Re: need immediate help with guppy   11/25/08
Hi Neale,
I tried adding both Maracyn and Maracyn 2 to the tank after a 30% water change - now on day 5 and the guppy looks terrible - now scales are protruding and the ulcer is very deep though he is still swimming and eating normally. I also replaced the old filter with a newer one that circulates the water better. I just today noticed that the small upside-down catfish I have (sorry - forgot to add him to the list of tankmates) has very red gills and is just floating at the top of the tank and is very sluggish. Is this from the addition of the medication? Should I remove the catfish from the tank, the guppy, or both? I do have a 10 gallon tank I could use as a hospital tank but it is not yet set up.
Thanks again,
Jessica
<I suspect not much can be done about your Guppy. By the time the Dropsy-like symptoms appear, small fish are usually so ravaged by bacteria that their organs are failing and nothing much will save them. Isolating the Guppy could help, and for want of anything better I'd also consider raising the salinity to at least 25% seawater (SG 1.005) by adding 9 grammes of marine salt mix (not tonic salt) per litre of water. This will reduce the osmotic pressure on the fish, and hopefully draw some of the fluid out of the body cavity. The salt will also have a mild sterilising effect on the ulcer. When you set up the hospital tank, use some mature filter media from the other tank, and raise the salinity in stages, by first almost filling the tank with freshwater, and then adding one-fourth of the required salt (dissolved into jugs of warm water) at four intervals, separated by an hour or two. This will allow the fish and the filter time to adjust. As for the Synodontis, this could be a reaction to the medication; some catfish are sensitive to some medications, though seemingly not in a consistent, predictable way that is easy to explain. In any case, once the Guppy is removed you can do two big water changes (50% each time, with 6-24 hours between them) to flush out most of the medication, and then see if the catfish settles down. If that doesn't help, get back in touch and we'll discuss further. Cheers, Neale.>

Male guppies urgent  10/17/08
I have two male guppies in my ten gallon tank.
<Too small of Poecilia reticulata: the males are aggressive and the females need space.>
(The female recently died from old age.)
<One male to 2+ females is the recommended way to stock these fish; your female was VERY likely stressed to death.>
The two males have been chasing each other and shoving themselves in each others faces. Are my guppies just playing?
<Fighting.>
Or, are they fighting that could soon lead to death?
<Certainly not how I'd recommend keeping this species, anyway.>
Please help me! Thank you, Brian, a concerned guppy lover
<Do see my thoughts on this species, here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fwsubwebindex/guppies.htm
Cheers, Neale.>

Planted tank with female guppies, sys.   9/2/08
Dear Wet Web Guys:
<Hi,>
You helped me before, so I am writing you again in the hopes that you will provide me with more solid information on keeping a healthy tank.
<Fire away!>
I have three planted tanks, two of them holding guppies I raised from fry. But it is the tank with females guppies that I am concerned with. Unlike the 14G tank with (I'm guessing) 20 males, plus 2 Oto cats, 4 shrimp and numerous snails, and which is staying fairly clear of algae, the tank with the 11 females stays a little cloudy despite 1/2 water changes sometimes as frequently as every other day.
<Females are substantially bigger than males, so that's a higher biological loading on the filter, water changes, etc. Generally cloudy water comes down to either diatom/bacterial blooms on the one hand, or silt on the other.>
I am debating these options: (A) adding a DIY CO2 injection to try to grow the 8 plants in the tank so they can handle this amount of nitrogenous waste,
<Algae will certainly diminish in tanks with healthy plant growth, but adding CO2 fertilisation is an expensive solution to a problem that may simply be the need for more/better filtration. Mechanical filtration (filter wool for example) is critical to removing silt from the water column.>
(B) buy an Otocinclus and a male apple snail for this tank,
<Neither will have any impact on cloudy water. Otocinclus are gregarious, so "an" Otocinclus isn't an option; you buy them in groups of six or more. I'm not a big fan of this genus for a variety of reasons, not least of which is their appalling survival record in the average community tank. Apple Snails are sensitive animals easily harassed by fish that peck at them, which Guppies surely will. They also need a cool winter "break" or they fail to live long. Essentially not suitable for fish tanks, though great fun on their own. Kept and bred them many times. Nerites and Cherry Shrimps are infinitely better algae-eaters for small/medium aquaria.>
(C) Get rid of a few guppies and hope they are not eaten by larger, more aggressive fish in somebody else's tank
<Well, sooner of later you will have to "thin the herd". That's where your local retailer or fish club comes in. Nowadays people advertise their excess fish on forums too. In any case, guppies of decent quality shouldn't be difficult to rehome.>
or (D) some combination of the above.
<Would tend to look at why the water is cloudy first, and then establish whether diatoms (golden colour); bacteria (usually off-white); or silt (typically grey, and happens after a new tank is set up usually).>
These guppies (11 total) seem to have stopped the growing spurt as their appetites have started to slow down.
<There's "negative feedback" in aquaria. As the fish get bigger, the water becomes polluted faster, and that slows down growth rate. Invariably, you need to increase water changes to maintain the same level of growth. Indeed, if you ignore this, stunting or even ill-health become very real risks. Ten gallons is fine for rearing fish up to around 2-3 cm (say, an inch or so in old money) but after that you do need to be rehoming them. Overstocking may be part of why this tank isn't "balanced", and why the water is cloudy.>
They are in a 10G tank with a little over an inch of substrate, 3 pieces of Mopani and 8 plants. I am inept at applying the one inch rule. Can you help me calculate the largest number of female guppies I can reasonably keep in this tank if I add an Oto cat and perhaps a male apple snail?
<These "inch per gallon" rules only make sense in context. An Oscar is the same length as 12 Neon tetras, both coming out at about 18 inches. But would they both fit into an 18 gallon aquarium? Obviously not. So you need to put any rules of thumb into context. Females Guppies simply aren't (in my opinion) suited to 10 gallon tanks because of their size, and while you could in theory keep, say, half a dozen alive in there, they'd be crowded and you'd have your work cut out keeping water quality good. Male Guppies are aggressive, and if mixed with females would pester them to distraction. The poor females wouldn't be able to find resting places away from the males. So you need to be intelligent and consider the size, activity level, diet, social behaviour and other relevant factors when stocking your tanks. That's where reading up on the needs of a fish come into the equation.>
Of the three tanks, I prefer this tank because of the way the females watch me... they remind me of puppies begging at a table. They get excited when they see me looking at them and are very aware of what I am doing in the room. Really cute.
<Yes indeed. Livebearers generally become tame very easily, and respond positively to good care by being all-around excellent pets. It's a shame historically they've been written off as "beginner's fish" or worse.>
Coleen
<Cheers, Neale.>

