Platy is giving birth right now!!

[janice_016]

My platy just gave birth to her first fry and she ate it right away.. I was ready to save the fry with my net but she was fast!
When will the next fry come so I can be ready?
This is her second batch, she gave birth during the night a few weeks ago and no fry survived. I just fed all my fish so thy are full... Any other tips?

Thanks

 

[Tippytrampoline]

I would get one of those breeder boxes with the v-shaped insert for live-bearing fish. It floats freely on the surface, and the fry fall through vents in the plastic away from the female so she can't get to them. When you think she's done just scoop her back into the tank, an you have a nice little grow-out tank to keep the kids safe!

 

[janice_016]

I was thinking that but I didn't want It to stress out the mother. Probably the best way to protect the babies though! I will grab one tomorrow morning. She's finally settled down and sitting at the bottom of the tank, she was swimming around while giving birth. Hopefully I'll catch the rest of the babies.. Any idea how many, and how often. The first one came out within about 35 min
Thanks

 

[Ian086]

I was thinking that but I didn't want It to stress out the mother. Probably the best way to protect the babies though! I will grab one tomorrow morning. She's finally settled down and sitting at the bottom of the tank, she was swimming around while giving birth. Hopefully I'll catch the rest of the babies.. Any idea how many, and how often. The first one came out within about 35 min
Thanks

Hi Janice, i'm new to this also. I'm not gonna tell you what to do, rather share my recent experience with you. I had two platies give birth(Mon & Wed this week). I was kinda prepared, i had a breeding tank-10g, a breeding trap and of course my pregnant platies. The trap has vent-like holes on the bottom for the fry which if they are fast enough they can escape their mothers mouth. The mothers stomach will become 'square'(like a straight line) when she's nearing birth. I'm sure you know already but they give birth every four weeks, so assuming you have a male, she's probably pregnant again or will be very soon! I would just calculate a month from now, and then that would be ok to put her in the trap. Have you got a seperate tank that you can put her in??-10g is plenty...I would still use the trap as i have witnessed her eat them as soon as they are born even with the trap.. I currently have about 60-80 fry in my 10g tank. It's very hard to tell!!....There are far more people on here with a lot more experence than me but i hope this helped you....Good luck with your next batch...Ian

 

[janice_016]

Here's what the tank and breeding net look like..

 

[janice_016]

Is it normal for her to be wry stressed out.. Breathing very heavy. Goes from crazy swimming to doing nothing!

 

[Ian086]

The trap you have in the picture looks like a net with no vents, is it fully enclosed. If it is then the fry have no chance. The one i have is plastic with vents/slots on the bottom and hangs on the top of the tank with metal clips. You can get also get floating traps, the trap/net you have is something you would keep the fry in, rather than birthing them in. She could still be in labour as mine acted the same way. Mine took about a day to fully give birth. They usually give birth early morning. If you can get your hands on a trap ASAP i would put her in it and turn your lights and airstones off to de-stress her. You might be able to save some of the fry by doing this.. You make your own trap using a clean plastic food container with a few holes in the bottom. Leave a bit of air at the top and it should float...Some of the fry might have survived as they are tiny and very good at hiding!!. You mightn't see them for days...Let me know how you get on and i can send you some pics if you want tomorrow....Ian

 

[Ian086]

Here's what the tank and breeding net look like..

PS...You could also cut some small holes in the bottom of the net and use it as a trap for the mother..

 

[phishfriend]

I got a breeder off of eBay with two chambers the birthing and a fry chamber that is removable. They are connected by a tube running underneath which you connect an airline to. This causes a gentle suction from the
Birthing box To the fry box.When the female has a fry, it gently pulled thru the connection tube and safety deposited in the fry box.

Best breeding box I'v ever seen! It wasn't cheap. I think I paid 25.00 but total worth it.

 

[Ian086]

I got a breeder off of eBay with two chambers the birthing and a fry chamber that is removable. They are connected by a tube running underneath which you connect an airline to. This causes a gentle suction from the
Birthing box To the fry box.When the female has a fry, it gently pulled thru the connection tube and safety deposited in the fry box.

Best breeding box I'v ever seen! It wasn't cheap. I think I paid 25.00 but total worth it.

Haven't seen those, will have to check them out. Sounds good, hope they can deliver to Ireland. Very hard to get anything like that over here....

 

[phishfriend]

So you know what to look for! I also have the
Seller info. If you want it just pm me.

 

[khoifish89]

I would get one of those breeder boxes with the v-shaped insert for live-bearing fish. It floats freely on the surface, and the fry fall through vents in the plastic away from the female so she can't get to them. When you think she's done just scoop her back into the tank, an you have a nice little grow-out tank to keep the kids safe!

i think this is what Tippytrampoline is talking about. i have two of these.

 

[Tippytrampoline]

i think this is what Tippytrampoline is talking about. i have two of these.

That is almost exactly what I was talking about!! But that one is way fancier than the one I have! Mine I just use for isolation, recovery, and adjustment, as I don't have any livebearing fish

 

[phishfriend]

Here is the sell of the breeder