Platy Help Required

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platyoutofwater said:
I shall certainly be monitoring the water like a hawk.

Had a minor heart attack this morning, I woke up and turned on the lights from afar and thought to myself, the mother fish looks awful close to the breeder trap. As I got closer, it dawned on me that she was actually inside it! I have absolutely no idea how she managed to get in there being as it is pinned to the side of the tank and the edge is a good inch or so above water level, but in there she was.

Fortunately, I left the divider between mother and fry up from when I first caught them all and their survival instinct must have kicked in so she couldn't get to them, all 13 present and accounted for!

I need a second tank...
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Lol .. The first time I put my breeder box in mine, I left it in a few days so they were used to it, I came down one morning and there were 2 adult mollies in it , they must have jumped in for a nosey :) now they don't bother at all it's in and out of the main tank that much ;)
 
Canary bird said:
Lol .. The first time I put my breeder box in mine, I left it in a few days so they were used to it, I came down one morning and there were 2 adult mollies in it , they must have jumped in for a nosey :) now they don't bother at all it's in and out of the main tank that much ;)
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Hopefully she was just curious and now realises that it means a night spent trapped in there whilst your babies laugh at you because you can't get to them!

Looking for a second tank at the minute in which to house the fry. It will need to be fairly large to account for their growth, any tips as to the sorts of tank I'll need, I'm thinking particularly with the filter as I don't want them being sucked up.
 
I have an 80 litre and a 25 litre just for the babies , the 25 has a sponge filter no casualties so far :) and the 80 has a eheim internal filter also with sponge and I put the white filter wool on the top so if any do get sucked in they are safe and won't get sucked into the sponge, I check that 4 or 5 times a day, again no casualties just lots of rescues lol... In the 25 I put the tiny ones and in the 80 go the bigger then when big enough into my 200 until new homes come along , I'm not going to breed anymore though its a lot of time and I'm struggling to find free homes for them ;) everyone wants 10 because they are small but when I say this is how big they will grow ! So only have 2 or 3 max they say no ! So I've a lot of babies, I'm in the process of hunting down another tank :)
 
platyoutofwater said:
Hopefully she was just curious and now realises that it means a night spent trapped in there whilst your babies laugh at you because you can't get to them!

Looking for a second tank at the minute in which to house the fry. It will need to be fairly large to account for their growth, any tips as to the sorts of tank I'll need, I'm thinking particularly with the filter as I don't want them being sucked up.
Click to expand...
With tank prices on this side of the pond, a cheap alternative to buying glass tank(s) is to use plastic storage containers. You can get all different sizes. Large containers(80ltrs+) for around £10, sponge filter, heater. Could be set-up for around £30. You don't need an aquarium light, a regular desk light will do. Alternatively, for a filter, if your using an internal filter, put some cheap, brand new ladies tights over the intake(s) of the filter. Secure the tights with an elastic band.....
 
Thanks for the advice once more, really not sure what I am going to go for in terms of tanks but will look properly at the weekend and I at least now know what I am looking for.

I'm having a bullying problem at the minute with the white/transparent fish looking to exert her authority on the new mother, chasing her all round the tank. The dominant one has always been very boisterous and it makes you wonder as to their mindset, obviously she was in the tank on her own for a month before the other two came in so I wonder if she sees it as her territory now.
 
Also, touch wood as I am at work typing this, the baby platy fry are all fine at the minute, can't really see any noticeable signs of growth yet but it has only been five days. When I get the second tank, am I best moving the fry into it or the larger fish.

I have been thinking that moving the fry would be better as I can use a more fry friendly filter in it whereas the filter in this one, unless I cover it in tights, may be prone to sucking them up, but I don't want to kill them by taking them to a new environment too young.
 
platyoutofwater said:
Also, touch wood as I am at work typing this, the baby platy fry are all fine at the minute, can't really see any noticeable signs of growth yet but it has only been five days. When I get the second tank, am I best moving the fry into it or the larger fish.

I have been thinking that moving the fry would be better as I can use a more fry friendly filter in it whereas the filter in this one, unless I cover it in tights, may be prone to sucking them up, but I don't want to kill them by taking them to a new environment too young.
Click to expand...

As long as the tank has been cycled and is the same temperature as the other and all the parameters more or less the same the fry will be fine in the new tank,

Good luck :)
 
I agree with you on the territory thing. They can be just as aggressive to each other as males. I find, if you remove all the fish for an hour or so, rearrange the tank and put them back in, just before lights out. This should break her territory issue. It worked for me before....
 
I came back from work to find this little critter and one similar on the side of the tank...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v87/Lilly_2004/20131002_174108_zps173d2ba7.jpg

Any ideas what they are and whether I need to remove them?

