# Pregnant Guppy dead



## Monk11876 (Mar 20, 2009)

Last Saturday (march 14) I brought home 3 guppy females and one male guppy. One of the guppy females, an orange cobra pattern, was very obviously pregnant when we brought her home. She was swollen like a ballon and had a very dark gravid spot. They were placed into a tank that has: the aforementioned guppies, 2 neon tetras, 3 glolight tetras, 2 9 wk old mollies, 2 platys (one 8 wk old and one 1.5 wk old), one Iridescent shark and one small leopard pleco. The tank has been cycled and they are fed well with alternating spirulina flakes and angel flakes. Today the Orange Cobra guppy was found dead, moment of silence , when I came home from work. She was swimming around this morning at ~8:30 and was dead at 8:15 when I got home. Does anyone know what might have caused this? She looked very close to spawning. There are no guppy fry that I have seen so far in the tank. Her tail was slightly ragged but I think our pleco might have been working on her right before I got home. The tank has good plant cover. Please let me know what you think. Thank you.




P.S. This is my first post on an aquarium forum. My tank was set up when me and my wife decided to start an aquarium about 10 weeks ago.


----------



## petlover516 (Nov 12, 2008)

a few questions:
-what size tank is it?
-dis the deceased guppy act abnormally?
-was the tank cycled?


----------



## RHole (Mar 21, 2009)

Fish are subject to all the same problems we are, plus some. There's a lot of stress involved in moving - especially when the water, temperature and tankmates are all changing.

Probably it was something that you could not have foreseen or done anything about (especially if she's the only one that's died). She could have had the equivalent of a heart attack or stroke.

If this is the first of your new flock that you've lost - that's pretty good, and after your moment of silence, you can move on with your tank-keeping.

I hope you haven't had other problems. But hope you're watching for them just in case.urple-fish:


----------



## Monk11876 (Mar 20, 2009)

It is a 10 gallon fully cycled. I did not notice any abnormal behaviour but then she was only in the tank for about a day.


----------



## petlover516 (Nov 12, 2008)

woah! the shark will get to be over 4 feet long!!!!!!!!!!! the leapord pleco will get big as well. neon tets and glolight tets need a school of at least 6.


----------



## COBettaCouple (Mar 24, 2009)

Ya, the shark and pleco will need a bigger tank asap to allow them room to grow and for the benefit of the smaller fish.

We've had the same thing happen with gups that we brought home. Sadly, it seems par for the course with them even when they come from good breeders.


----------



## Monk11876 (Mar 20, 2009)

We have increased the schools of tetras so there are now 6 each. We plan to move the pleco to our 29 gallon tank once it finishes cycling. The shark will also be making that move but I don't know how long we will keep that one. Thanks for the advice. The guppy we got to replace the dead one is doing fine.


----------



## Fishboydanny1 (Jun 13, 2008)

common plecos get to be almost 2 feet long... we have one that big in one of our aquaculture ponds


----------



## sweetheart (Apr 1, 2009)

Im sorry that your female guppy died  Its really hard to say what she died of . Do you have any males in the tank with her? some of my male guppies have picked on my females who are pregnent, Its really best if you take out the pregnant guppies before they the give birth to there young . There is less chance of them geting eaten plus, it will not stess the female out ..


----------



## sweetheart (Apr 1, 2009)

Oh, I forget after she gives birth its best to take out the young so she will not eat them..or make sure the tank has plants so they can hide in them.


----------

