Strange Guppy behavior?

Out of all my guppies, I have one that seems to not want to eat much except what she can scape of the bottom. she tends to stay away from the others and sit on the bottom & stare. she appears healthy and will join the others sometimes, but then will go to the bottom & sit. Is this normal? I've had her for 3 weeks now

I also have another female who is a bit of a bully. She's from the same store as the one that sits on the bottom. The other 3 are newer and will hang with her, until she decides she's had enough and pokes at them till they leave. Are females normally agressive?

 

The one that sits at the bottom, do you see any nip marks on her tail or fins?
It could be that she's getting bullied and a feeling weak. Is she the weakest in the tank?

 

her tail looks fine, she seems to be the only one that my aggressive one does not bother. In fact I've seen the other guppies swim to her & the aggressive ones chases them away from her

 

Hmmm that's strange. Whats your water temperature? I've noticed by livebeares stay at the bottom and sort of 'fan' themselves if the water is cold. Maybe she'l come right on her own. As long as she eats there shouldnt be much to worry about, at least this this is to my knowledge. hope i'v helped

 

I keep it at 27-28 C

She couldn't be pregnant could she?

 

You can tell if they're pregnant (gravid) because they get super fat and have a black triangular "gravid spot" on their underside.

Does she look especially bloated or skinny?

 

she has always been a little bigger upfront and I'm not sure what to look for. Out of 5 females, 4 of them have black on their tummy, I thought it was their innards as they are fairly light coloured


My guppies are camera shy but I was able to grab a picture of her. she now likes to sit at the top, then go down & rest for a while on the bottom, My water readings are good and all the other fish are fine

 

It's hard to tell from the picture whether anything is wrong with her. She looks a bit fat maybe, but otherwise I can't find anything wrong with her. However, hanging at the top or sitting on the bottom are not healthy behaviors. Livebearers never sit on the bottom unless they're sick or possibly if they're being bullied. All I can really tell you is to watch her very carefully to see if any symptoms develop.

 

that's why I'm confused. She looks fine, tail in good order and when she swims she swims like the others. they all kinda seem to leave her alone. they will come hover by her for a bit then get bored and go play in the bubbles. She just started doing it recently in the last few days

 

Try to watch them at night. It could be that she is being bullied when you aren't watching.

 

Still no change, I'd say she is sick but there are no outward signs just the lethargy and that could be a few things. I do see her eat, but she scrounges off the bottom for missed food

 

came home from being out this am, and she's acting now like all the others, like she used to, swimming around all over playing with the others. I have no idea what caused the change in her, but I do have another one now acting odd, she stays in one spot above the bubble wand, just outside the stream. I do know she gets bullied by one of her tank mates, what do I do to the bully?

 

There are three solutions to bullying that I can think of.

1. Temporarily remove the fish that is a bully. Put him in the q tank or something for a day or two. You may want to rearrange the decor in the main tank too. Then when you put him back in the tank, it will no longer seem like it is "his" territory and he may not be so aggressive towards the other fish.

2. Get more fish. This is usually effective for fish like barbs that may become nippy if kept in groups of 2 or 3. When you get them some more friends, they will be more occupied with shoaling and less interested in bullying other species. This probably wouldn't work with Guppies that are all the same sex, but if you have problems with the males harrassing the females then the solution is to get more females and divide their attention.

3. Remove the bully. Pretty self-explanatory. But only do this as a last resort.

 

Choochiegirl,

I have two guppies (both male) in the same tank with a goldfish. One of the guppies always attacked both of the fish no matter what time of day or what was going on. For concern of the other fish I removed him from the tank and put him in a q tank. I have to say the other guppy seemed to be more laid back, maybe it is possible they have extreme personalities. Please let me know how your situation turns out. I am reluctant to put the aggressive guppy bank in the tank with the others. :-[

 

Sugar Bear--just fyi, Guppies and Goldies shouldn't be kept together. Goldies are coldwater and need a large, unheated tank, a special goldfish diet, and they are also very messy. Guppies are tropical so they need a heated tank.

 

HI everyone, first post here for me, please let me know if I'm doing anything wrong

I have a 10 gallon tank, 3-4 years old, with roughly 15 young guppies. I probably haven't been as diligent as I should have been with my fishkeeping, although my fish have typically been quite happy with little more than daily feedings in the past. I have never done an ammonia/nitrate/nitrite or temperature test (feel like that's a bad thing).

My first generation of guppies, donated by a friend with population overload, has basically died out over the past weeks, I think due to old age (1.5 yrs). The second generation is a few months old at the moment, and there are around 15 fish in the tank, all guppies.

