Stressed Guppy (need Help!)

[Proud Pastry]

Hello!
I'm kind of at a loss of what to do at the moment and I'd appreciate any help or advice anyone has to offer.

I have a 10 gallon tank with:
1 Serpae Tetra (Keeps to himself and is generally happy)
1 Sunset Platy (female, keeps to herself as well and seems generally happy)
and 2 Fancy Guppy Males. One blue, one orange.
The water temperature is always stable, I feed them on a regular basis, the filter is running normally, and there are no problems with the water condition. I also have many places for the fish to hide under if needed.

When I first got the Guppies, they were fine with each other, but after a while the blue one started to chase the orange one around and it looked as if he was trying to get at his underbelly. I was worried at first, but then read somewhere that this was normal dominant behavior and I shouldn't be worried.
Next came the Tetra and the Platy. The orange one took a lot of interest in the female platy and has been following her ever since. The blue one didn't seem to care at first, but a few days later they started getting really aggressive with each other.
Today for the first time I saw the orange one change it's colours, and they both have small rips in their tails. (I'm prepared to get fin rot treatment if things worsen)
The orange one is now frantically swimming around and bumping into the gravel floor... I'm really worried and I'm not sure of what to do.
The other fish are acting normal, though.

Would getting more female platies help? Or maybe more male guppies?
I'm planning on getting a hang-on breeding box to put one of the guppies in for a little bit so the other wont bother him... (I read that the breeding box was helpful for this)

I look forward to whatever help and advice you all have to offer!
Thank you so much for reading!

 

[Crossfire]

Hello!
I'm kind of at a loss of what to do at the moment and I'd appreciate any help or advice anyone has to offer.

I have a 10 gallon tank with:
1 Serpae Tetra (Keeps to himself and is generally happy)
1 Sunset Platy (female, keeps to herself as well and seems generally happy)
and 2 Fancy Guppy Males. One blue, one orange.
The water temperature is always stable, I feed them on a regular basis, the filter is running normally, and there are no problems with the water condition. I also have many places for the fish to hide under if needed.

When I first got the Guppies, they were fine with each other, but after a while the blue one started to chase the orange one around and it looked as if he was trying to get at his underbelly. I was worried at first, but then read somewhere that this was normal dominant behavior and I shouldn't be worried.
Next came the Tetra and the Platy. The orange one took a lot of interest in the female platy and has been following her ever since. The blue one didn't seem to care at first, but a few days later they started getting really aggressive with each other.
Today for the first time I saw the orange one change it's colours, and they both have small rips in their tails. (I'm prepared to get fin rot treatment if things worsen)
The orange one is now frantically swimming around and bumping into the gravel floor... I'm really worried and I'm not sure of what to do.
The other fish are acting normal, though.

Would getting more female platies help? Or maybe more male guppies?
I'm planning on getting a hang-on breeding box to put one of the guppies in for a little bit so the other wont bother him... (I read that the breeding box was helpful for this)

I look forward to whatever help and advice you all have to offer!
Thank you so much for reading!

When there are no female guppies present in a tank, the males will have nothing to do besides go after each other and beat each other up. Since there is a female platy, they are trying to get with her, although she's probably only interested in male platies.

I'd get 4 female guppies, two for every male. This way, they will focus all their attention on gettin' with hot babes rather than attacking each other.

As long as you keep the water very clean and keep doing 25% weekly water changes, no infection should come up
Try using API StressCoat+ as a dechlorinator. It has aloe vera in it, which soothes wounds, promotes healing, and calms fish

With the females however, your going to have a lot of guppy babies on your hand!

 

[Proud Pastry]

Hello!
I'm kind of at a loss of what to do at the moment and I'd appreciate any help or advice anyone has to offer.

I have a 10 gallon tank with:
1 Serpae Tetra (Keeps to himself and is generally happy)
1 Sunset Platy (female, keeps to herself as well and seems generally happy)
and 2 Fancy Guppy Males. One blue, one orange.
The water temperature is always stable, I feed them on a regular basis, the filter is running normally, and there are no problems with the water condition. I also have many places for the fish to hide under if needed.

