Hello everyone.
I recently bought a small group of Guppies, five in total, and they seemed to be getting on well at first. They'd play in the current and chase each other around and all five would stick together all the time; they were a joy to watch! Now though, one of them seems to have become a bit of an outcast as four of them continue to play in their group whilst this one in particular sits by himself over by the filter or hides behind plants. I rarely see him now, even during feeds, as he seems very shy and reluctant to come out from his hiding place. I've also noticed that his tail looks as though it has been nipped in several places and I'm fairly certain that this is from one of the other Guppies (other tank mates are four Dwarf Gourami and two Upside Down Catfish who have always been completely peaceful).
I don't like to see my fish bullying each other and have been thinking about what I can do to stop it or at least reduce it. I can't really remove any of the fish as I don't have anywhere else for them to go and I can't take anyone back to the shop either. I was wondering if increasing the size of the group from five to perhaps eight or nine might help though as it might distract the meaner Guppy and give the shy one some new friends to play with so he doesn't feel so left-out. Does this seem like a good idea? Also, if I do buy some more Guppies, should I buy them from the same place as I bought the first group or would it be OK to get them from another (closer) supplier? I can't see that this matters as I've never had any problems with any fish from either supplier before but I thought I should ask anyway.
Although I've only been keeping fish for a couple of months, I haven't lost any yet and I don't want poor Flame to be the first... :-(
Dan
I recently bought a small group of Guppies, five in total, and they seemed to be getting on well at first. They'd play in the current and chase each other around and all five would stick together all the time; they were a joy to watch! Now though, one of them seems to have become a bit of an outcast as four of them continue to play in their group whilst this one in particular sits by himself over by the filter or hides behind plants. I rarely see him now, even during feeds, as he seems very shy and reluctant to come out from his hiding place. I've also noticed that his tail looks as though it has been nipped in several places and I'm fairly certain that this is from one of the other Guppies (other tank mates are four Dwarf Gourami and two Upside Down Catfish who have always been completely peaceful).
I don't like to see my fish bullying each other and have been thinking about what I can do to stop it or at least reduce it. I can't really remove any of the fish as I don't have anywhere else for them to go and I can't take anyone back to the shop either. I was wondering if increasing the size of the group from five to perhaps eight or nine might help though as it might distract the meaner Guppy and give the shy one some new friends to play with so he doesn't feel so left-out. Does this seem like a good idea? Also, if I do buy some more Guppies, should I buy them from the same place as I bought the first group or would it be OK to get them from another (closer) supplier? I can't see that this matters as I've never had any problems with any fish from either supplier before but I thought I should ask anyway.
Although I've only been keeping fish for a couple of months, I haven't lost any yet and I don't want poor Flame to be the first... :-(
Dan
