How to Care for Baby Platy Fish

The platy, a toothcarp belonging to the Poecilliidae family of fish, is a live-bearing aquarium fish. Like many other kinds of live-bearing fish, platy are easier to spawn in aquariums than many kinds of egg-laying fish. Although platy are a relatively easy fish to breed in captivity, the breeder still has to take care of the baby platy fish, making sure that their special requirements are met before they grow up.

Things You'll Need

  • Breeding net
  • Brine shrimp, hatched daphnia or powdered fry food
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Instructions

    • 1

      Place a breeding net inside the aquarium to separate the baby platy fish from other adult fish that might attack or eat them. You can also place the pregnant platy fish inside the net before she spawns and let her give birth to her fry there. Pregnant platy fish become larger than normal, often appearing swollen. Wait until she appears to be very swollen before separating her from the communal tank. Separation can stress the fish, leading to premature birth.

    • 2

      Feed the newly hatched fry with brine shrimp, hatched daphnia or powdered fry food for platy fish. Feed once a day, but not so much that there is left-over food that is untouched by the baby fish. Left-over food will rot and can breed harmful bacteria.

    • 3

      Replace 25% of the water with fresh clean water each week to keep the water clean and healthy for the baby fish.

    • 4

      Release the baby fish back into the communal fish tank once they have doubled in size. They can then be fed in the same way as adult platy fish.