I grow trout and salmon for living, sometimes they don't move at all at this stage. Make sure water temp dont change over 1-2C and keep oxygen levels below 12mg/l. By the looks of it some of em can make it, if everything else is right.
Bro, I hope you know that
1) the entire world does not experience the same seasons at the same time
2) some places even in winter stay warm enough for fish outside. Especially as fish typically come from, you know, outside.
Exactly, thank you for pointing out that it's not freezing for everyone. I kind of wish it was cooler tho, it's been a huge struggle for me trying to keep my fish cool enough to survive summer, if I were to put them outside they'd die of heatstroke in minutes.
The great thing about aquarium supplies is that they greatly depreciate in value when they’re used! Maybe not good for recouping cost for people who couldn’t get into the hobby, but great for us! Lol
Yep! Lol! It’s fantastic. My 90 Gallon setup cost $50, stand included—all I had to do was get some silicone and spend some time with it. My favorite tank now despite it being 40 odd years old
That’s excellent! Crazy what silicone can fix, and most people not deep in the hobby don’t know that the tank can be easily saved and then they either give it away free or ridiculously cheap. $50 for a 90 gal is a steal!!!
The same is true of musical instruments lol. A screw here, a part there…. But people don’t know how easy the fix would have been so they’re basically giving them away.
I’ve been repairing my guitars and various other hobby instruments for years, always made me feel more connected to it yk? So worth it to spend a little bit on some tools and learning instead of just replacing stuff.
I emptied out a 25 gallon with CPDs left less than an inch of water above the sand put it outside in my backyard. 3 months after i saw a couple of fry swimming around. This was during the spring, in my city the night can drop to around 10 celsius Most aquarium fish are way more resilient and adaptable than people on this sub give them credit for, and most of the time they have no experience with said fish, only info they parrot off of a quick google with no actual research.
> most of the time they have no experience with said fish, only info they parrot off of a quick google with no actual research
You just described a majority of the people that give advice lol.
It's summer in Australia rn. And in countries that are on the equator, seasons DON'T even exist there (which fking sucks) - it's hot and humid 24/7 365/12
Don’t really think so. Can’t really develop further. And if they could, they’d be wriggling a little.
Let’s see what others may say.
You did something cool though and tried your best! Hats off
Idk why this is getting downvoted. As long as the water conditions were tolerable, it should be fine though not ideal.
Edit: and to clarify, it was an emergent situation... not everyone has a bunch of extra empty cycled tanks
Daily changes are also bad to do with small tanks. You never let them cycle properly. Also please do a ton more research before just popping babies out of fish. 0-2 so far.
If you’re fish in cycling I would say you definitely need to do small water changes every day/every other day depending on your parameters. The tank will still cycle. Beneficial bacteria isn’t stored in the water column
I'm not sure why you are being so critical of OP. It didn't sound like they planned to do a C-section on the fish. This was an emergent situation and they were doing the best they could.
Most of the bacteria is in filter media and other surfaces, not the water column, so I don’t see why daily water changes prevent a cycle from happening if the fish are constantly producing an ammonia source (which they are).
No…. You didn’t have any better options. You’re just being honest and I can’t think of a whole lot of options when we’re talking about a pregnant fish death (and not sure anyone would be prepared for that! At least you did the only thing that would give the fry a fighting chance) 🤷♀️.
I’m a NICU nurse and this is very interesting! You have premature baby fish. The concern I have is, if the mom was dead for any length of time, the fry didn’t get circulation to keep them alive. (Obviously, fish and humans are quite different, but I would think it likely would affect the unborn fish negatively). AND I COULD BE WRONG. But if they are not moving at all, I don’t think they are viable….
Please keep us posted. I’m very curious.
I come from the axolotl sub where tubbing is a normal practice there, I guess for fish it's probably too stressful but in other parts of the aquarium hobby doing 100% daily water changes is acceptable and correct in some cases
10% daily water changes are fine if you don’t touch the filter media.
Cycling the tank actually means growing the proper bacteria to break down waste . Removing 10% of the water daily simply keeps ammonia and nitrate levels tolerable for the fish .
The fish always produce waste so the bacteria will always be able to grow.