One of the guppies has been exhibiting strange swimming behaviors for a few days now. It does barrel rolls, loops, head/tailstands, etc ALL THE TIME. I think this has something to do with its swim bladder, although I have practically no experience with fish healthcare, so I'm open to suggestions. On the bright side, the fish doesn't seem to care about its erratic swimming, it still eats and schools with its tankmates. What should I do? (Total newb)

Any advice much appreciated!
Thanks, Andy

 

Welcome to the forum

Testing your parameters is not a bad thing. What makes you believe it is? Knowing the water quality will help you understand what's going on at times like this when your fish are behaving strangely. It will also help you figure out the amount and frequency of water changes needed in order to keep your fish healthy and active. If you don't have a test kit, I would get one. The one most recommended here is the API Freshwater Master Test Kit. It's very accurate and will last you a really long time.

How much and how often are your water changes usually? Does this tank have a heater? I would also get a thermometer if you don't have one.

Lastly, your tank is very overstocked. The most I would have is 6 guppies in this tank size. I'd keep just the males and rehome the rest. The bioload alone could be contributing to toxic ammonia levels and may be the reason for the symptoms.

 

+1 to what el377 said, I know you are knew, so we are trying to help you, not nag you to be a perfect fish animal husbandry, water parameters are somewhat important, but less so since you tank is cycled. A ten gallon tank CAN house 15 smallish guppies, but like the test kit, it would be great to get a bigger one.
You said you've "lost" some fish lately. Has it been fast, like a disease outbreak?
I can help you if you have any questions about a particular disease.
Can you describe the symptoms that killed them?
Can you look at your fish and tell me ANY and all symptoms they are showing?
I could point you to a cheap, effective medicine if you do.

 

Oops; by "bad thing", I was referring to the fact that I've never tested the water, not the test itself.
Whitewolf: the guppies that passed away a few months ago were all well over 1.5 years old, probably over 2, and all were born around the same time. That generation died out over a span of two or three months, which seems like a longish time to me. This leads me to believe that that generation simply died of old age.

MID-POST DISCOVERY: the fish that was swimming strangely was found stuck to the filter, barely alive. The left half of its body is heavily damaged, but it's still alive and can still move its fins when things come near it. It's just floating at the top of the tank now on its side . Should I just remove it from the tank at this point?

That was the only fish that really stood out from the others, all of which seem healthy other than the fact that they never really go below the top three inches of the tank. Other than that, whenever I'm not there, they always huddle together in the top-far-right corner of the tank.

another mid-post: the damaged fish has been removed from the tank and destroyed to prevent further suffering. It was incapable of defending itself from the other fish, which had begun nipping at its fins and body.

Nothing much else to report for now, although I'm happy to send pics if requested!

Thanks, Andy

 

That behavior of the guppies not going below 3 inches from the top of the water level is not normal. Guppies are very active fish and use every inch of the tank. I would get your water tested immediately as water quality is likely the cause of all these issues. Poor water conditions can wreak havoc on the immune system.

How often and how large are your water changes? I would do one now to see if it helps.

 

Agreed, your likely overfeeding, or your biofilter is not good enough to maintain an ammonia free environment. Sounds like you could have ammonia, nitrite, extremely high nitrates possibly, or low oxygen levels/too acidic water (acidic is not good for guppies, and the longer a tank is setup, and not cleaned enough or too much bio material like food, the more acidic it becomes.
Try making sure your biofilter has plenty of brown goo on it, do a good vacuuming and large water change, and if you don't have an airstone, add one.

 

I visited the local petsmart today and they did a water test, one of the squares that should have been white was bright pink. The guy at the counter said that meant excessive waste in the tank, so I'll definitely be feeding my fish less from now on. I also picked up a thermometer, which reads around 70F. According to Google, this is a bit on the low side for guppies, but is it anything to worry about?

 

the petsmart used the test strips and not a liquid test set. which strip had the pink square that should have been white? the multI test strip or the single test strip?

 

I visited the local petsmart today and they did a water test, one of the squares that should have been white was bright pink. The guy at the counter said that meant excessive waste in the tank, so I'll definitely be feeding my fish less from now on. I also picked up a thermometer, which reads around 70F. According to Google, this is a bit on the low side for guppies, but is it anything to worry about?

I'd get your own test kit like the one I mentioned above in my first post. Those strips are inaccurate and most don't give you a test for ammonia which is also important to know.

70F should be fine as guppies can tolerate a wide range. I'd still rehome at least half of those guppies though. Even if you cut down the feeding, the bioload is too much for that tank size which could contribute to unstable water parameters.

 

I think you should at least pick up a heater, winter is coming and 70f is too low for long periods of time for guppies, they like it around 80. As far as the test strips or drops go, they can be expensive, and idk if its worth it for one tank. But if you want to get more tanks and fish and so forth you are gonna need one, and also understand the nitrogen cycle.
Keep doing vacuuming and partial water changes, and be careful when you put water back in the tank, don't splash the bacteria all around.
The test that showed up really high was likely NITRATES, which is the least harmful of all of the water "paramaters"
(Ammonia=Worst Nitrite=Bad Nitritate=okay to a certain extent)
Its all part of the "good" bacteria cycle, which consumes leftover food and fish waste so that it dosent rot in the tank, the bacteria brownish goo smells good, its good, and if it were not for it, the tank would become smelly, foul, and produce ammonia, which as you know is a cleaning agent and toxic at high levels.
Since your tank has been setup for a long time, you probably just have a little too much "good" bacteria, the brownish crud you see on the filter and in the gravel, and all you need to do really is get a heater, remove any sickly looking fish, and do a 50% water change about twice a week until it gets cleaned up abit, then once a week is ok.

