# Why my Platy hides 24/7



## Copachick (Jun 7, 2011)

I've had aquariums and platys for quite some time, and Ive never seen anything like it. Ill try to give a quick background history.

I have a 36 gallon. Beggining of this year, we had our first big tank emergency. We had a case of ick, and something else and we lost majority of our platys to it. Over the course of a couple months we were left with just one platy. We had the tank under control and everything has been great since. The one platy does nothing but hide in our big tall cave. 24/7. She will not under any circumstances come out when the light is on. She comes out when its feeding time. And she doesnt eat with the rest of them. When she sees the food fall, she will dart out and catch bites here and there. SOMETIMES she comes out and makes her rounds and eat then she darts back in the cave. When she sees me or anyone in the room, she wont come out. BUT... when the light is off in the evening and night, she will come out, and sleep in the open with everyone else. 
She has had a few sets of babies also (I guess she was holding for months because we havent had males in there in a very long time) And we have the babies in there with her allgrown up. 

Its just so weird. Shes still HUGE and fat like she always was. Shes healthy, eats, etc. She just LIVES in that cave.

Any ideas?*c/p*


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## Copachick (Jun 7, 2011)

We have neons and cardinals in there, and like 5 other platys that we raised from babies, another tetra, and a catfish. Nothing out of the ordinary. I use to think that she was tramatized with losing all those fish and all of a sudden she was left alone. We call her Twinny, because we had two of her that were identical. Her twin was the last one to pass away. Thats when she started hiding.


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## Cat696 (Apr 27, 2011)

Platys are schooling fish.. She is alone.
If your water is healthy, give her some friends.


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## ZachZaf (Jan 26, 2012)

Cat696 said:


> Platys are schooling fish.. She is alone.
> If your water is healthy, give her some friends.


I will second that


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## Cat696 (Apr 27, 2011)

Oh dear. 
*sigh* 
It sounds like she was bonded to her twin. I find it interesting when that happens, but it is also problematic. (for exactly the reason you are now experiencing).. 
I hope she manages to adjust, but if she really did bond with her twin, there is a 50/50 chance that she will be the "shy" fish from now on..
I hope not though. 
Good luck...


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## Copachick (Jun 7, 2011)

Cat696 said:


> Oh dear.
> *sigh*
> It sounds like she was bonded to her twin. I find it interesting when that happens, but it is also problematic. (for exactly the reason you are now experiencing)..
> I hope she manages to adjust, but if she really did bond with her twin, there is a 50/50 chance that she will be the "shy" fish from now on..
> ...


I hope not too.


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## Copachick (Jun 7, 2011)

Cat696 said:


> Platys are schooling fish.. She is alone.
> If your water is healthy, give her some friends.


Yeah we have healthy water. You mean friends as in already grown platys? We already have 5 almost full grown platys in there that she comes out at night and socializes with lol and sleeps in the same area as them. They all wern't from the same batch. Two of those platys are actually hers(the shy one) The others are from another momma


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## wet_and_wild (Jul 19, 2012)

Copachick -

I don't know how long this has been going on, but you mentioned you had ick in the tank at one time. I've found that when I have fish that have something healthwise going on, they'll do exactly the same thing as yours is doing. If that's the case, the fish will hide so that it will try to save itself from being a target for the culinary delight of other fish.

Good luck!


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## Copachick (Jun 7, 2011)

wet_and_wild said:


> Copachick -
> 
> I don't know how long this has been going on, but you mentioned you had ick in the tank at one time. I've found that when I have fish that have something healthwise going on, they'll do exactly the same thing as yours is doing. If that's the case, the fish will hide so that it will try to save itself from being a target for the culinary delight of other fish.
> 
> Good luck!


Well yea we had Ick many many months ago. Like beginning of the year I think. The tank has been cleared up since then and she never seemed to be affected by it. I dunno. We just let her be. She seems fine and healthy except that she hides majority of the time.


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