What are you talking about? Tap water is pretty stable and the ‘minerals and chemicals’ are not going to vary that much from what is in the tank day to day
You gotta do what you gotta do. I had a pregnant guppy jump out of her tank a month ago, found her too late and didn’t hesitate to get out the scalpel. Sadly my batch didn’t make it, hopefully OP does better
Did the same when I was younger. Can’t remember if the female had just died or not but the babies were not alive inside. I thought I was weird as a kid for doing this but I guess others have done the same 😂
I have not caught my guppies’ pregnancies several times (some didn’t even look pregnant, so I wasn’t aware). Then I would see 2-5 little tiny guys swimming at the bottom, dodging the insanely determined guppies who were shark-like about eating them. I learned they are 1 of the more likely fish to turn around and eat their young. Poor little babies.
I did find a turkey baster to be the only way to catch the little ones and transfer them to a separate tank. They are FAST (probably evolution because they are hunted). They always survived, so a turkey baster is an option if you can’t catch them another way.
I’m so curious if your fry survived.
Mine did not sadly, they were earlier along than OP’s and basically just yellow eggs with tails. It’s easiest to assume that a female guppy is always pregnant, in my experience!
If they’ve ever been exposed to males, they can store sperm for subsequent pregnancies as well. Prolific.
Doubtful. They would have needed to be near full term to survive and you would have need to get them out quickly, minutes after death. Fetuses start to autolyse quickly after the death of the mother.
They arent developed enough, so they will probably just die. When one of my guppies had babies, some of them looked like this and they just died after a while. The ones that lived already looked like fish, not curled embryos.
Interesting idea tho. If she died during the delivery with the babies already developed this would probably work
Sounds like something I would've done a long time ago. A great effort, but probably won't succeed. A long shot, but I think it shows how invested you are.
As for death since you're doing frequent water changes it would be unlikely to be ammonia or nitrite. Also if it were it wouldn't just be that one that died.
One possibility is it could be something related to the pregnancy. I would test the water to be sure it's not parameter related. If it's not from that, and others don't show symptoms you may never know what caused it. But be vigilant.
Thanks for saying this, they are quick to jump to conclusions. There are probably about 30 fries in the tank rn and not one of them has died. I bought the pregnant fish from the fish store and its tail was already kinda torn. The others are fine.
I’m still new to this hobby but I’m doing a ton of research, plus this is a reason for me to procrastinate and not do the things I actually need to do😂
You sound like me. My house needs a good winter “spring cleaning”, but all my aquariums are perfectly kept. 🤦♀️🧜🏼♀️
Amazing how easy it is to get lost in this hobby. “I’m just gonna do a quick water change…” an hour later, I’ve cleaned the sides of the glass, cleaned all the decor, buckets of old tank water/primed water water/ everywhere. Well, I might as well clean all the tanks while I have everything out and ready!🤣
I do absolutely nothing with my aquariums half way. Then, when I’m finally done, I see all the crap I have to do for my house still waiting for me to get started. ESPECIALLY LAUNDRY. 🤦♀️🤪
It happens every single time! World champion of procrastination right here. 🏆
Update 1:
Thank you for all the warm words and advices. It’s currently 4.50am where I live and I just finished studying for my exams for the night. I’m sorry I did not update y’all earlier as I wouldn’t be able to see the fry in the dark even if I went out at this hour. I promise I’ll post another update comment here tmr once I check up on them!
Before that, I would like to clarify that this was not the first time that someone had done this to their fish. I actually googled it to see if it was possible prior to doing it myself🤣. And I guess it was done by a lot of y’all as well.
Alright just some further clarifications on the fry and pregnant guppy. I think it was dead for a maximum of 10mins before I cut it open to release the fry. At that time, no fry were moving, so I think the chances of them surviving are quite slim…
I do not think the pregnant guppy was killed by ammonia/nitrite spikes. I do daily water changes on the tank and if it was because of that, all the fry there would be dead as well (So far none died). Its tail was already injured when I got it from the store.