I need to clean out the breeding trap as well as the food in there is starting to rot, was hoping to have the new tank by cleaning time, no idea how i'm going to go about doing this with 14 of them in there ha.
 
platyoutofwater said:
I came back from work to find this little critter and one similar on the side of the tank... http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v87/Lilly_2004/20131002_174108_zps173d2ba7.jpg Any ideas what they are and whether I need to remove them? I need to clean out the breeding trap as well as the food in there is starting to rot, was hoping to have the new tank by cleaning time, no idea how i'm going to go about doing this with 14 of them in there ha.
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looks like a pond snail, its up to you if you like them or not. but they can very quickly overrun your tank so if you don't want an army of snails, start picking out every one you see
 
aquandrew said:
looks like a pond snail, its up to you if you like them or not. but they can very quickly overrun your tank so if you don't want an army of snails, start picking out every one you see
Click to expand...

Thank you for the clarification. How would they have gotten in there? Would the eggs have been in a live plant I bought?

Not looking forward to cleaning the breeder tank later, the only way I can see of doing it is catch all the fry individually and store them in a separate pyrex jug of tank water whilst I clean which could be quite the ordeal!
 
platyoutofwater said:
Thank you for the clarification. How would they have gotten in there? Would the eggs have been in a live plant I bought?

Not looking forward to cleaning the breeder tank later, the only way I can see of doing it is catch all the fry individually and store them in a separate pyrex jug of tank water whilst I clean which could be quite the ordeal!
Click to expand...

It's easier than you think, the individual fry are really easy to net and like you said put them in a Pyrex jug , clean out the net put them back, been there and done it several times, I was like you the first time it was a bit daunting ! But I did it ;)
I'm sure you will do fine :)
Good luck
 
platyoutofwater said:
Thank you for the clarification. How would they have gotten in there? Would the eggs have been in a live plant I bought? Not looking forward to cleaning the breeder tank later, the only way I can see of doing it is catch all the fry individually and store them in a separate pyrex jug of tank water whilst I clean which could be quite the ordeal!
Click to expand...

platies and mollies are livebearers. meaning they don't lay eggs, the fry pop out free swimming from stage one. platies and mollies can hold the "male juice" for up to six months, so you will continue to see fry from the platies for a few more batches. the mollies will continue to breed, as long as you have a male/female in the tank. i would suggest either getting rid of the male molly, or add two more females. if not, the male will constantly chase the female, eventually stressing her to death. if you don't want too much fry, get another fish that will enjoy them as a live food source. platies and mollies will eat their own fry, but there will always be some that survive, if you don't have something else in the tank to take care of them.
 
aquandrew said:
platies and mollies are livebearers. meaning they don't lay eggs, the fry pop out free swimming from stage one. platies and mollies can hold the "male juice" for up to six months, so you will continue to see fry from the platies for a few more batches. the mollies will continue to breed, as long as you have a male/female in the tank. i would suggest either getting rid of the male molly, or add two more females. if not, the male will constantly chase the female, eventually stressing her to death. if you don't want too much fry, get another fish that will enjoy them as a live food source. platies and mollies will eat their own fry, but there will always be some that survive, if you don't have something else in the tank to take care of them.
Click to expand...

I actually meant the snail haha!
 
Mission accomplished in terms of cleaning the small breeder trap, individually fished them all out and let them swim around in a Pyrex jug of tank water whilst I set about cleaning it. Once spotless I did a quick water change and added them back to the trap where they have thrived over the weekend. I lost one on Friday but still have 14 remaining, so must have counted incorrectly to begin with!!

Ordering the new tank today, so will hopefully have that ready and cycled by the end of the week to add the fry to it and see how they fare in open water.
 
platyoutofwater said:
Mission accomplished in terms of cleaning the small breeder trap, individually fished them all out and let them swim around in a Pyrex jug of tank water whilst I set about cleaning it. Once spotless I did a quick water change and added them back to the trap where they have thrived over the weekend. I lost one on Friday but still have 14 remaining, so must have counted incorrectly to begin with!! Ordering the new tank today, so will hopefully have that ready and cycled by the end of the week to add the fry to it and see how they fare in open water.
Click to expand...

It might take a bit longer than a week to cycle it , I would use something like denitrol for the beneficial bacteria boost as it's quicker, but make sure you get your water tested before you add the babies, or if you already have a filter put it in your main tank and let it begin to collect some BB ;) good luck
 
Canary bird said:
Go for the bigger one, but before you buy one check eBay or amazon , eBay have some real bargains on 2nd hand tanks :) just wish we did here :/
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Apologies OP for going off topic but Canary bird, how is it trying to keep aquariums in Tenerife. Are there many pet stores to get supplies??
 
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