Nearing stocking limit, somewhat urgent...  4/16/08
Hello everybody, my name is Jeremy. I want to first and foremost compliment your site as one of the best fishkeeping websites I have found, even after extensive searching. I have a bit of a problem. My tank, (29 gallon with AquaClear 30 gal hang on box filter, separate sponge, carbon and biomedia with old net attached to intake to protect fry.) currently has 4 Otos, 3 cories, 4 ghost shrimp, 6 espei Rasbora, 2 adult guppies, three 6-week-old guppies, and about a dozen week-old babies. I currently am following a schedule of changing 50% of the water every Saturday. (They seem to enjoy it.) I know that I won't be able to keep all the guppies , but I am unsure at exactly what point to start giving them away. So the essence of my question is: How many adult guppies can this system support with the current water change schedule?
A thousand thanks in advance!
<Hello Jeremy; thanks for the kind words. A good basic rule to start with is that small fish (like Guppies) can be housed at about one inch of fish per gallon of water. In practise though filtration and especially water changes can substantially alter this. Another factor is the buffering capacity of the water: in very hard, alkaline water the inevitable pH drop that happens in heavily-stocked tanks is slowed down. So really your task is to check that nitrite stays zero, pH stays steady, and nitrate stays relatively low (ideally less than 50 mg/l). Provided you are seeing these results, your tank is safe, even if it isn't "optimal" in terms of stocking. Now if you're asking for a ballpark figure, you can probably keep about 30 up to 1-inch long Guppies alongside your other fish without having major water quality problems *assuming* the filtration is good (check nitrite!) and you are doing at least 50% water changes weekly (ideally more!). Once the fish are above an inch in length, it's time to move them out. Adult Guppies pose two problems: males are aggressive, and females are quite big, up to two inches in length. So the females especially will pull down water quality, while the males may start nipping the fins of one another. Cheers, Neale.>

Question about my tequila sunrise guppy – 4/12/08
Hello,
I tried to ask this question on your website but it asked me for a login which i don't know.
<???>
I recently bought a Tequila Sunrise Guppy from our local PetSmart along with a blue/silver guppy exactly a week from today. I put them in the tank with my Betta fish, and they were doing great. I woke up this morning and my tequila sunrise guppy was at the top of the tank floating on it's side.
<Almost always when people tell me stories like this, it's because of the following issues: tank too small, tank under-filtered, tank not properly matured. So let's review. Guppies MUST have an aquarium at least 10 gallons in size, and in all honesty fancy guppies are so delicate (and the males often so aggressive) than a 20 gallon tank is ESSENTIAL. Water chemistry needs to be hard and alkaline. Adding a little MARINE MIX (not aquarium/tonic) salt, 3-6 grammes per litre, helps, especially if you live in a soft water area. The aquarium needs to be very well filtered, certainly the filter should have at least 4 times the volume of the tank in turnover per hour. There should be ZERO ammonia and nitrite at all times. Temperature must be not less than 25 C, 77 F. What you CANNOT do with Guppies is stick them in a small, unfiltered aquarium of the sort (sadly) used for Bettas by some people. They are completely unsuitable for that sort of maintenance.>
I thought it was dead and when i approached the tank it swam, while still being on it's side just a little. In fear that my beta fish had done something to it, i moved it to a different bowl. When i first moved it, it swam like normal then after a bout 30 seconds turned over on it's side and slowly swam that way then just sits at the top of the bowl. I don't know what's wrong with my guppy. I've searched yahoo, and I've looked all over your website typing in key points for my question, but all i found was a plenty on it's side and the rest was about pregnant guppies and nothing about being on it's side. If i could get an answer a.s.ap. i would greatly appreciate it. I don't know if my fish is sick or not, or hurt.
-Lori
<Honestly need more information re: aquarium size, filtration, water chemistry, water quality, etc. So, before going further, I'd suggest you read over this:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/fwsubwebindex/guppies.htm
Once you're done and you've got some information together about your aquarium and how the Guppies are maintained, we can try to move things forward. Cheers, Neale.>