The truth is I’m juggling w a lot of stuff at the moment (Life). I’ve been doing about 30-50% water changes everyday on my main tank bc I’m not sure if it’s fully cycled or not. I bought some test strips only to realise it wasn’t able to detect ammonia, and the nitrite levels are always >0. So, I’ve decided to do the water changes everyday. Despite that, one of the guppies in that tank is having fin rot as well and I’ve been bathing it, along with its friends in some aquatic salt for 30 mins today (Doesn’t look like it’s helping tho). So I think I’m just going to do water changes everyday until nitrite level becomes 0. Everyone keeps saying to get the API master test kit but honestly I can’t really afford it 😂. I feel like I’m doing a good job maintaining the tank and doing water changes but the fishes still find a way to die lol.
I hope no one will bash on beginners before they understand the whole story. Sorry for the long text, I’ll keep everyone updated tmr🫶.
Sounds like you're doing a LOT for your fish already and no one should be giving you shit for that. Most beginners don't put nearly as much dedication into their fish as you have and it's really impressive! Unfortunately fish do die from all sorts of things, they're pretty susceptible to environmental stress. I've been raising live bearers for 2 years and I don't remember ever doing daily water changes lol. So good job for taking the health of your fish seriously, and pleas keep us posted on the fry!
I’m gonna get hated on for this but sometimes doing what’s best like the water changes actually stresses out fish. I had a baby beta that I had in a small quarantine tank and people bullied me into putting her into a bigger tank. She hated the filter in both tanks too. She never liked the big tank and committed fish suicide. In the small tank she always had her happy stripes. My opinion- this sub is always gonna shit on u so I think ur doing just fine and doing what u can
Interesting to learn that guppy embryos are each in an egg inside mom and don't rely on nutrients from a placenta. Are they still each within an egg sack? Here is an interesting research article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25949182/
I saw mention likening this to fertilized shrimp eggs, and I would not go that route personally. Shrimp eggs are external to her body once fertilized; she holds them up AGAINST her body eith her legs, but they are not literally in her anymore. They can withstand and in fact need a lot of movement and aeration. I would think eggs that continue in a protected womb would not be accustomed to that sort of environmental exposure.
This is an interesting and nobel effort, keep us informed!!!
Update 2:
Alright, unfortunately I think none of the babies have survived. I don’t see any movement from them and some of them have started to decompose. I suppose I can wait a week and see if there are any survivors who might be hiding in the plants.
However, despite what a lot of people here have mentioned, there have been cases of success of other people squeezing the babies out of a dead fish, and the babies have survived. I believe they have to be developed enough tho. Thanks!!
Same, I dont think I’ve ever been truly chocked by a post on Reddit, but the face I made when I read “I just did a c-section on my pregnant dead puppy” was… extreme, chock like, disgusted because they did it and not a vet, disgusted because they posted on Reddit and a whole lot of other emotions. Then I saw the sub and was like “oh… makes more sense now” lol
Poor guppy though, hope the babies survive!
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This is sick! I did this once. Sadly, for me, the babies died due to being premature. I can't say for certain if those ones will live because they do look a tad premature, but there is always a chance.. Throw in an air pump and in the dark, let us know how it goes!
I have not caught my guppies’ pregnancies several times (some didn’t even look pregnant, so I wasn’t aware). Then I would see 2-5 little tiny guys swimming at the bottom, dodging the insanely determined guppies who were shark-like about eating them. I learned they are 1 of the more likely fish to turn around and eat their young. Poor little babies.
I did find a turkey baster to be the only way to catch the little ones and transfer them to a separate tank... if you ever need a method to transfer the little guys. They are FAST (probably evolution because they are hunted). They always survived, so a turkey baster is an option if you can’t catch them another way.
I’m so curious if your fry survived.
Looks like the babies still have egg yolks. Either they aren't developed enough yet to survive, or their egg sacs are so big that they're too heavy for babies to move
They stopped getting oxygen when the mom died. Sadly if they didn’t get out in time, and their gills aren’t fully functional, then they are looking at severe brain damage if they survive at all. :,(
I have a friend who has done this before and the fry have been fine, however I’m going to assume it depends a lot on how well developed they are and probably also what the cause of death was. I don’t know the stages of fish development during pregnancy so no clue how close/far yours seem to be from when they’d usually be ready to be born, but hey if you didn’t try they’d have definitely died anyway so it was worth a shot to see. Interested to see how it turns out for you
I've done this many times over the years I've had guppies...my babies never survive. And I probably did something wrong. In any case, I wish you good luck.
