# swordtails and platy



## dani_vivi (Jul 23, 2007)

ok i just bought 3 micky mouse platy (1m, 2f) the male died the day after i bought it :S idk why... but when i bought it the guy that took them out of the tank dropped them ..im not sure if he dropped the male because i didnt pick them soo i wasnt sure which ones they were but i was wondeing if that might have had anythingto do with its death.. and another thing..can i buy a swordtail instead of another male platy?? i think the swordtails look cooler than the platy and i was wondering if they would still breed with the platy..and if they do .. what will come out?


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

yes the bump could have injuried the male so badly that he died.
I once bumped my fish with the edge of the net as I was trying to catch her and she was dead by next morning. It did not seem very hard to me but obviously they are more fragile than we might think. You can get a swordtail but they are more aggressive than platys. Yes they will mate together and you will have a platy/swordtail cross.
It will be a surprise when you see the fry as to whom they will take after.


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## dani_vivi (Jul 23, 2007)

great thanks.. im planning on returning the dead platy tomorow.. and possibly get a swordtail hopefully he wont be as aggressive.. the other two platy seem fine..but when i get close they get a little scared lol and go to the back of the tank.. and when im feeding them i dont think they know that its food so they dont go up for it..untill the food kinda sinks and they see it.. hopefully they'll know its me feeding them and they'll go up..

thanks for the help


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Just wait. If your female platys are full grown, they will most likely give you fry without a male.


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## dani_vivi (Jul 23, 2007)

im not sure if they're full grown..i bought them at the petsmart..but didnt ask.. is there any way i could tell if they're full grown?


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Size and roundness, mostly. Wait a month and if the platys are getting fatter instead of longer, they were adults when you bought them and you will have fry soon.


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## mesapod (Aug 18, 2007)

Wow i forgot that you could breed swords and platies the must look weird tho.


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## Buggy (Oct 17, 2006)

No, the offspring of a swordtail/platy cross doesn't look weird. As Mousey stated they will either take on the trait of the swordtail or the platey and look very much like one of the parents. Since swordtails are platys there isn't really that much of a difference. However the color morph can be quite interesting. lol
Many people will say that you shouldn't try to cross breed the two as it isn't "natural", but since swords and platys are often put together in the same tank in pet stores it happens quite often and the hybrid offspring don't seem to be any worse for it.


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## TigerBarb12 (Jan 7, 2007)

the fall could have killed it, yes. I wouldnt buy a swordtail in place of a platy. Platy's like groups and so do swordtails.


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

swords also for the most part have a nasty aggressive streak.


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## TigerBarb12 (Jan 7, 2007)

true, and they arent like tiger barbs, which calm down when put in groups. My dad had 6 in a 29 gallon and they were still agressive toward his mollys and white skirt tetra


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