Opinions On Pregnancy

[dawny1511]

So I've established I have 2 pregnant guppies & I THINK I also have 2 pregnant platys. I have a breeding box & a net, also a small spare tank. Never done this before so interested for opinions on best course of action. Do I remove the guppies & put them in my spare tank with one in the breeding box, put one platy in the breeding net & leave the other in the main tank - which is a 65L by the way - OR do I leave all 4 females in the main tank & let nature take its course? I have caves, rocks, tunnels & plants for the fry to hide if I can't catch them. Please forgive my ignorance, I've tried researching but there are mixed views on this topic. TIA

 

[fluttermoth]

It might sound a bit harsh, but female livebearers are much better being left in the main tank.
 
Breeding nets/traps are too small for the females to feel comfortable, and they're too small for raising fry.
 
It's just not possible, in a home hobbyist environment, to save all the fry, even from one or two females, so it is better to let nature take it's course. You will get some fry surviving, if you have enough hiding places.

 

[dawny1511]

Thank you I hope I have plenty of hiding places.

 

[Alex.binge]

I have a handful off tanks. One off them have my guppies. When I know the female is going to have her babie I try and wait until the last minute ( 1 hour ) to put her in a breeding trap. When she has had all her fry I release her back in to the tank. I leave the fry in the trap for 2-3 days so they get used to swimming around and then I put them all in a 30l tank. I leave them in this tank until they are to small to be eastern then they go back in the normal tank. If you put them in a different tank make sure the pump is not to powerful that it pulls them in. If you want them to grow quick I was told you do a very small water change everyday just to keep it fresh I do a whole pint glass out off my 30lt every day every since I have done this they seem to grow a lot quicker. Hope this helps.

 

[DeanoL83]

It really depends on how many fry you want/can handle.
 
I have read that breeding nets can stress the female and can lead to her aborting her pregnancy.
 
I have female platties and mollies in my main tank and decided to let them give birth in the tank - partly because I got sick of watching them everyday trying to figure out when they were going to give birth. I just didn't have the time to sit in front of them all the time.
 
When cleaning the tank I noticed a couple small fry swimming (i must have disturbed their hiding spots) so I have now put three fry (two platy and one molly) into the breeding net in the tank. Will keep them in there for 2-3 weeks to give them a chance to get bigger then release them into the tank.  So that is always another option you have if you want to try and ensure that a couple of fry will survive. 
 
Good Luck with whatever you decide!

 

[Gruntle]

I have two Endlers that are about ready to give birth. So I went to YouTube to see what I could expect to witness. 
 
One video had a net clamped to the side of the tank, as each baby emerged the owner released the fry into the tank (not sure what else was in the tank, I suspect it was a breeding tank or something, judging by the décor, but can't say).
 
The next video had a female in a breeding box (I think, mesh bottom so the fry could fall between the bars and be safe from predation). The female appeared exceptionally agitated at being confined, for mine, I have decided to leave the females in the tank (I think the fry will be too big for any tank occupants to snack on, I could be wrong). I wouldn't like to see my females upset to the point of death (which this one looked like).