Is my platy pregnant?

[x.fire.x]

Hi everyone,
I was doing a water change this morning when i came across two platy fry in my tank. I caught them and put them into a floating hatchery; I hadn't even realised my platy was pregnant and after doing research didn't realise how easily and frequently they are likely to become pregnant! I now think from what I've read across various forums that my other platy is pregnant. The two fry were in the bottom section of the hatchery so I caught and put the other platy into the top section. One of the fry has now been eaten (I'm assuming it swam back up to the top section) and I am unsure whether to leave the pregnant platy in the hatchery... she is okay at the minute but the lights off and most are sleeping... she did however seem a bit agitated when I first put her in there. Any advice is appreciated, this is the first time I've ever had any of my fish had babies!
I would like to keep a few as I've only got 9 fish in quite a big tank.. but don't want to get overrun!
Thanks

 

[Tasha]

yes, you see that dark gavid spot at the back of her tummy?? However Its anyones guess as to how much longer she has left. Shes not squaring off, and not THAT big so I'de say still a week or two easy... ?? but thats just a guess. I have mollies, and they look slightly different when preggo. But like mollies im sure there the same in some get HUGE before delivery and some you can barely tell their pregnant.

Gl to you, I dont seperate mom prior to delivery, I never know when to time it and dont want to seperate her at the wrong time and make her abort her babies.

 

[x.fire.x]

So should I take her out and put her back into main tank and just catch any fry and put them into the hatchery or leave her there? She's had that quite big dark patch for over a week maybe longer... It's hard to remember cause I didn't realise it meant she was pregnant. She is definitely bigger than the one who's just given birth but as you say if they're all different so not sure what to do!
Thanks for help : )

 

[Tasha]

Im not sure either, how is she acting in there? is she trashing about? fast anxious breathing?

I dont know, I guess for me If I knew that she was close and she was tolerating it, ide leave her, but otherwise ide let her out, and catch the babies as I saw them. Its a choice you'll have to make

As for the babies, keep your eye out for more, in the gravel hiding in plants etc.... there super good at hiding

 

[x.fire.x]

She looked quite stressed when I first put her in there breathing heavy and swimming around quite erratically but the lights are off in the tank now and she's fine seems really calm, I don't think i should disturb her while sleeping I think I might just see how she's acting in the morning and if she seems okay just leave her or if unhappy move her back. Next time i will just leave them... Although I've had them for two and a half months and only have two females so assuming I've already missed one pregnancy each before this one!

 

[Tasha]

so you have no males in the tank? she must have used stored sperm... Im not sure if it works as "regular" with sperm pockets as a male in the tank, but i dunno....?? thats good that she seems ok in there!

 

[x.fire.x]

She is fine this morning. The other fish were bothering her a bit this morning because they can see the food in the hatchery. I was hoping it would be soon because she's been sitting at the bottom of the hatchery for the last half an hour or so but as soon as the bigger fish are around she starts swimming around quite a lot. She did eat this morning so guessing today isn't the day! I think she looks nearly ready tho.. Getting big!

 

[Tasha]

shes getting pretty big, but not quite squaring off yet, normally delivery a couple days after squaring off

 

[x.fire.x]

Hi.. Would you say she is squaring off now or am I just being overly hopeful?! Also I found another fry among the plants today and put it in the hatchery but a few hours later it's gone... This is two out of three that have disappeared.. Are the slits big enough for them to fit through or are they probably swimming up through the divide and being eaten by the pregnant fish? X

 

[Tasha]

shes squaring off some, but not as square as i've seen them. Definately closer (like you didnt know that)

My friend has platys, and comparted to my mollies their fry and pretty tiny. Hers often get out throught the holes in the box. My guess would be that its gotten out the holes, not up and eaten. Look around alot, you'll probably find it again Her ONE platy fry is 7 wks old and still small. I have 2 molly fry in the maturation tank that are a couple weeks old, the one of mine is double the size of her platy fry, and my smaller one is only a bit smaller than her 7 week old one... Yet my molly fry did start out the same size, not sure why they grow at such different rates.

GL to you, so is getting closer. Oh and BTW my friend recetly purchased a tank divider for another preggo platy she had, then the next morning (easter) she had over 40 fry swimming around in there.... the divider is working great for all those tiny fry!

 

[catfishcrazy8]

She is fine this morning. The other fish were bothering her a bit this morning because they can see the food in the hatchery. I was hoping it would be soon because she's been sitting at the bottom of the hatchery for the last half an hour or so but as soon as the bigger fish are around she starts swimming around quite a lot. She did eat this morning so guessing today isn't the day! I think she looks nearly ready tho.. Getting big!

what is the fish in the backround? it looks cool...... but i cant see it well... lol and good luck with your platy!

 

[Fishies86]

When my guppies have fry, I usually can't find any for about 2 days, then I might spot one or two, then at about day 4, they suddenly all surface and I find loads of them. I always just catch the fry and put them in the breeder. The easiest way to do that is to use a plastic jug. The suction from putting it in the water sucks the fry into the jug, then they can be gently poured into the floating breeder. Using nets for something that small always scares me because I cant see them in there.
It does depend what other fish you have in the tank though. If you've just got platys you're probably gonna be ok to catch them from the tank. If you've got things with big mouths or sharks or something, I'd probably put mum into the breeder before she drops.

 

[x.fire.x]

Thanks for help Tasha, I have had a look around and can't see the fry but hopefully it's around somewhere.. I wish it would just stay in there because it's going to get eaten by my other fish!! Plus the fact I've found all three hiding around the filter and I don't want them to get sucked up! I've looked at the dividers but after a quick google I can't find any in the UK which seem big enough... my tank is 16" x 17" like a big cube shape, most seem to have one side which is only 11-12". I will have a better look and hopefully will find something. My one remaining fry is about 5mm long at a push and probably about 1mm wide.. they are soo teeny.. just look like two eyes on a stick.

The fish in the background is just a goldfish, nothing exciting! They are the ones I worry about eating the fry as I have two and they are both sooo greedy!

I had already put her in the hatchery when I first realised she was pregnant and so don't want to stress her out anymore by taking her out.. although next time I'm just going to leave her in the tank. My other platy keeps by her all the time, I feel so guilty seperating them! I'm going to get another tank for the fry to grow in I think, but want to see how many she has first.. it's annoying I've just sold my 25l tank which probably would have been perfect, or I may buy a divder if I can find one big enough..

Thnaks for all your help and suggestions guys.. I am very new at all of this! Hopefully I will be posting pictures of her fry by the end of the week *fingers crossed*

 

[Tasha]

no problem, cant wait to see the new little additions. Maybe you could look into one of the net type of maturation tanks for your fry sinse their so little?? I watched one of my fry get sucked up by my filter, then quickly took it apart and saved his life that is why I have the two in my maturation tank, normally I let them do survival of the fittest, but with my new filter, it does some serious sucking Until the babies get a bit bigger I dont want them by the filter.

 

[x.fire.x]

Hi all, this morning I have found one new fry in the hatchery but it looks a little bedraggled.. Swimming around but lying on the bottom a lot. My platy is now pooing out a lot of black, from what I was reading this can mean she's a aborted her pregnancy? But can she give birth to one and abort the others? I'm confused! Any help is appreciated

 

[x.fire.x]

The new fry has since died I have released the platy back into the aquarium where she seems much happier, still showing signs of labour, hiding in plants and erratic movements at times but I think she's aborted was so excited for the birth of some fry but at least I have one from the others pregnancy and I have learned many lessons.. I won't be using a hatchery for my pregnant fish again.

 

[Tasha]

Oh im sorry to hear that.