Guppies, sys., beh.    3/3/08
Hello,
A few weeks ago we set up a 5 gallon hex tank and bought a pair of guppies.
<Too small...>
We have worked with our water and have finally, after we lost the first two, gotten the tank just right.
<Just right according to whom?>
We bought others, and ended up with 3 males and 2 females. One of the red-tailed males killed a fancy tail male and one of the females.
<No surprise at all.>
We isolated him, then set up a 10 gallon tank with a divider so he would have more room. We then went and bought him 2 female guppies, and within a day he had bitten one and killed her.
<Someone needs to read a book about Guppies. Males are aggressive. Guppies are NOT a good idea in tanks smaller than 20 gallons. This isn't up for discussion. If all you have is a 10 gallon tank, keep something else.>
We removed the other female, leaving him isolated once again.
<How are you isolating him? Not one of those horrible breeding traps? They achieve precisely nothing except removing money from your pocket.>
We called the pet store, and they agreed to exchange him for a different fish. We brought home a new fancy tail male and he seems just as aggressive.
<Male Guppies attempt to dominate the area around them. It just so happens that a 10 gallon tank is so small any one male Guppy will treat this as his private kingdom.>
He is chasing all of the females around the tank constantly, bumping into them.
<Not bumping: either attempting to copulate or else displaying aggression.>
I cannot tell if he is trying to bite them, but that is a concern.
<For the female Guppies especially, I'd imagine!>
We have 2 males ( including him) and four females. All the info I can find talks about increasing the number of females, but I don't know if that will help.
<It will, in a sufficiently large aquarium.>
I do not have the room to set up a separate tank.
<Then Guppies are not for you.>
What do you recommend I do next? Is it common for them to be this aggressive, or are we just unlucky?
<Completely normal. Please read about fish beforehand in books and fishkeeping magazines that have been fact checked. The only livebearer suitable for a tank this small is the Dwarf Mosquitofish (Heterandria formosa). Nothing else commonly available will work out well. Next up, a 10-gallon tank is ridiculously small. Do read here for more:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwlivestk.htm
Cheers, Neale.>

Guppy question, sel. sys., dis.    2/17/08
I've had guppies for years and stopped and restarted a few times, out of frustration of how delicate the females are.
<Of all fish species... this standard used to be rock solid... the touchy stock from the Far East has ruined a good deal of the hobby the last decades>
I also have a 30gallon planted tank with co2 and such, so I'm not quite a beginner.
I have almost enough salt to be considered brackish, think between 1Tbls/5gallon to 1Tbls/10gallon. This is a planted eclipse hex 5 gallon.
<Small... hard to keep stable... and with the salt... easy for nitrification to vacillate>
I have/had 5 females and 4 males. I think I even had another female but she died back 2 months ago. They are all fancy guppies, so delicate it seems. I got them from two different stores, one being PetSmart (sorry). I've had 2 females die now in the past day. I just did a water change 3 days ago, about 20%, as usual for every other to maybe ever week. The two that died were very pregnant and one of them and possibly the other looked like they were about to give birth (both were hanging out down on the gravel or plants being alone).
With that background out of the way, is there anything else I can do to make the females more comfortable and less likely to die?
<Yes... see below>
This is a constant problem and I only got these fish 2 months ago and already have lost almost half my original females. The temp is usually at 76 but can go up to 79 (the eclipse light always has a tendency of heating the tank up if the room is mildly warm). But lately it hasn't been.
Is my tank too crowded maybe too?
<Is a factor, yes>
They seem happy otherwise.
Should I instead be buying more reliable females,
<Yes>
is it possible I've just had bad luck with the ones I bought?
<Mmm, not entirely, no>
I think the ones that died today were both from PetSmart if that matters.
It's just demoralizing.
Thanks for any information.
-Erin
<Too many Poecilia reticulata on the market are infested with Hexamita (perennially) and Columnaris (seasonally, and in more erratic punctuated fashion)... Guarding against the introduction of these diseases can be accomplished only through careful exclusion/quarantining of all incoming livestock... and treatment with antiprotozoal (Metronidazole often) and possibly antimicrobial (most celebratedly Neomycin...). You might have "luck" with buying/selecting better stock from another source... but I would still at least isolate it for a good two weeks (to weaken pathogens) before introduction to your main displays... Having a larger system would be of great benefit here as well as bolstering the fishs' immune systems through improved nutrition... Do see the Net re the disease organisms mentioned... they can be defeated, excluded... Bob Fenner>