When I first got the Guppies, they were fine with each other, but after a while the blue one started to chase the orange one around and it looked as if he was trying to get at his underbelly. I was worried at first, but then read somewhere that this was normal dominant behavior and I shouldn't be worried.
Next came the Tetra and the Platy. The orange one took a lot of interest in the female platy and has been following her ever since. The blue one didn't seem to care at first, but a few days later they started getting really aggressive with each other.
Today for the first time I saw the orange one change it's colours, and they both have small rips in their tails. (I'm prepared to get fin rot treatment if things worsen)
The orange one is now frantically swimming around and bumping into the gravel floor... I'm really worried and I'm not sure of what to do.
The other fish are acting normal, though.

Would getting more female platies help? Or maybe more male guppies?
I'm planning on getting a hang-on breeding box to put one of the guppies in for a little bit so the other wont bother him... (I read that the breeding box was helpful for this)

I look forward to whatever help and advice you all have to offer!
Thank you so much for reading!

When there are no female guppies present in a tank, the males will have nothing to do besides go after each other and beat each other up. Since there is a female platy, they are trying to get with her, although she's probably only interested in male platies.

I'd get 4 female guppies, two for every male. This way, they will focus all their attention on gettin' with hot babes rather than attacking each other.

As long as you keep the water very clean and keep doing 25% weekly water changes, no infection should come up
Try using API StressCoat+ as a dechlorinator. It has aloe vera in it, which soothes wounds, promotes healing, and calms fish

Thank you for replying!
Yeah, I heard that getting 2 females for each male would be a good idea... but wont they mate?
If getting 4 female guppies will do the trick (is this guaranteed do work?) then I'll be more than happy to do so, but please tell me, if they mate, what do I do with the fry?? haha

And I actually just finished changing 25% of the water a few minutes ago and put some Stress coat in Hopefully it helps a little!

 

[Crossfire]

Hello!
I'm kind of at a loss of what to do at the moment and I'd appreciate any help or advice anyone has to offer.

I have a 10 gallon tank with:
1 Serpae Tetra (Keeps to himself and is generally happy)
1 Sunset Platy (female, keeps to herself as well and seems generally happy)
and 2 Fancy Guppy Males. One blue, one orange.
The water temperature is always stable, I feed them on a regular basis, the filter is running normally, and there are no problems with the water condition. I also have many places for the fish to hide under if needed.

When I first got the Guppies, they were fine with each other, but after a while the blue one started to chase the orange one around and it looked as if he was trying to get at his underbelly. I was worried at first, but then read somewhere that this was normal dominant behavior and I shouldn't be worried.
Next came the Tetra and the Platy. The orange one took a lot of interest in the female platy and has been following her ever since. The blue one didn't seem to care at first, but a few days later they started getting really aggressive with each other.
Today for the first time I saw the orange one change it's colours, and they both have small rips in their tails. (I'm prepared to get fin rot treatment if things worsen)
The orange one is now frantically swimming around and bumping into the gravel floor... I'm really worried and I'm not sure of what to do.
The other fish are acting normal, though.

Would getting more female platies help? Or maybe more male guppies?
I'm planning on getting a hang-on breeding box to put one of the guppies in for a little bit so the other wont bother him... (I read that the breeding box was helpful for this)

I look forward to whatever help and advice you all have to offer!
Thank you so much for reading!

When there are no female guppies present in a tank, the males will have nothing to do besides go after each other and beat each other up. Since there is a female platy, they are trying to get with her, although she's probably only interested in male platies.

I'd get 4 female guppies, two for every male. This way, they will focus all their attention on gettin' with hot babes rather than attacking each other.

As long as you keep the water very clean and keep doing 25% weekly water changes, no infection should come up
Try using API StressCoat+ as a dechlorinator. It has aloe vera in it, which soothes wounds, promotes healing, and calms fish

Thank you for replying!
Yeah, I heard that getting 2 females for each male would be a good idea... but wont they mate?
If getting 4 female guppies will do the trick (is this guaranteed do work?) then I'll be more than happy to do so, but please tell me, if they mate, what do I do with the fry?? haha

And I actually just finished changing 25% of the water a few minutes ago and put some Stress coat in Hopefully it helps a little!

