tornaterallie08

Hi I am new here and am a re-newed fish owner. I remember my parents having fish when I was little and I remember our fish having babies, but can't remember now how long it takes for a female to have her babies. She is a mickey Mouse platy and looks very boxy and round and has the different coloration near her anal opening. This aquarium is actually my 9 year old daughter's aquarium it has been set up for two months now and all the fish have been doing very very well. She has only had this female for about a week. I was suspicious of it being pregnant when we got it but I let her get it anyway. I have her in a breeding net inside the aquarium. She has plants in there with her so I think we are ok that way. I just can't find information anywhere on how long it takes for a livebearer to have the fry. Is it weeks, days? I have raised dogs, horses, and chickens but never fish on my own (only with my parents and I was only 5 at the time).

Thanks for any help you can give me.

FishKing

It takes livebearers about two months to give birth after mating. Also when you buy female livebearers from fish stores it is very likely that they are pregnant if kept with males.

COBettaCouple

Welcome to Fishlore.

She sounds like she's very close to dropping fry. When they square off in the back, the fry will be coming soon. Platys take 4-6 weeks to drop their fry if it's her first batch, the following batches will be about 25-28 days apart.

She'll be as happy as the other fish to eat her fry so you'll want to get them into their own tank to raise them, if you want to keep the fry. Floating plants and caves, etc. provide hiding places for the fry.

tornaterallie08

Thank you both so much for being so helpful and quick to reply. I am so glad I found this site She is still holding on to the fry inside her as of this morning. I tried to take pictures of her but she kept hiding as my camera would snap the picture. I think she likes having her own little corner of the tank since she is not being picked on by the larger female platy I have in the tank (not sure what type she is but is bigger than the long finned male I have and the mickey mouse female I have) she is yellow on top and white on the belly. I call her sunset marked. Anyway thank you again so very much.

COBettaCouple

You have just 2 platys? You'll probably want another female from the store - 2 platys often results in a pecking order with one always being picked on.

She could also be looking for a quiet corner to drop the fry in. If you want, you could arrange some plants to sort of give her a corner that feels safe.

tornaterallie08

I have three platy. The one female that is larger than my male and my pregnant female that is yellow and white, my male is a yellow long finned platy, and the pregnant one is a white mickey mouse platy. The bigger female picks on the mickey mouse platy and the male platy from time to time. My pregnant female is in her own spot in a breeding net inside the aquarium and she seems much happier being in her own space. Since I moved her the dominant female doesn't pick on the male as much now.

The dominant platy doesn't pick on the neon tetra or the glow fish or the cory cats just the two other platy. But like I said she has mellowed out a bit now. Maybe it was a territory thing when I first put the new platy in. pecking order so to speak. So now I am just waiting for the fry to arrive.