Proper water conditions for fancy guppies  2/10/08
I have a 75 gallon established aquarium that I would love to fill with fancy guppies. I also have 2 ten gallon tanks for sick fish, fry or a brine
shrimp hatchery.
We have extremely hard well water here, the tank was used for Malawian African Cichlids with great success for many, many years.
I understand guppies prefer hard water, but will they thrive in this extremely hard, limestone water? I would prefer to choose a fish that would thrive in our type of water than to constantly amend the conditions.
<Yes, they'll love this stuff. "Liquid Rock" is a Guppy's idea of heaven.>
Also, is it such that ALL guppies prefer brackish water? I noticed from one of your articles, the aquarium water should be amended with "proper marine salt, not tonic salt". Is this true with fancy guppies as well? If so, should I exclusively use marine salt in lieu of regular aquarium salt when setting up the tank and changing water?
<Guppies don't need salt added to the tank, but it does help, and is probably essential for people who live in areas with soft/acid water. Salt also helps prevent Finrot and Whitespot. You can in fact use either tonic salt or marine salt mix, but marine salt mix is better, which is why I recommend it. What's the difference? Tonic salt is plain sodium chloride, essentially cooking salt without the iodine. While it has helpful properties with regard to disease and reducing the toxicity of nitrate/nitrite, it does nothing much in terms of water chemistry beyond raising the salinity. Marine salt mix does all that tonic salt does, but it also contains a lot of calcium carbonate and various other minerals. These raise the pH, making the water basic (which tonic salt doesn't do) and increases the buffering capacity of the water as well, inhibiting rapid pH changes. The result is water that is not only slightly more saline, but also chemically much more stable. If you have very hard, basic water (as seems to be the case) then choosing between tonic salt and marine salt will likely make no odds. Go for whatever is better value. But for people with soft/acid water, marine salt mix is a better all-around solution.>
What is the recommended dosage of marine salt for a 75 gallon aquarium?
<There's really no ideal dosage since Guppies can adapt to anything from freshwater to marine conditions equally well. Indeed, you don't need to add salt at all. But as a basic supplement, a 3 grammes per litre/0.5 oz per gallon is about right. The resulting water should have a specific gravity around 1.001 or so, i.e., about 10% seawater salinity. This is well within the tolerances of most other livebearers, so you can easily add Platies, Swordtails or whatever to the system without worrying. Mollies obviously love salt -- the more the better! If your Guppies are thriving there's no big need to add salt as your water is likely hard enough for them to thrive. But if you find your Guppies are prone to whitespot and fungus or Finrot, this will certainly help. As I say, the salt is most useful to those aquarists in soft water areas.>
Thank you so much in advance for all your help! I look forward to your
reply.
Pamela
<Cheers, Neale.>

Guppies... systems, water changes     12/26/06
Dear Crew,
I have a 20 gallon tank with about 6 large mollies and down to about 5 guppies.  There are also 4 or 5 young mollies that have been born in the tank over the past few weeks.  
I haven't had great luck with the guppies.  One had white-looking spots, so I had to let her go.  One had a ripped tail and couldn't swim.  I have no idea how that happened, but I think he was a "dragon tail" guppy.  Then, yesterday, I discovered a bloated female dead on the bottom of the tank.
She looked okay the day before.  The guppy with the torn tail also couldn't swim, and sank to the bottom of the tank to die.  Some weeks ago there was another male guppy who sank to the bottom of the tank, couldn't swim for no obvious reason, and also died.  None of the mollies have died so far.  None of the original three female guppies has looked pregnant, nor have I found any baby guppies.
There is no ammonia in the water, and the pH is at around 8.
I always thought that when fish died they floated to the top of the tank.
That never seems to happen with our fish.  Why is that?
<Something new...>
We have had this aquarium for close to three months.  I have a very good filter, but have never changed any part of the water, only added some water when the level was low. I have read that it's a good idea to change some of the water on occasion, but I'm a little worried about doing it myself.
<Please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwh2ochgs.htm
and the linked FAQs file above>
A friend of ours set up the whole thing, and he doesn't change the water, only cleans the filter every three months.
<... a foolish mistake>
How essential is it to change some percent of the water?
Thanks.
BLS
<Very useful... to dilute metabolites, prevent "heavy water" syndrome (what happens to all the solids you're adding?), refresh some essential nutrients to your systems microbiota... Bob Fenner>

Missing guppy  12/23/06
Dear wet web media crew,
First off, thank you for your website.  Since I found it a week ago, I have read it every time I have a spare moment.  I have learned so much and I know that my husband is already sick of me saying, "I read on wet web media..."  But now we have a small problem.  I looked for an answer and couldn't find it, and I hope that the answer isn't somewhere that I just didn't find.  We set up a tank a couple of weeks ago, let it cycle, and added a few male guppies.  Then, after almost a week, we added a few female guppies last night.  However, one of the females is now missing.  I couldn't find her this morning.  I mentioned it to my husband when I went home for lunch, and he spent almost an hour searching the tank for her (just by looking in), but she's still missing.  It's only a 10 gallon tank, but there are quite a few fake plants in there as well as a decoration of a ruin of a castle that has quite a few holes and a hollow underneath (though you can see most of the hollow).  Could she have been eaten in the 11 hours during the night?
<Mmm, not likely... You don't have other fish species present? Snails? The great likelihood is this one fish jumped out...>
Could she be hiding to give birth?  Or could she be dead and floating in the hollow under the castle?
<Again... probably not>
If she's hiding in the castle to give birth, would it disturb her too much to lift the castle up to find her?  Thanks for your time, especially so close to Christmas.
Celeste
<I would look about the outside of the tank... perhaps for a smiling cat? Bob Fenner>

