New Platys

[Betta_Shark5678]

Hi!
 
I know I shouldn't have...
 
Yesterday I was at the pet store with my fish class, and they didn't have very many fish (they got a shipment in tonight, I'm hoping to go back tomorrow!), except a tank full of the most beautiful mickey mouse platys I've seen! They had four different colors, there were no dead ones in the tank, and they almost all had a perfect mickey mouse shape! I have wanted to do a selective breeding project with platys for a while.
 
My only surviving platy from when my Nitrates got too high has been acting depressed since the last one died, at first I thought she was sick, but there are no other symptoms, and if she was as sick as I thought she was at first she would be dead by now.  She wouldn't eat for a few days, and was hiding, not moving from the bottom of the tank.  Since then she's started eating, but hides constantly when she used to swim around, and play with the other female platys! I felt so bad that I ended up with four new mickey mouse platys. 
 
I got three females, a white who I named Annabelle, a blue named Rebekah, an orange with a red top fin named Fox, and a huge red male named Kol.  Since adding the new four Rosalie, the only golden twin-bar left, has been swimming around the tank again! All five of them swim around the tank, Annabelle, and Rebekah are still cautious, but Fox is everywhere! Kol, and Rosalie hang out together most of the time, he doesn't chase her a lot, but I think it's because he's still new.  She's currently pregnant from my last male.
 
When they're more settled I'm going to start a selective breeding project, hopefully.  Which will probably involve more tanks, which will require parental convincing... Maybe in the name of learning (I'm homeschooled) they'll agree!
 
Sorry for the long post

 

[Ny82]

Aww they sound lovely can't wait for pics! Good luck with the breeding.

 

[Betta_Shark5678]

Thanks! The new girls aren't feeling the whole picture thing right now, but soon! Kol on the other hand is like you want pictures?  Here I am! 
 
I might have to divide my 10 gallon for my Bettas, and use my 6.6 for breeding, but that won't be much fun.  Plus I'll have to separate out any males for selective breeding after the first few batches of fry.  So I'd have to divide my 6.6 gallon, too... Hopefully they'll let me get another 5 gallon at least.

 

[Ny82]

I find platies to be a lot more shy than guppies. I have 2 white platies with black spots in my tanks, I try to get pictures of their blue eyes but they are having none of it! 
Plan ahead, I have a 30L I had setup for guppy fry, the 2 lots of fry grew very fast in it. At 2 weeks I put them back into the main tank and they are doing really well-then I fell for a chocolate coloured siamese fighter who now inhabits the 30L lol. 

 

[Betta_Shark5678]

As it is a selective breeding project I'm going to keep around 10 until they get they're color then I'll decide on the ones I'm going to keep, and rehome the rest.  If I can't rehome them my Mom will make me put them in the duck pool I probably not going to get a 5 gallon unfortunately, my Mom says she'll think about it...

 

[PrairieSunflower]

If your male is in the same tank with the females... then he is starting the selective breeding program all on his own.  LOL

 

[Betta_Shark5678]

Lol he is right now, but I can't selectively breed them until I have more males, which means I'll need babies!
 
My goals: 
White, and Yellow/Orange with all of their fins (except the mickey mouse shape) red.
Blue, and Red with white fins.  
And this might take a while, but I was considering trying to make the mickey mouse shape into a heart! My goal with that would be all red with a heart shape.  IDK if I'd be able to get rid of the babies, but it would neat to try!
 
Basically it's just for coloration with mickey mouse platys right now, but I might add some more patterns in there after I get this started! Maybe a spotted platy with a mickey mouse pattern, or spotted with the twin-bar on the tail.