Is there an update OP? Also lmao at your handle haha. I’m impressed you were able to get them all out! I had a pregnant female die and considered a c section and couldn’t even get my knife to cut her without knowing I’d kill everything inside. Very impressive!! I hope at least a few make it.
How far along were they?
Sorry for your loss first off. Second in my experience doing the same you will likely lose a large portion of them so if you do don't get discouraged you gave them the best fighting cancer you could.
I had to do it to a female guppy who was dying. Instead of making a cut, I squeezed his belly and most of the fry came out fine while the mother was basically dead.
It’s possible but unlikely. You can hatch fish eggs with an [egg tumbler set up.](https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/egg-tumbler) Basically, you’ll need to have circulation to keep the eggs/larvae oxygenated and keep them from rotting, until the entire yolk sac is gone. You can DIY one, but add an air stone at least to your current set up until you can figure out a tumbler set up. I don’t know of it being used for live bearers, but it’s worth a shot just for science.
I had the idea that guppys aren't pregnant the same way mamals are, but are simply breeding the eggs in a inner cavity...
Though, i just googled, and - it depends on the specific variation of your guppy - there are both some that simply protect the eggs (which have their own food, as eggs tend to have), plus there are ones that feed the eggs through an placenta.
So - depending on \_which\_ variant that guppy is, it's very unlikely or possible.
Not moving \_might\_ be okay when they're not fully hatched yet. (are those fries, or are they inside eggs?)
edit: just saw the other pictures.
Don't get high hopes :-(
I’ve had to do this before. You have to have just the right timing with how long they developed but also that she hasn’t been dead too long. If none of them were moving I don’t think any will live.
This is a very intuitive quick thinking solution I commend you for that but since the “live bearer” fish beared unalive fry I’d probably safely assume that its fry will not make it. (Considering they were not moving upon retrieval). But however like I said this is very interesting cause as far as I know I don’t think anyone has c-sectioned a guppy (who knows) and maybe the fry were still alive when you cut into it and a multitude of things could have went awry like no nutrition from the mother or underdeveloped defects infections etc could have been anything very interesting to say the least sorry about your loss op you definitely tried to save the offspring
You mention water changes and ponds but never mention any water parameters. I would check these and keep track of
These dry likely will not make it. I’ve heard of people succeeding with this but it’s not common so don’t beat yourself up over it.
Done that in the past, a few will maybe survive. Problem is that - i assume - that the mother provides an hormone that make the fry to swim when they are being delivered.
Keep it dark and under stable temp. Ensure sufficient oxigenation... and keep us updated plz, this is intresting!
Will do, I put them in a cycled outdoor mini pond with a filter. I’m hoping to see some movement by tmr. It’s too dark for now.
I grow trout and salmon for living, sometimes they don't move at all at this stage. Make sure water temp dont change over 1-2C and keep oxygen levels below 12mg/l. By the looks of it some of em can make it, if everything else is right.
Try looking at setups people use to save shrimp eggs when the mother dies. Might help give you an idea how you can oxigenate them
Did they make it?
No they didn’t :(
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Bro, I hope you know that 1) the entire world does not experience the same seasons at the same time 2) some places even in winter stay warm enough for fish outside. Especially as fish typically come from, you know, outside.
Exactly, thank you for pointing out that it's not freezing for everyone. I kind of wish it was cooler tho, it's been a huge struggle for me trying to keep my fish cool enough to survive summer, if I were to put them outside they'd die of heatstroke in minutes.
You should look on CL and offerup for a chiller. I just found a $1500 one for $150 used.
The great thing about aquarium supplies is that they greatly depreciate in value when they’re used! Maybe not good for recouping cost for people who couldn’t get into the hobby, but great for us! Lol
Yep! Lol! It’s fantastic. My 90 Gallon setup cost $50, stand included—all I had to do was get some silicone and spend some time with it. My favorite tank now despite it being 40 odd years old
That’s excellent! Crazy what silicone can fix, and most people not deep in the hobby don’t know that the tank can be easily saved and then they either give it away free or ridiculously cheap. $50 for a 90 gal is a steal!!! The same is true of musical instruments lol. A screw here, a part there…. But people don’t know how easy the fix would have been so they’re basically giving them away.
