# 2 guppies dead within the day I received them



## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

I went to my local petstore where I obtained 2 guppies. I got 1m flame and 1 female flame guppy. i also got 2 other fish. I was out for a while and when i got back to my tank the male guppy wasn't moving to well and part of his tail looks like it was chewed off. The female died the next morning with no looks of being nipped at. i have my suspicians on my angel fish for nipping at my male. could the angelfish have lead to the death of my male flame guppy?


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## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

It looks like you found out how to post. I would think it would be the angel. What other fish are in it's tank? My brother had 2 guppies in a container, and the female killed the male in 4 hours. I'd watch them closely. The female could have died of stress. Also, check for diseases. I'd also advise quarantining them. He could have killed the fish. How old is he? Adult angels aren't always that angelic, meaning that they will sometimes bite slower fish's eyes out.


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## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

i have 5 neon tetras, 1 electric green glowfish, 1 green glowtetra, 2 tetras i dont know the name of, 2 dwarf honey guaramis, 1 suckerfish idk the name, 2 cherry barbs, and that angelfish. i also dont know the age of the angelfish only that i've had him for a few months


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

When a fish dies overnight in a new tank, I suspect water first. If the store water is harder or saltier than you water and you don't adjust the fish gradually to your water, you can kill the fish quickly. A fish in distress is a target for every other fish in the tank and everything will nip them. Symptoms of this are swimming funny, not staying level, swelling. 

While angels are quite capable of killing guppies you usually only see it in 2 circumstances. 1. The angel is hungry and tries/succeeds in eating him (usually the smaller male). You see a tail hanging out of the angel's mouth for awhile and then it disappears or you find half a fish. 2. A pair of angels is protecting its spawn.

Occasionally, in a small tank, you will get a fish that "wants to be alone" and kills everything else systematically.


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## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

i honestly think its just the angelfish i'm gonna wait till it dies or may bring it back to the store. i'll get more guppies and see again i'll let u guys know in the future


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

angelfish can live as long as 18 years..you have quite a wait.....
some tetras are pretty mean ; such as the serpaes...nasty little fish...you should always try to research fish before you buy them.....not all tetras are peaceful..after all ; the piranha are tetras.....


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## Betta man (Mar 25, 2011)

emc7 said:


> If the store water is harder or saltier than you water and you don't adjust the fish gradually to your water, you can kill the fish quickly. .


Guppies are quite hardy, so I'd doubt that. Unless they were diseased or had just recovered from a disease.


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## Obsidian (May 20, 2007)

Pretty much any fish in that tank could have harassed your guppies. Most are fast moving, much faster than your guppies. The tetras will really enjoy the long flowy fins of the guppy, as will the gourami. 

While they could harass your guppy to exhaustion, the neons are probably the least likely to have caused the problem if it is fish aggression. Everyone else is up for grabs as a culprit, with less certainty about the 2 unknown tetras. But tetras can be pretty annoying.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Some stores put so much salt in the water, you could call it brackish. I went to a guppy show in Atlanta once and watched all the "plop and drop" guppies go belly up in a couple hours while all the others were fine. Much lower pH can also be bad to drop into.


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## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

Obsidian, the 2 unknown tetras are very peaceful. When I'm bored I sit up in my room and watch my fish. they show no signs of agression


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## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

also bettaman how do u quarantine fish. i've heard of the expression but i'm not sure what to do or what it really means


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## ZebraDanio12 (Jun 17, 2011)

"Quarantining" means putting the fish in a separate tank before putting the fish in the main tank. We do this to check for any disease he could be carrying that we might not have seen at the store. Or anything else.


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## bullseyejoey (Aug 30, 2012)

thanks zebradanio that's very helpful to know


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

The angel is a prime suspect, but my money is on the tetras. You only have two, and that's not enough for them to make a school. When unschooled, they get a little crazy, and the flowing tail of a guppy is a tasty, tempting treat for them.


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## FRIENDLYFISHIES (Aug 7, 2012)

I just went through my first guppies, 5 died within the first 4 days  seemed like cotton mouth, i treated the tank and 2 last guppies survived...i think my addition of salt saved the last two. When ever I put a new tank together i always add AQ salt based on the directions on the container...I had to triple it for these last two to survive!


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