Guppy Keeps Staying On The Top?

I just cycled my tank and added five neon tetras and my previously owned guppy into my 35 gallon. Although for some reason, the guppy keeps staying on the top and barely moving. Can someone tell me what's wrong? He was fine in my ten gallon and swimming around no problem but after transferring him he keeps on floating towards the top. What should I do?

 

Hmmm... what's the temperature of the tank? Also, is your guppy "gasping" at the surface for air or is he just hovering near the top? When you transferred the guppy from the your old tank, did you ensure the parameters of the water were semi-close and properly acclimated the fish?

 

Hmmm... what's the temperature of the tank? Also, is your guppy "gasping" at the surface for air or is he just hovering near the top? When you transferred the guppy from the your old tank, did you ensure the parameters of the water were semi-close and properly acclimated the fish?

The temperature is 77F° and yes the parameters were exactly same aside from PH being slightly lower. I didn’t acclimate the fish for long tho because the tempture in both tanks are 77F°. He doesn’t seem like he’s gasping for air more like just hovering on the top.

 

Ok... if the parameters were close then it's probably not an acclimation issue. It's possible that the guppy is just a bit stressed being in the new environment with 5 new fish. It may just feel intimidated at the moment. I would probably just give it some time and closely monitor his behavior. If he starts gasping at the surface or exhibits unusual feeding patterns then I would start to become concerned. Also, monitoring the water parameters on a day-to-day (or every-other-day) basis might be beneficial to ensure your filter is actually keeping up with the new bio-load.

 

Ok... if the parameters were close then it's probably not an acclimation issue. It's possible that the guppy is just a bit stressed being in the new environment with 5 new fish. It may just feel intimidated at the moment. I would probably just give it some time and closely monitor his behavior. If he starts gasping at the surface or exhibits unusual feeding patterns then I would start to become concerned. Also, monitoring the water parameters on a day-to-day (or every-other-day) basis might be beneficial to ensure your filter is actually keeping up with the new bio-load.

I mean it’s been four days already but maybe hes still stressed? Could it be because he’s lonely being the only guppy in there ?

 

I mean it’s been four days already but maybe hes still stressed? Could it be because he’s lonely being the only guppy in there ?

It's definitely possible that he's still stressed. Adding another guppy might help things, but I don't think it's necessary to take any actions after only 4 days if he's eating well. Guppies aren't known to be schooling fish, so they should be fine on their own.

 

It's definitely possible that he's still stressed. Adding another guppy might help things, but I don't think it's necessary to take any actions after only 4 days if he's eating well. Guppies aren't known to be schooling fish, so they should be fine on their own.

Ah I see. I guess I’ll wait a little longer and see if he starts doing okay, thanks!

 

Ah I see. I guess I’ll wait a little longer and see if he starts doing okay, thanks!

All the best!