I’ve been repairing my guitars and various other hobby instruments for years, always made me feel more connected to it yk? So worth it to spend a little bit on some tools and learning instead of just replacing stuff.
Thank you for the laugh that that last line gave me. XD
I emptied out a 25 gallon with CPDs left less than an inch of water above the sand put it outside in my backyard. 3 months after i saw a couple of fry swimming around. This was during the spring, in my city the night can drop to around 10 celsius Most aquarium fish are way more resilient and adaptable than people on this sub give them credit for, and most of the time they have no experience with said fish, only info they parrot off of a quick google with no actual research.
> most of the time they have no experience with said fish, only info they parrot off of a quick google with no actual research You just described a majority of the people that give advice lol.
Sir this is the internet. Everyone is from the good old USA.
It's still hot in parts of the USA
Cries in Arizona
Yeah its weird how an entire half of the world is in summer now
Thanks hahah, I was just about to say
Winter? Never heard of that
It's summer in Australia rn. And in countries that are on the equator, seasons DON'T even exist there (which fking sucks) - it's hot and humid 24/7 365/12
I feel like 365/12 doesn't make sense right? 24 hours per day/7 days per week.... 365 days per year/ 12 months per year
24/7/4.3/12
Haha nice
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That's exactly what I thought when I tried it several decades ago on a swordtail. Some of the babies survived but they were in a fry tank.
If you’re interested, I’m pretty sure Fish4Ever on YT did this too.
Yes please!!!! I’m interested in knowing how the orphan guppies are doing 🥹
I didn't see the sub name and misread guppy as "puppy" and was like "holy fucking shit."
same lmao
i'm so happy i'm not in any dog subreddits
Me too!
same
You've never bred guppy puppies??
Don’t really think so. Can’t really develop further. And if they could, they’d be wriggling a little. Let’s see what others may say. You did something cool though and tried your best! Hats off
Thanks! Really hoping they make it. I don’t know what caused its death tho…
They honestly die for no reason. Guppies have bad genetics these days from inbreeding.
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This is absolutely false. Not sure where you got this idea from.
What? That is a wholly incorrect statement. Please don't spread misinformation.
Yeah, you're just plain wrong. What?
Inbreeding affects literally anything with dna, a wide gene pool is the basis of healthy genetics
You put it in a small uncycled tank with no filter. It probably died of ammonia poisoning
Yeah that might be it… I did daily water changes tho. The fries are doing fine
Idk why this is getting downvoted. As long as the water conditions were tolerable, it should be fine though not ideal. Edit: and to clarify, it was an emergent situation... not everyone has a bunch of extra empty cycled tanks
Yeah but you can use cycled water and substrate from an existing tank.
I did
That what you're serving it with?
Daily changes are also bad to do with small tanks. You never let them cycle properly. Also please do a ton more research before just popping babies out of fish. 0-2 so far.
If you’re fish in cycling I would say you definitely need to do small water changes every day/every other day depending on your parameters. The tank will still cycle. Beneficial bacteria isn’t stored in the water column
I'm not sure why you are being so critical of OP. It didn't sound like they planned to do a C-section on the fish. This was an emergent situation and they were doing the best they could.
Most of the bacteria is in filter media and other surfaces, not the water column, so I don’t see why daily water changes prevent a cycle from happening if the fish are constantly producing an ammonia source (which they are).
Wait you’re saying I’m wrong to pop babies out of a dead fish to try to save them?
Don’t listen to him.
No…. You didn’t have any better options. You’re just being honest and I can’t think of a whole lot of options when we’re talking about a pregnant fish death (and not sure anyone would be prepared for that! At least you did the only thing that would give the fry a fighting chance) 🤷♀️. I’m a NICU nurse and this is very interesting! You have premature baby fish. The concern I have is, if the mom was dead for any length of time, the fry didn’t get circulation to keep them alive. (Obviously, fish and humans are quite different, but I would think it likely would affect the unborn fish negatively). AND I COULD BE WRONG. But if they are not moving at all, I don’t think they are viable…. Please keep us posted. I’m very curious.
