platy giving birth to fry as i type... would need some help with my questions please

[nanookbear1]

Hi I am new here..my platy is giving birth as we speak and need help!
ok first of all i should introduce myself. My name is Lisa. I have a 50 gallon octagon fish tank with a variety of fish in it. 3 guppies, 4 platies, 4 phantoms, 1 clown loach, 1 red eye tetra, 2 red tail sharks, 1 gold gourami, 1 silver gouramis and an algae eater. i have had them all since last christmas except 1 a female platy i bought about a month ago. Needless to say she got pregnant right away now we are 31 days later.

also i purchased a 5 gallon tank last week for the fry to be in till they grow up.




My platy is having fry as we speak - can anyone help please?

i put my platy in breeder tank last night and when i woke up i seen a few fry. I immediately removed them so they wouldn't get eaten, to my surprise there were 9. I put mom in the breeding tank again so she could recuperate and she dropped 2 more within 5 minutes!!!

this is my first time having babies i am really excited but i am scared that i did something wrong by moving her since she had her 2 other babies she has been swiming iratically?

the 9 babies are in their own 5 gallon tank, and mom and the 2 babies in breeder trap still. 2 babies have lots of trees to hide in breeder trap.

1. how do i know when she is all done (how long does it take for them to finish the delivery process)?

2. how many fry can i expect?

p.s she does not seem interested in eating her fish so far the 2 are still in there and i am not sure when i can take them out because i don't know if she is done? her belly is smaller than before and gravid spot smaller but its still there

[OldMan]

When they stop coming close together you probably have as many fry as you will be able to save. As the time between stretches out, the female will recover more between them and may decide that it is lunch time which will limit how many can survive. If your female has not had any fry in a half hour or more, the chances are she is very nearly done.
The separate rearing tank is a good idea as it will let you get a few of the fry large enough to survive in the main tank. The number of fry to expect varies a lot from one female to the next and will also vary with age. A young platy will seldom have more than about 20 or so in the first drop but a mature female can easily have over 50 in a drop. I'm not sure how big the recorded drops go but 50 would not be a limit, just a typical larger drop.

[nanookbear1]

thank you for your reply. I waited a bit and she didn't seem to be having anymore fry. Her belly went down but still had a little gravid spot, so i took the chance and took the 2 remainding fry out of there as she seemed to be eying them and trying to get at them. all 11 babies are doing great in their 5 gallon tank. mommy is still in breathing tank.
any idea how long i should keep her in there before i put her back in her community tank?

[SpeedEuphoria]

So the 5g tank is not cycled?

[mike47517]

Originally Posted by SpeedEuphoria

So the 5g tank is not cycled?

SpeedEuphoria is right the tank should be cycled but if not you could probably take five gallons of water from your big tank and use that water for your fish i would think that would be fine. thhe belly on thhe mama will stay big fo a while even after she is done. if the breader trap is in the tank then you can let her go right now but if its not then let her ajust to the comunity tank's temp thhen let her go in it. oh and just for next time if your tank is full of hiding places and stuff you can let your platy give birth in the community tank. if the fry have places to hide from the other fish then a couple should survive and if any survive you know you've got the smart fish (cause it was smart enough to hide and not get eaten.). good luck and hey do me a favor if your platys do well send me some pics im a starter at breeding my own fish ive seen other people breed fish but i have never bred them my self. i currently have 2 black mollies 1 male 1 female and the female is highly pregnent i hope she gives birth soon im anxious good luck withh your fish fry. oh and welcome to the sight. if you want to interduce your self to everyone go to the member interduction forum thats where most people interduce them self. see you around :p

[nanookbear1]

Hi thank you both for your replies.
I have a heater set at 75degrees and a under gravel filter system. and and air bubble system going in the 5 gallon tank.
I beleive cycled means not fresh? If so yes it is I took all the water i needed from the community tank. the mommy is in a breeder in the 5 gallon tank. I will release her in the community tank by morning as to give her a little rest first.
And yes i will be happy to send you some pictures so far they are doing great all 11 of them swimming and eating they are tooo cute . would take a magnifying camera to see them right now though. I will keep you posted

[mike47517]

Thanks you can either send me some private messages or just keep me posted here thanks.

[SpeedEuphoria]

"cycled" refers to the nitrogen cycle in aquariums, where beneficial bacteria grow to consume waste products of fish, which keeps the levels in check so they dont poison your fish.

Also using the water from your larger tank will not be much help as the bacteria are on surfaces of your filter/decorations and mostly NOT in the water

[newfound77951]

she had her 2 other babies she has been swiming iratically?

the mommy is in a breeder in the 5 gallon tank

Might be why she's a bit distressed. As SpeedEuphoria mentioned, if the 5g is not cycled and the water parameters are different she won't like that. I'd put her back in the main tank but be sure to acclimate her as you would for a new fish, to make sure the temps etc. are the same.

As for the babies, their bioload will be so small in the 5g that it shouldn't make much of a dent, but I'd keep an eye on the ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels, and do frequent water changes, which are good for the fry anyway. Are there any rocks or plants from the main tank that you could put in the fry tank (don't scrub them off first)? That might help seed the biofilter a little, at least enough for 11 baby fish.