mercurybebe

I have 9 platies, 5 males and 4 females (1 is preg, another is getting big) and the males are RELENTLESSLY chasing the females. The pregnant one is a big target and I am worried about her as they never give her a break!
I also had to move them into a tank with 2 male guppies and one of those guys has joined the chase!!

The rest of my fish are not livebearers and could care less...

So, with 7 males vs. 4 females, is there anything I can do to stop the endless chasing Would it be best to separate the males from the females?

Ga-rr-ett

first off if there is a female platy and is has been in the same tank as a male platy in the last 3 weeks it is pragnant.
so here are your options
Sell or donate some of your male platys to make a ratio of 1 male to 3 females.
buy more female platys so you have a ratio of 1 male to 3 females.
put them in separate tanks.

Its best not to mix male and female livebearers unless you are serieuse about breeding them. Its best to have a ten gallon bare bottem tank with filter and heater to raise the fry in.

marksuttonjr

Like already meantioned there are few options.

1. get rid of most of the males.
2. get more females
3. seperate the males from the females

mercurybebe

So if I were to put my male livebearers in one tank and the females in another this would all calm down? I dont have enough tanks to give each male a harem of 3 females! LOL

I figured that all of my girls are knocked up and I do have another tank for raising fry if any of them make it!

marksuttonjr

Yes. Seperating the males into a tank and the females into another will stop this. The fact that the females are preg. won't stop the males from trying to breed with her.

You do not need a seperate fry tank if you don't already have one. Just add a lot of plants. Java moss works extreamly well at giving the fry a place to hide. Yes some of the fry will be eaten, but you will have plenty more anyway.

mare2009

how has this problem been fixed? Its so much easier to separate the males from the females, and its remarkable how much peace comes over the community tank. As far as the pregnant platys, just let them have their fry, in the tank, no breeding nets required, any plants might shelter a few of the fry and you will get a reasonable manageable survival rate until the females stop producing
hope this helps..good luck..keep us posted

Shawnie

+2 great advice mare!!

sometimes people dont realize how agressive platies can be if not in the right
male/female ratio....they dont play nice with too many males...guppies are the same....goodluck with your babies!

mercurybebe

I have to get a new filter for the 25g tank and then the male platies are back in there! Should I put the male guppies in there for good measure?

I really had no idea that they could carry on like this! Fish stores really should warn people about ratios and how to sex these fish before you get them...it is just not fair to the fish, especially when someone like me (clueless at the time) buys livebearers.

Heather M

Oh I know!!! At one of my local pet stores, they told us that you could not tell the males and females apart. We found out how to tell them apart later at Petco. They seem to know a decent amount at Petco, although they are seriously lacking in some areas. Their fish seem to be treated OK as well, except for the poor bettas in their tiny little cups.

janiskfp

My friendly LFS sold me two female and one male platy after I grilled them over and over and over about their sexes. I wanted 3 females.

I lost one of the females.
The remaining two bred once, so I gave away seven 1/2-inch fry, and ended up with a male baby (we couldn't sex them that young), leaving me with two males and one female.
I gave away the more aggressive, older male.
Now I have the young male in the hospital tank, hopefully giving the female territory rights.
I hope they breed and we get a few females, without the female getting too stressed, and I plan to give away extra females and all the males.

I think you can start sexing them at about 5 weeks. The problem is that I don't think it's not too long after that they're ready to start breeding themselves.

I'm not donating to, nor buying from that LFS, no way. Stinkers. They knew.

aquarist48

Good morning. This thread is fairly old. Please check the dates of the original posts before responding.
Thanks!
Ken