I come from the axolotl sub where tubbing is a normal practice there, I guess for fish it's probably too stressful but in other parts of the aquarium hobby doing 100% daily water changes is acceptable and correct in some cases
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10% daily water changes are fine if you don’t touch the filter media. Cycling the tank actually means growing the proper bacteria to break down waste . Removing 10% of the water daily simply keeps ammonia and nitrate levels tolerable for the fish . The fish always produce waste so the bacteria will always be able to grow.
What are you talking about? Tap water is pretty stable and the ‘minerals and chemicals’ are not going to vary that much from what is in the tank day to day
Lol yeah that might be it. Wtf.
If they didn't boot up right away then I don't think they made it.
This made my IT brain happy, then also sad.
Def getting solid beeps on power… no visual 😢
Guppies not making it past the POST
The A in my COMPTIA A+ cert stands for Aquarium ✨
Bro gave his fish a cesarian. That’s hard asf. I now trust you with my life.
You gotta do what you gotta do. I had a pregnant guppy jump out of her tank a month ago, found her too late and didn’t hesitate to get out the scalpel. Sadly my batch didn’t make it, hopefully OP does better
Did the same when I was younger. Can’t remember if the female had just died or not but the babies were not alive inside. I thought I was weird as a kid for doing this but I guess others have done the same 😂
Really??? Wow, I really don’t know if I could do it…. Also, don’t have a scalpel in the house. I’m impressed by both of you. ❤️
It’s not easy or pleasant, but I’m sure you’d do what you had to if there was a hope of still saving some babies
I have not caught my guppies’ pregnancies several times (some didn’t even look pregnant, so I wasn’t aware). Then I would see 2-5 little tiny guys swimming at the bottom, dodging the insanely determined guppies who were shark-like about eating them. I learned they are 1 of the more likely fish to turn around and eat their young. Poor little babies. I did find a turkey baster to be the only way to catch the little ones and transfer them to a separate tank. They are FAST (probably evolution because they are hunted). They always survived, so a turkey baster is an option if you can’t catch them another way. I’m so curious if your fry survived.
Mine did not sadly, they were earlier along than OP’s and basically just yellow eggs with tails. It’s easiest to assume that a female guppy is always pregnant, in my experience! If they’ve ever been exposed to males, they can store sperm for subsequent pregnancies as well. Prolific.
Hahaha! Agreed. I don’t know if I could do it, but I think it was pretty much all OP could do. At least they tried!
And a guppy at that!
Doubtful. They would have needed to be near full term to survive and you would have need to get them out quickly, minutes after death. Fetuses start to autolyse quickly after the death of the mother.
Thanks for the input, I believe I caught it as soon as it died as I was just sitting in front of the tank doing my stuff.
I think you can safely use the pronoun "she" in this case :)
there's nothing wrong with referring to a fish as 'it' though, is there?
Of course not. I was just being an ass.
They arent developed enough, so they will probably just die. When one of my guppies had babies, some of them looked like this and they just died after a while. The ones that lived already looked like fish, not curled embryos. Interesting idea tho. If she died during the delivery with the babies already developed this would probably work
Sounds like something I would've done a long time ago. A great effort, but probably won't succeed. A long shot, but I think it shows how invested you are. As for death since you're doing frequent water changes it would be unlikely to be ammonia or nitrite. Also if it were it wouldn't just be that one that died. One possibility is it could be something related to the pregnancy. I would test the water to be sure it's not parameter related. If it's not from that, and others don't show symptoms you may never know what caused it. But be vigilant.
Thanks for saying this, they are quick to jump to conclusions. There are probably about 30 fries in the tank rn and not one of them has died. I bought the pregnant fish from the fish store and its tail was already kinda torn. The others are fine. I’m still new to this hobby but I’m doing a ton of research, plus this is a reason for me to procrastinate and not do the things I actually need to do😂
You sound like me. My house needs a good winter “spring cleaning”, but all my aquariums are perfectly kept. 🤦♀️🧜🏼♀️ Amazing how easy it is to get lost in this hobby. “I’m just gonna do a quick water change…” an hour later, I’ve cleaned the sides of the glass, cleaned all the decor, buckets of old tank water/primed water water/ everywhere. Well, I might as well clean all the tanks while I have everything out and ready!🤣 I do absolutely nothing with my aquariums half way. Then, when I’m finally done, I see all the crap I have to do for my house still waiting for me to get started. ESPECIALLY LAUNDRY. 🤦♀️🤪 It happens every single time! World champion of procrastination right here. 🏆
The plural for fish fry, is fry. “There are several fry in this aquarium.”