Re: Missing guppy - found!  12/23/06
Well, we found her!!  Tonight, we moved the castle ruin, and not finding her, I convinced my husband to look in the filter, even though he assured me a fish could not be sucked up the filter.  He removed the filter pads and we heard something drop down behind the aquarium stand.  Fearing the worst, we quickly grabbed a flashlight and sure enough, there she was, not moving.  It took us a minute to pick her up and get her back in, but she started swimming and hunkered down into a depression left from the castle ruin.  We turned off the lights in the room she is in and watched by the nightlight until she started swimming a few minutes ago.  My husband gave her a little bit of food, which she ate, and she is now hunkered back down.  We were going to do a water change and a vacuum, but I think we're going to wait until tomorrow to not further stress her.
<Good thinking>
  Hopefully, she will fully recover (we pray).  We don't think she was sucked up in the filter, we think she jumped up into the opening where the water pours out.
<Agreed. Common>
We do have a cover, but there's an opening for the filter.  I've included my original e-mail so you know which one you don't need to respond to.  Thanks for your time,
Celeste
<Thank you for this follow-up. Bob Fenner>

2.5 Gallon Stocking, Guppies...  2/26/06
Hi!
    I have a 2.5 gallon mini bow front with 10  plants, 1.5 inches of gravel, a heater, and a nano filter. I wanted to know  how many guppies I could have
in this aquarium.
<I would go with three, one male and two females, or three males>
It has been cycling without fish  for 3 months, so I'm not worried about cycling. Also, could I have 1 Oto cat  with them for clean up?
<Yes... but this fish is not really a scavenger... Maybe read re Corydoras...>
Would this interfere with breeding?
<Nope>
(My intention) If  this will not work, what fish do you recommend for this setup?
<Whiteclouds... Paradisefish (Macropodus)...>
(Excluding  bettas) Also, what type of maintenance regimen would I have to carry out to  sufficiently care for this tank?
<Posted... on WWM>
Thanks in advance for your advice,
Anthony
<Bob Fenner>