They will have babies, but the guppies will probably cannibalize the babies after a few minutes Any leftovers will be eaten by the Serpae Tetra. Any survivors you can simply sell or give away to your local fish store
Or, to make sure no babies make it, buy a predatory fish.
A Dwarf Gourami, or Honey Gourami, or a trio of Sparkling Gouramis will make sure no babies make it

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

 

[Proud Pastry]

They will have babies, but the guppies will probably cannibalize the babies after a few minutes Any leftovers will be eaten by the Serpae Tetra. Any survivors you can simply sell or give away to your local fish store
Or, to make sure no babies make it, buy a predatory fish.
A Dwarf Gourami, or Honey Gourami, or a trio of Sparkling Gouramis will make sure no babies make it

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

Oh my goodness o.o That is a rather gruesome solution! Is this a common practice?? lol
I'll probably ask a local pet store if they'll take the babies, and hopefully make a couple bucks!

So getting 4 females will definitely solve my guppy problem? My males will no longer fight and they will no longer be stressed?

Thank you for the welcome! I think I'll enjoy myself here!

 

[Crossfire]

They will have babies, but the guppies will probably cannibalize the babies after a few minutes Any leftovers will be eaten by the Serpae Tetra. Any survivors you can simply sell or give away to your local fish store
Or, to make sure no babies make it, buy a predatory fish.
A Dwarf Gourami, or Honey Gourami, or a trio of Sparkling Gouramis will make sure no babies make it

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

Oh my goodness o.o That is a rather gruesome solution! Is this a common practice?? lol
I'll probably ask a local pet store if they'll take the babies, and hopefully make a couple bucks!

So getting 4 females will definitely solve my guppy problem? My males will no longer fight and they will no longer be stressed?

Thank you for the welcome! I think I'll enjoy myself here!

It's gruesome, but hey, that's nature.
When I had guppies, I had three males and three females. The males mostly spent their time wooing the females. When all the females died, the males went bonkers and started beating the poop out of each other. So I had to give them away
But, yes, the males will not give a second thought about each other once you plop some pretty guppy ladies in there
The guppies don't always eat the babies, mine never ate theirs, but it differs. If you don't want to get a predator, just give the babies away

 

[Proud Pastry]

They will have babies, but the guppies will probably cannibalize the babies after a few minutes Any leftovers will be eaten by the Serpae Tetra. Any survivors you can simply sell or give away to your local fish store
Or, to make sure no babies make it, buy a predatory fish.
A Dwarf Gourami, or Honey Gourami, or a trio of Sparkling Gouramis will make sure no babies make it

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

Oh my goodness o.o That is a rather gruesome solution! Is this a common practice?? lol
I'll probably ask a local pet store if they'll take the babies, and hopefully make a couple bucks!

So getting 4 females will definitely solve my guppy problem? My males will no longer fight and they will no longer be stressed?

Thank you for the welcome! I think I'll enjoy myself here!

It's gruesome, but hey, that's nature.
When I had guppies, I had three males and three females. The males mostly spent their time wooing the females. When all the females died, the males went bonkers and started beating the poop out of each other. So I had to give them away
But, yes, the males will not give a second thought about each other once you plop some pretty guppy ladies in there
The guppies don't always eat the babies, mine never ate theirs, but it differs. If you don't want to get a predator, just give the babies away

Thank you very much! It feels so good to talk to someone directly about my problem @_@
I'll head to the pet store tomorrow and take a look at some bachelorettes ...and a breeding tank XD

 

[Crossfire]

They will have babies, but the guppies will probably cannibalize the babies after a few minutes Any leftovers will be eaten by the Serpae Tetra. Any survivors you can simply sell or give away to your local fish store
Or, to make sure no babies make it, buy a predatory fish.
A Dwarf Gourami, or Honey Gourami, or a trio of Sparkling Gouramis will make sure no babies make it

Oh, and welcome to the forum!

Oh my goodness o.o That is a rather gruesome solution! Is this a common practice?? lol
I'll probably ask a local pet store if they'll take the babies, and hopefully make a couple bucks!

So getting 4 females will definitely solve my guppy problem? My males will no longer fight and they will no longer be stressed?

Thank you for the welcome! I think I'll enjoy myself here!

