filter, take the media out if it is still wet and add an airstone if you have one to keep your cycle alive. Continue doing water changes every day if you can to keep the water quality in check and reduce stress.
Again, I'm so sorry this happened, best of luck to you and your fish!

 

Yes, you can even run your filter on a big plastic container if it's a sponge filter or hang on the back power filter. Was the aquarium on a stand? Just curious how the cat managed to push a 100lb aquarium over...

Good luck I hope everyone survives!

 

Are you able to keep the container/tank they are in somewhat heated? This may be a factor in their current health. With 3 fish in a tank that size a daily water change of around 50% would help keep ammonia down for them and reduce stress. Do you have an airstone in the tank as well? Oxygenating the water is a must right now too

 

I just started keeping fishies a couple of months ago, so I'm not 100% sure what I'm doing. I was given a fully set up 10 gal tank with some black and yellow fish (mollies, I determined via google) and mosquito fish for my birthday in April. They all were happy and thriving, until my fat dumb cat tried to wedge himself between the tank and the wall- a four inch space, tops. He's a Maine ****, and gigantic, so the tank fell like the Berlin wall. I was home when it happened, luckily, but in the end I was only able to save two mollies (Charleston and Humberto) and one mosquito fish (David Gerber) (I saved three initially, but two did not survive the shock). I don't get paid until July 7th, and the only tank I had in my house was a 1/2 gal one I used to grow beetles for my students last year. I know this is far too small but I literally have no other options until I can buy a new tank! Any tips or ideas on how to keep my babies alive until then? They have been in the temp tank for two days- the mollies are fine, but David Gerber is kind of listless and pale. I'm doing daily water changes but I'm worried the constant fussing with them is doing more harm then good. I tried to upload an but the file is too big!

I'm so sorry, that sounds awful! A half gallon will get toxic from ammonia very quickly, even with daily water changes. If you don't have any larger containers, I think your cheapest option for short term housing would be a 5 gallon bucket from lowes or home depot ($3 or $4). What kind of filter was on the 10 gallon tank? It's probably salvageable, though depending on the type, it might take some creativity to get it running on a bucket.

 

You can keep fish in storage bins - the 10 or 20 gallon plastic ones. Since they are mollies and a Gambusia, no heater is needed.

 

Was the aquarium on a stand? Just curious how the cat managed to push a 100lb aquarium over...

Mainecoons get ginormous, like 18lbs+...One of my family friends had a mainecoone that was 24 lb...and it wasn't even overweight! I'm sure a slight push would have pushed the tank over if it was on a stand...

But I second the bucket idea, you could probably get a bunch of buckets at the dollar store(if you're in the US), at least till you get a new tank. They have some really giant ones there, I think I've seen 5 gallons and 7 gallons before!