Lost Cycle in Guppy Tank 11/3/05
Hi Crew! Thanks for a GREAT resource! I am at the end of my rope here!! 
OK, back in "The Day" (late 70's early 80's) I had 42 million guppies. I had them in fish tanks, in pickle jars, and in 5 gal buckets. Once in a while a fish or 5 would die. I started with just two humble fancies. 
I loaded all my guppies (except the 2 original in their 20 gal tank) and took them to the pet store for credit, got some cardinal tetras, some neons, some swordtails, platys, and mollies and killed off a lot of fish because of Ich and that great blue stuff that stained everything before it killed your fish. 
That was when I learned that room temperature water is NOT the same temp as aquarium water, and that even an overall drop of 1 degree could stress your fish enough to cause ich. (Especially on the mollies, so it seemed.) After 3 times of being wiped out by ich I gave up. The Plecostomus, and the Chinese algae eater that refused to die each time their tank mates did, were traded for a pair of green anoles, and that was the end of my tropical fish days.
<Thanks for the background. Although it's a little late to help fish that have been dead for 30 years I do want to clear something up. A one degree drop in temp is not what causes Ich. It's is a living parasite that must be introduced into your system to affect your fish. If you use a proper QT whenever you add new fish a temp drop will not cause Ich to spontaneously generate in your tank. However any stress can cause your fish to loose their ability to fight it off. But not a one degree drop. I regularly subject my Plecos to a 10 degree drop to trigger a spawn. They never get sick from this.>
Fast Forward to the year 2005. 
My son is born in July, and at 2 weeks of age shows a definite fascination for fish in an aquarium. So I decided to go back to the simple hobby of fancy guppies. Now I am in a bind. The boss, and mother of my child has put her foot down. No more money being spent on fish that just die. I am managing to save babies. (Currently about 10 from what I can count in a 1 gal tank full of Java Moss) 
But the inhabitants of my 15 gal seem to struggle daily. The first major hurdle was a fungus that I used Binox to kill off (along with my ornamental Java Moss, and my duckweed,). The Binox also seemed to kill some of my good bacteria, because the day before using it all my levels were "perfect" according to the clerk at the pet store. Sadly this is the same man who told me to use Binox in a 3 week old tank. (I had the flirtation (filtration, mayhaps?) up and running for 2 weeks before the first fish moved in. (8 very small feeder guppies).
Then a week later my nitrates were elevating. Out of a total of 4 pairs of fancy guppies bought and 16 "feeders" I now have 2 fancy males, and 2 fancy females, as well as 4 common female 2 common males, and one multisexed fish that may or may not be a guppy, or a swordtail 
(see Mystery Guppy - Just a Sweet Transvestite From Guppselvania? - II - 10/29/2005). 
The problem is that the fish are always swimming around like they are being electrocuted randomly. Most of the time they swim about just fine. But occasionally one at a time they will all at one point or another "crash" into the bottom of the tank, swim erratically, or lay on the bottom of the tank between a rock and the side of the tank. 
There is aggression displayed by both males and females. Including female to female fights. The two female fancies, which are the biggest fish in the tank had rich dark tails, (One blue, and the other black) now they are transparent, but still show dark coloration. 
The Boss won't let me get a test kit so I am testing the "Free water Test With Purchase" rule at my local store. I guilt them into it, because they were the ones who sold me infected feeder guppies in the first place. The problem is conflicting information EVERYWHERE. 
Last week my NITRATES were high. I was told to do multiple water changes. I get the nitrates down, and now my NITRITES are "borderline". The LFS tells me not to use treated tap, and to use spring water. But the Cycle FAQ seems to prefer treated tap. The LFS says to be sure and clean the gravel when I do water changes, and that will help lower the nitrites...But won't that remove beneficial bacteria???? 
How can I go from "dangerously high" nitrates in a week, and then to "slightly elevated" nitrites a week later? Nothing has changed as far as feeding (4 very small feedings a day, typically what is left from crushing a small pinch for the fry), or temperature (74 with no light, 78 with). 
And there is no new stock...I do have 2 Cory cats, and 2 fancy females in a T tank. I did use some Stress Coat after my last water change, and I had put 5TBS of salt in my 15 gal tank twice in a week after 5 gal water changes. Is there something I am missing that are causing my fish to "FREAK OUT!"? Most of the fish are showing redness around their gills and mouths. PLEASE help! My son is not old enough to appreciate Green Anoles yet!
Doug Alley, & William, President of Gupticon 5 and supreme drooler!
<These are water quality problems caused my the meds or the newness of the tank. There are two different bacteria that control water quality. The first converts the ammonia in fish waste into nitrite. The second converts the nitrites to nitrates. The second is a very slow growing bacteria. It sounds like you need some more time to allow them to grow in numbers great enough to handle all the nitrite. Continue with water changes, using dechlorinated tap water. Drop the Stress Coat and the salt. Use a gravel vac to keep the bottom clean. A high amount of organic matter will cause the red streaks, fin problems and the flashing. Don>

"New Tank Syndrome", Guppies, Fatalities.... - 10/19/2005
Hi,
<Hello.>
I had an absolutely crushing experience yesterday.  I could NOT figure out what happened.  
<Uh-oh....>
I had put my guppies into a 10 gallon tank with heater and filter.  They weren't crowded up and they were doing fine....for about a week.  
<Uh, so the tank was just set up a week ago?>
Suddenly yesterday I came home and looked in the tank and realized immediately that something was terribly wrong.  The first thing I noticed was that the water was cloudy.  I had checked the tank every day during the previous week and the water was always clear and the fish were swimming normally about.  
<Clarity of the water speaks nothing about the quality of the water....  You absolutely must test for ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate....  Especially during this critical cycling time of the aquarium....>
They had light during the day via a window and they had darkness at night and evening.  I fed them with the food from the container I'm feeding the other fish which are still alive and healthy, with the possible exception of some old food left at the bottom of the container, but I did not see any of that upon inspection.  I fed them the evening of night before last, I think, or if that wasn't the last time, it was early yesterday before going to work.  They did not attract my attention to anything unusual at that time.  I checked the pH of the water  after I found them dead, and I found it to be pretty close to normal and possibly a little alkaline, which is what livebearers like.  
<pH is not the issue here, but the toxicity of ammonia and nitrite present....  this is what's killing them.>
The temperature was not too hot or too cold.  When I found them there was one small one still alive so I immediately put her (him?) in my healthy tank in the side container with two molly fry.  I thought I'd saved at least that one and it seemed to be ok.  About an hour or so later I checked it and it was also dead!  
<Too badly burned from ammonia or nitrite to recover, I'm sure.>
I inspected the dead fish and found a number of them seemed to have big openings at the stomach area.  
<Possibly just coincidence, possibly something else pathogenic - but the root cause here is a toxic environment.>
Can you shed any possible light on the possible cause of this???? I would be ever so happy to find out because I'm afraid to put anything else in there and I am, to tell the truth, disillusioned about keeping any fish at all now!!
<Please read here:  http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwset-up.htm and also in the Set-Up and Maintenance portions of the Freshwater section of the website.>
Thanks for your help.  Looking forward to hearing your thoughts if any on the possible cause.  I haven't emptied the tank, thinking that if I need to test the water I'll still have it.
<Begin reading, and learning about water quality and how it affects your fish.  You will do fine in time, no worries.>
Leslie W.
<Wishing you well,  -Sabrina>