 

However, as to the actual problem with your guppies let me guess,
Skinny belly, tail down, shimmies?
This is a sign of internal parasites, the correct medication is called metronidazole, its a powder antibiotic that also kills parasites in the gut, and it needs to be mixed with food, such as some frozen brine shrimp or bloodworms.
But we'll get to that later.

 

HI everyone,
Everything seems to be stable in the tank now other than the only fish left from the last generation. She's had a tail bent down 45 degrees for as long as I remember, but it never seemed to pose problem until now. She keeps floating up to the top of the tank, as if the hinge where her tail bends down has a balloon tied to it.
I've cut down on feeding rates, now only feeding once a day with as much as they can finish completely in 5 minutes or so. Hope this will help, 25% water change and gravel cleaning coming up in a few days as well.
Haven't got much time because of life/AP Bio, but I'll try to keep the fish happy.
Thanks!

 

5 minutes seems like a pretty long time so you might still be overfeeding. Getting a test kit to check your water quality would really be beneficial.

 

Well, I found another dead fish today, stuck to the filter again. This one was one of the younger males. My old female from the last generation is acting up too, she's tipping over and resting at the top of the tank at roughly a 30 degree tilt to the left. Still around 17 fish in the tank, all juveniles but the old female.
I definitely want to get a water test kit at this point, and probably relocate some of the fish as well. The problem is, my dad is extremely stubborn and insists that we don't need a kit; in fact, he says that fish NEED some ammonia in the tank! 0.o
I'll try and persuade my dad to let me get a kit. Meanwhile, where might I be able to send some of my guppies to help with overpopulation?
Thanks!

 

If possible, it might also be worthwhile getting the API KH/GH test kit to test for your GH since guppies need harder water to thrive. Both the master test kit and the KH/GH test kit can be found on Amazon for much cheaper than in stores.

High concentrations of ammonia are extremely toxic to fish. Hopefully, you can get that test kit soon. In the meantime, I would increase your water changes to combat high levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrates in your water. A good water conditioner like Seachem Prime would help detoxify ammonia and nitrite up to 1ppm for 24 hours.

Most LFS take fish donations. Some may even give you store credit for them.

 

Bad news; a few more of the juveniles started showing swim bladder symptoms in the past hour. All of them still hover in the top-right corner of the tank until I turn the airstone on, after which they face the bubble wall in a big group and wiggle their tails. Could low oxygen levels be a problem here too?

My dad is still refusing to visit the pet store and get a test kit of any kind. He says it's "cheaper to replace all the fish than to buy a water test". At most, I think I'll be able to do a water change and MAYBE drop off some fish at the LPS. Honestly don't know how many of the little ones will make it at this point. :'(

By the way, I'm a high school sophomore who made the mistake of taking AP Bio, which means it's super difficult for me to find time to take proper care of my fish. My family is financially stressed as well, so my parents don't have much time either in between work and taking care of my little brother.

Not fun being stuck between a rock and a hard place! Gonna visit the LPS asap and see if they take aquatic immigrants.

 

Does your LPS test water samples for free? If so, you could bring a sample of your tap and tank as another option. I understand it's hard having fish when your parents aren't supportive and you depend on them financially. Maybe you could save up some money to buy a test kit yourself later on.

 

At this point you might just consider a peaceful euthanasia and buy some more fish once the tank is cleaned out, but don't kill all the "good" bacteria.
The best way to euthanize a fish or many fish is to put them in a bucket with some clove oil until they are sedated, and then drop them all into an ice water bucket\
They are not all having "swI'm bladder" issues, they probably have internal parasites and a bacterial infection going on. Without a heap of meds they probably won't make it anyways since guppies these days are really weak as a result of inbreeding.

 

Two more dead fish, both small ones. The adult fish now looks like it has white-ish fin tips, and a sort of clear-white covering on its head as well. Dad still refusing to visit the LPS, and he even yells at me if I spend more than 10 minutes around the fish at once! I've more or less given up hope at this point. :'(

 

Did a 50% change at midnight, removed the old female since she sort of stopped moving and didn't look like she would make it. There are now 15 juveniles in the tank. Other than some minor crowding around the top, everything seems to be going much better temps are still a bit low at ~68F, I'm going to try and get my hands on a heater (maybe even a test kit?) sometime soon. Thanks everyone for the support!