Dead female guppy - disease diagnosis - help!

Hi All

I posted a thread on Saturday about my dying pregnant female. She died and it turns out she wasn't pregnant. Ok, so here are the specs etc that I can give.

• 12l tank with 2 adult females (now 1), 10 babies (1-1.5cm in length)
• Sicce 25w scuba heater at 26 degrees (boyu electronic thermometer)
• Ammonia - 0.05ppm according to Seachem internal monitor
• Ph - 7 (according to Seachem internal monitor)
• Internal corner filter - (sponge, ceramic etc x2)
• Penn Plax Internal filter connected to an air pump
• Seperate air stone

The female in question looked pregnant for quite awhile (bloated). She had a slight saddle back and her tail sort of drooped. She had been lying on the gravel bottom/lower levels of the tank which I thought was pretty normal if she was pregnant. On Saturday I noticed her sort of facing nose first into the gravel and twisting her body. This was accompanied by a sort of loss of stability (she was sort of falling all over the tank). Again, thinking this was a dificult birth I put her in a breeding tank where all the twisting ceased but then she lay at the bottom and in front of my eyes her movement got slower and slower and she died. I did an autopsy on her and discovered that in fact she was not pregnant.

Please help as I've looked on the internet and cannot find information as to what this is. I don't want to loose the rest of the tank.

 

Anyone?

 

I have had a few older female guppies die like this usually after a few litters I always think they going for one final pregnancy then they die.. never performed a autopsy before but I am sure guppy fry are basically mush before they born.

 

Guppies are fragile short lived little creatures, thats why I am giving up on them .. I have one male left ... in a tank by himself.

 

@Juddy - Thanks for the response. I've had 2 "pregnant" females die like this. I suppose the one advantage to their short lifespan and high breeding rate is that you always get new ones unless your main breeding female has died (I have been watching this female for the last month so very sad/dissapointed).

 

Heartbreaking losing fish, I think its quite common losing guppies in pregnancy, or pregnancy looking situations.
Males too, one day they fine the next day one is dead and there is no apparent rhyme or reason.

Plus remember there is allot of inbreeding and bad genes in the guppies, they not as hardy as we wish them to be.

on another note have you seen the jumbo guppies ? new around Cape Town LPS seem to be some sort mix between guppies and platties or mollies..
the body looks to big to be a normal guppy

 

@Juddy - Seriously heartbreaking as the female I lost was a metallic blue/silver/black and the father was a metallic blue snakeskin. The babies would have been awesome. I haven't seen the jumbo guppies yet. I'm trying (not always easy) not to look at livestock until I move into my new house and get my 100l up and running. I have everything I need but nowhere to put it. It's like having all the candy in the candy store but you're not allowed to eat anything. Worse than standing outside the shop looking in.

 

There is always space for one more tank .. i should know ..

When i got my first tank 40 liter from the milnerton flee market everyone (girlfriend and family) said where you going to put it .. you dont have the space.. blah blah blah ..
here I am in the same flat 3 years later with 9 tanks ..

 

@Juddy - I think 9 tanks = divorce :laugh:

 

hehe I think if the building knew I had 600 / 700 liters of water on the forth floor I would be kicked out..

Expanding Personal space theory = This is my section of the room/flat and i think a small tank would fit here nicely and look good too.
buy it make sure its too big or awkward to fit in original space,

Honey dont you think this would look good in the lounge besides the TV ..
Dont you think this would look in this dark corner brings light to the room.
Dont you think this will make a nice room divider

hehe P.S dont watch water world before water changes day.

All the best with the guppies, I think if its just one death with no oblivious signs of disease or water problems its just part of the life guppy cycle.

 

@Juddy - Thanks so much again for the response. I was hoping I would maybe get a guppy fanatics response or one of the older, wiser members but alas....

 

As mentioned, it is so difficult to determine why a guppy has died unless there are physical signs of disease. I also have had a guppy die for no apparent reason. Fine in the morning and then dead in the afternoon. Crazy!
I have some females that will drop a few fry and then nothing for a month and then other females that will drop 50-60 fry in the space of a few hours.
I have found that the older females are very prone to dying after giving birth. I had one female that gave 2 drops and then just never recovered and eventually died.
Guppies used to be so hardy but not anymore. That is why I raise mine in fully planted tanks with gravel (and snails) so that there immune system can be strengthened. Many guppies are raised in bare tanks with no plants or gravel and with water changes every day. Then they are bought and put into 'normal' community tanks and they just struggle to adapt. Just my opinion - so please don't shoot me

 

@Irma - Thanks for the opinion. That's why I'm here. The 2 I have lost to date had not had any fry prior to this, as far as I know. My guppies have always got a gravel bed and I have the "feathery" surface plants (sorry - don't know what it's called) for fry protection and the tank has lots of air. I hope this is not going to happen to my last adult female.

 

I also hope that she makes it! You can also speak to Prof Dirk and @Altum for further advise. They have a wealth of knowledge.

 

@Irma - Thanks. I will post here and hopefully they will respond.
@Altum - Please have a look at my post about my dead guppies. Any help/ideas?

 

I thought I should add a photo taken 1 week before she died. As I said before, she looked pregnant.

 

Based on that picture she doesn't appear to be pregnant to me. Usually guppies that are this big will show a very dark gravid spot.

Google the disease "bloat". This is the only idea I can think of.

I paged through my book "The Manual of Fish Health" 2010 and although for some reason I cannot find bloat, there is also another 2 options:

"Tumours and Lymphocystis" (diagnosed from seeing pictures on page 152)
or
"Worms in the body cavity" (diagnosed from seeing pictures on page 170)

@Dirk Bellstedt may be able to give a better answer, however you may be required to fill in the disease questionnaire.

 

@Zoom - Thanks. I will look it up as well as trying to find the "disease questionnaire". I have asked Dirk to have a look for me.

 

Thats not pregnant, By the picture i would say organ failure (kidney or liver) , product of too much inbreeding

 

My advice to you is never to buy a fish in this condition. When I see a guppy looking like this or getting thin I scoop it out and feed to the Jaguar I have in the shop. Those fish are beyond help so don't buy. Guppies must be lively.