Urgent question about my 2 female and male guppies
Hi there,
<Hellooooo!>
Good day to you. I really need your help.
<Hope I can>
I have two pet guppies, one male and one female. The female has given birth about 6 times since last November, but for the last 3 times when I awaited the birth of her fry, nothing came out, instead the water gradually turned very cloudy, with a foul-smelling thick white fluid that made the whole bowl
<A bowl? I do hope it is filtered, aerated...>
stink and almost opaque. But there's been no sign of any fry. Almost overnight, clean water turns absolutely white, filthy and very smelly. What's happening? The female (her name's Daffy) looks noticeably thinner every time after the water turns putrid. Then she starts getting fatter and fatter again and the same thing happens after another 3 weeks.
<...>
Another thing is the male's tail looks quite raggedy and like it's getting smaller. There's no sign of remnants of tail on the fish bowl floor though. He had a small case of fin rot, but jumped out of his bowl when I quarantined him, and was almost dead when I found him quite a long way from the bowl. He's been fine since (I add aquarium salt to the water) except for his tail. What could be happening?
Please help me.
Best wishes, Rosie.
<Thank you for writing. I think we should start nearer the beginning here... Have you read the materials archived on our site re Guppies? Please do: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/fwlivestkindex.htm.  Scroll down... particularly the FAQs files on Systems... Bob Fenner>

Re: Urgent question about my 2 female and male guppies
Hello Bob,
<Rosie>
First off, thanks for writing, really appreciate your time, hope you can reply me again, to this?
<Yes>
I've read the FAQ on guppy systems and so on. I started off with a small bowl that the fish shop said would be okay for 2 guppies, but as time passed, the guppies grew and I bought a much bigger bowl. I buy oxygen crystal balls, which I change every 7 days to ensure fresh oxygen though the guy at the same shop said the balls should last 6 months. Apart from that, there's no substrate.
<... this is not a good system for guppies>
I wanted to add some fish toy or something for them to play with but the guy at the shop said no need. Do you think they'll be dead bored? The female always excitedly greets me every time I approach the bowl. 
<Not bored>
Anyway, the oxygen balls are in the bowl, and I add some aquarium salt. The surface area is large and the guppies seem happy, I am just very worried about the female who's gives off a smelly thick white fluid discharge every 3 weeks with no sign of fry even though she gets fatter and fatter leading up to that time, like in 3-week cycles.
The male's tail is smaller now, and he refuses to eat, I am so worried. I keep them company whenever I can.  Hope to hear from you soon.
Best wishes Rosie.
<Please read where you were referred. Your fish's health is impaired due to poor and vacillating water quality... If you want to keep them in bowls, you will need to add at least undergravel (and gravel) filtration, or an air-driven sponge filter... Bob Fenner>

Guppy quest
'ello,
<'ello.>
I'm thinking about using my 10 gallon tank for guppies so I was doing some research before I went ahead and made plans to convert it to a proper guppy home.
<Yay!  Glad to hear you're researching first!>
After doing a lot of reading I noticed there are a lot of conflicting ideas on the proper care of guppies. Most sites seemed to deal with the idea of breeding & showing guppies. That isn't something I'm into just yet (what would I do with all the babies? lol), so I was wondering if it is possible to have a tank with just male guppies and no female guppies without them harassing each other?
<This is possible, to some extent.  Keep an eye on fins and tails and aggression, just in case.>
My tank currently has white gravel which I heard is harmful for guppies, is this true?
<As long as it's gravel, not crushed coral or aragonite, you should be okay.>
If it is, should I get a different type of gravel or get rid of it completely?
<I always stick with a natural look.  Seems more 'realistic' to me; I like having a slice of a river carved out and put in my world.>
Also, I have plastic plants, would it be better to have live ones?
<Personally, I prefer live - but that's completely up to the individual.>
Some sites stated that live plants will promote harmful elements while others said they're beneficial to the guppies.
<As long as you stick to 'easy' plants (Vallisneria sp., java fern, java moss, Anubias sp., anacharis/elodea, so many others.>
I have a 'bubble stone' to help add oxygen to the water and in the past my fish loved to swim against the current it created, is it okay to use with guppies?
<Absolutely!>
I can adjust the strength of the bubbles if needed. I was also reading about 'cycling' and how that works, I have a single female platy in my tank right now. Is it okay to add a duo or trio of guppies right away or should I clean the tank and wait the suggested 2 month period?
<It shouldn't take two months to cycle - here's a link to cycling FAQs: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/estcycfaqs.htm >
What about 'mystery' snails, can I add one to a guppy tank?
<Sure.>
Thank you for answering my questions! -Dream
<You bet.  -Sabrina>

Guppy Temperatures
<Hi, MikeD here>
I know that cold water guppies can be turned into warm water guppies. But can warm water guppies be turned into cold water guppies?<That's a yes and no question. While they can tolerate less than tropical conditions, they still can't survive in temperatures that approximate freezing or nearly so> If so how is this done?<Veeeery slowly! As long as the temperatures are allowed to drop gradually, I've seen guppies in 60 degrees F. water, but any sudden changes in temperature will still cause systemic shock, often followed by an outbreak of "ick", a protozoan parasite of fishes.>