It's gruesome, but hey, that's nature.
When I had guppies, I had three males and three females. The males mostly spent their time wooing the females. When all the females died, the males went bonkers and started beating the poop out of each other. So I had to give them away
But, yes, the males will not give a second thought about each other once you plop some pretty guppy ladies in there
The guppies don't always eat the babies, mine never ate theirs, but it differs. If you don't want to get a predator, just give the babies away

Thank you very much! It feels so good to talk to someone directly about my problem @_@
I'll head to the pet store tomorrow and take a look at some bachelorettes ...and a breeding tank XD

No problem! I know your feeling
Be sure to give us pics!

 

[Proud Pastry]

No problem! I know your feeling
Be sure to give us pics!

I'll be sure to! :3

I just talked to my boyfriend and did some research and it looks like the 4 female guppies thing wont happen... It turns out it's very unlikely we'd be able to give the fry to a pet store, and having them eat the fry is not something I want to let happen haha
Is there any other possible way for my two guppy boys to stop being so aggressive? Would getting more males make it worse? Or maybe getting a few different fish?

 

[Crossfire]

No problem! I know your feeling
Be sure to give us pics!

I'll be sure to! :3

I just talked to my boyfriend and did some research and it looks like the 4 female guppies thing wont happen... It turns out it's very unlikely we'd be able to give the fry to a pet store, and having them eat the fry is not something I want to let happen haha
Is there any other possible way for my two guppy boys to stop being so aggressive? Would getting more males make it worse? Or maybe getting a few different fish?

Sadly, there is nothing else. The males will keep going at each other.
Have you tried a specialty fish store? Not a chain store, like a privatley owned fish store

 

[Proud Pastry]

No problem! I know your feeling
Be sure to give us pics!

I'll be sure to! :3

I just talked to my boyfriend and did some research and it looks like the 4 female guppies thing wont happen... It turns out it's very unlikely we'd be able to give the fry to a pet store, and having them eat the fry is not something I want to let happen haha
Is there any other possible way for my two guppy boys to stop being so aggressive? Would getting more males make it worse? Or maybe getting a few different fish?

Sadly, there is nothing else. The males will keep going at each other.
Have you tried a specialty fish store? Not a chain store, like a privatley owned fish store

Yeah, I looked at some independent pet stores... I shall try harder! D: I'm going out first thing tomorrow to see if I can find a way to fix this, by either getting females and having a guaranteed place to take my fry, or by some other magical way XD
I don't want my boys to fight :C

 

[Livewire]

Yeah, more female guppies will help, I have pretty much all live-bearers in my community tank and my guppies are total studs. lol

Normally The main pet stores like petco and Petsmart will have the males and female guppies separated.

 

[PrairieSunflower]

All male guppy tanks work too in the same way as the male to female ratio works. You sometimes get some more persistant males than others, but with a good sized group (my number hangs around 7-10 at any given time) they alternate pestering each other and no fights or damage has occured. I've only had one (whom I still have) that was a problem at first and I put him in the breeder from time to time until he worked it out, now he's fine.

Male guppies live to pester someone, anyone... whether its females or other males. If you don't want babies, I'd just get more males.

Just thought I'd offer that differing opinion.

 

[Essjay]

I have a 10 gallon tank with:
1 Serpae Tetra (Keeps to himself and is generally happy)
1 Sunset Platy (female, keeps to herself as well and seems generally happy)
and 2 Fancy Guppy Males. One blue, one orange.

Split fins could well be caused by the serpae tetra as well. Nasty nippy fish in my opnion. They are a shoaling fish, and the fewer there are the more likely they are to nip other fish. I had some once and every other fish in the tank had bits missing. After my experience with them, I'd never have them in the same tanks fish with long fins like guppies.

If it were me I'd see if I could trade the serpae for another male guppy!

 

[angel308]

Hi hun,

Welcome also from me!

In terms of not wanting to let the fry get eaten and so giving them away, don't forget there is a classified section on these forums where you could advertise the fry for people to come collect for free. It's what I am going to do as I have 4 (2 of which started as fry in the bag from the LFS when I purchased the girls) males and 6 females (who have so far produced 10 fry!. Just another option x

No problem! I know your feeling
Be sure to give us pics!

I'll be sure to! :3

I just talked to my boyfriend and did some research and it looks like the 4 female guppies thing wont happen... It turns out it's very unlikely we'd be able to give the fry to a pet store, and having them eat the fry is not something I want to let happen haha
Is there any other possible way for my two guppy boys to stop being so aggressive? Would getting more males make it worse? Or maybe getting a few different fish?