I just added a platy to my aquarium and it very stressed

So I just went to my lfs and picked up a platy. I saw that it was very stressed once in the bag already. I floated the bag for around 15 minutes. And put him in the tank. Right away he went to the bottom of the tank and is just hanging out in one spot and not swimming or anything. What can I do to help with the stress?

 

Did you buy only one? Are there any other platys in the tank?

Platys need at least three in a tank. 6 is better from what I have been told and read.

Is there anywhere for him to hide in the tank so he feel safe while getting used to his new home?

 

yes I have one more in my tank and there is plenty of place for him to hide.

 

Did he appear stressed before he was placed in the bag?

 

When you bring a fish home it’s likely it will be stressed for the first day you have it while it acclimates to its new tank. Keeping the tank light and room light off will help ease his stress.

 

When you bring a fish home it’s likely it will be stressed for the first day you have it will it acclimates to its new tank. Keeping the tank light and room light off while help ease his stress.

I agree. If the little guy wasn't stressed in his original home, it's just a matter of him adjusting to a new home. Moving is h, e, double tooth-pick! Thanks for the reference to the lights..... my LFS advises that all the time, when adding new fish. I sometimes forget to turn the lights off.

 

Yes, I actually did not know about turning off the lights but I figured it would help, so I did it anyway. Now thank goodness hes moving around a bit with the lights off.

 

Yes, I actually did not know about turning off the lights but I figured it would help, so I did it anyway. Now thank goodness hes moving around a bit with the lights off.

That's great news!

 

So I just went to my lfs and picked up a platy. I saw that it was very stressed once in the bag already. I floated the bag for around 15 minutes. And put him in the tank. Right away he went to the bottom of the tank and is just hanging out in one spot and not swimming or anything. What can I do to help with the stress?

I’ve been adding fish slowly since September. All acclimated fine with no problems. A few weeks ago I added 4 Glowlight Tetras to 5 I already had. All lost color in the bag while acclimating. I never experienced that, and got very worried. After acclimating and adding them to the tank, all but one seamed fine but still no color. The one that worried me the most hung out at the bottom and acted sick. It took 3 days before they all got color back and are happy and healthy. Give it some time.