Guppy disease
I have a female fancy guppy in a new tank with rather high nitrates - I think maybe 40ppm but using strips so it's hard to tell. When I bought the fancy, she looked a little tired, but was in a mixed tank, so I took a chance on her. Now her body is  drooping, especially her tail. I remember that this had happened to me once before, but I don't remember what medicine they gave me for her. Anyway, the other guppies are rubbing up against her and a second one is showing symptoms. Also there are fry that were born yesterday in that same tank which are now in another tank (my fry tank).  What disease or parasite would cause this?
<Not a parasite... age, poor nutrition, lacking water quality... can though>
I see no other noticeable signs or symptoms. Also, is it possible that the fry may have caught this also?
<Look to your water chemistry... doing regular water changes, keeping pH and alkalinity middling to high, offering a mix of fresh and prepared foods... Bob Fenner> 

Re: guppy disease
Okay, here's the deal on water quality. The hospital tank and the "clean" tank I never bothered testing, because the "clean" tank was brand new, I knew it needed to start cycling, and I just added aquarium salt and Bio-Spira. But within 48 hours, I was adding meds to the tank which I knew would mess up water quality.
<Yes>
Same with the hospital tank. I have two other tanks - one has the fry in it, the other had Neons and a Cory catfish. Both had Bio-Spira and initially were testing well, but suddenly shot up in nitrites - I don't know about ammonia (using test strips for the moment), but I assume they were high also. I did 50% changes on both tanks, and added more Bio-Spira. It shot up again in nitrites, which normally doesn't happen with the Bio-Spira. Two of the guppies showing no symptoms were taken from a medicated tank and put in with the Neons. 
Then I started reading the labels on "tank starters" that I had used before the Bio-Spira came in (I have it shipped in). One of them has some kind of "miracle granules" in it that absorb the NITRATES! So the two tanks that haven't been medicated are off the charts in nitrites, the nitrates are getting absorbed, and there's nothing I can do about it until I can restart the "clean" tank and more Bio-Spira arrives (hopefully today).
<Yikes... some of the dangers of not cycling/waiting... and mixing products>
The clean tank I KNOW has no granules in it, because when I cleaned it I took the whole thing apart and washed the undergravel system, the gravel and everything (which I dread having to do again). That is the tank I want to "re-start", and that is the tank I was afraid held some kind of disease. I cannot do anything about the fry tank, because I will kill them trying to suck out the granules from the gravel. They will just have to try and get by on water changes until they are big enough to transfer to another tank. To the best of my knowledge, there are no diseases in either the neon tank or the fry tank, but of course I can't put sick fish in there either. The nitrites will definitely kill them - I can't believe the Neons have made it! 
<Can be tough, make it through cycles if start off healthy>
The reason I have not said anything about water conditions in the two tanks I was asking about - the "clean" tank and the hospital tank - is because I know they never had a chance to cycle, and they were being medicated, so they COULDN'T cycle. I haven't bothered wasting expensive test strips testing something I know isn't right.
<>
My tap water comes out with 6.8 ph and between 20 and 40 in nitrates.
<! This is way too high... even for your drinking, cooking use... I would look into a means of getting better source water...>
<Editor's note: The EPA has set guidelines for what substances are allowable, and at what levels, in potable/drinking water.  If in doubt, ask your municipality for a copy of their "Consumer Confidence" report, a.k.a. "Water Quality Report".>
pH in the neon and fry tanks is fairly high - 7.4 to 8.0 - and the only reason I can think of is because the gravel IS old gravel, and it was mixed with a little coral gravel from when I lived in Nashville and the city water was so hard, and my tanks were overcrowded, it was the only way to keep the tanks balanced. The gravel in the neon tank was never even rinsed after being  brought up from Nashville, as was the case originally with my "clean" tank.
<I see... well-written>
The two Popeye fish are actually looking a little better this morning, and they WERE being treated with extra aquarium salt as well as the Kanamycin. I have no Epsom salts though.
<Can be gotten from grocery stores, pharmacies... over the counter>
Your email cut off halfway through a sentence, so I am assuming you were suggesting doing a fishless cycle on the "clean" tank.
<Yikes... didn't see this... Ahh, perhaps this is the message Jorie was referring to>
I think that's a great idea, I just don't know where to put the three sick guppies (two Popeye guppies who had fungus which I think is now gone - it was on some damaged scales up around the head areas of both fish; one birthed prematurely and is rather young, has some red on her belly up near the gills, is bent all the time with her tail hanging down, sometimes rests on the bottom on her tail, and one time started going into sideways contortions while still bent downwards behind the head - she is the one I am treating with Spectrogram). The only thing I know of to do is put all three sick guppies in the hospital tank after it has been rinsed and some salt put in, and then start that other tank cycling. Then I guess I just keep doing water changes on the Neons and fry, and pray that they make it until there's a clean tank ready.
<I would "risk" putting them in with the Neons... what they "have" (environmental) not likely "catching". Bob Fenner>