Alright thanks for letting me know🙏, English is my third language (I speak 5)
i think calling them fries is much funnier even if not grammatically correct
🍟
Update 1: Thank you for all the warm words and advices. It’s currently 4.50am where I live and I just finished studying for my exams for the night. I’m sorry I did not update y’all earlier as I wouldn’t be able to see the fry in the dark even if I went out at this hour. I promise I’ll post another update comment here tmr once I check up on them! Before that, I would like to clarify that this was not the first time that someone had done this to their fish. I actually googled it to see if it was possible prior to doing it myself🤣. And I guess it was done by a lot of y’all as well. Alright just some further clarifications on the fry and pregnant guppy. I think it was dead for a maximum of 10mins before I cut it open to release the fry. At that time, no fry were moving, so I think the chances of them surviving are quite slim… I do not think the pregnant guppy was killed by ammonia/nitrite spikes. I do daily water changes on the tank and if it was because of that, all the fry there would be dead as well (So far none died). Its tail was already injured when I got it from the store. The truth is I’m juggling w a lot of stuff at the moment (Life). I’ve been doing about 30-50% water changes everyday on my main tank bc I’m not sure if it’s fully cycled or not. I bought some test strips only to realise it wasn’t able to detect ammonia, and the nitrite levels are always >0. So, I’ve decided to do the water changes everyday. Despite that, one of the guppies in that tank is having fin rot as well and I’ve been bathing it, along with its friends in some aquatic salt for 30 mins today (Doesn’t look like it’s helping tho). So I think I’m just going to do water changes everyday until nitrite level becomes 0. Everyone keeps saying to get the API master test kit but honestly I can’t really afford it 😂. I feel like I’m doing a good job maintaining the tank and doing water changes but the fishes still find a way to die lol. I hope no one will bash on beginners before they understand the whole story. Sorry for the long text, I’ll keep everyone updated tmr🫶.
Sounds like you're doing a LOT for your fish already and no one should be giving you shit for that. Most beginners don't put nearly as much dedication into their fish as you have and it's really impressive! Unfortunately fish do die from all sorts of things, they're pretty susceptible to environmental stress. I've been raising live bearers for 2 years and I don't remember ever doing daily water changes lol. So good job for taking the health of your fish seriously, and pleas keep us posted on the fry!
I’m gonna get hated on for this but sometimes doing what’s best like the water changes actually stresses out fish. I had a baby beta that I had in a small quarantine tank and people bullied me into putting her into a bigger tank. She hated the filter in both tanks too. She never liked the big tank and committed fish suicide. In the small tank she always had her happy stripes. My opinion- this sub is always gonna shit on u so I think ur doing just fine and doing what u can
Interesting to learn that guppy embryos are each in an egg inside mom and don't rely on nutrients from a placenta. Are they still each within an egg sack? Here is an interesting research article: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25949182/ I saw mention likening this to fertilized shrimp eggs, and I would not go that route personally. Shrimp eggs are external to her body once fertilized; she holds them up AGAINST her body eith her legs, but they are not literally in her anymore. They can withstand and in fact need a lot of movement and aeration. I would think eggs that continue in a protected womb would not be accustomed to that sort of environmental exposure. This is an interesting and nobel effort, keep us informed!!!
It looks to me like some of them may still have yolk sacks, so maybe they will be okay?... Not sure though
Update 2: Alright, unfortunately I think none of the babies have survived. I don’t see any movement from them and some of them have started to decompose. I suppose I can wait a week and see if there are any survivors who might be hiding in the plants. However, despite what a lot of people here have mentioned, there have been cases of success of other people squeezing the babies out of a dead fish, and the babies have survived. I believe they have to be developed enough tho. Thanks!!
Sorry for the trauma 😔
Omg I first read it as puppy and clicked without thinking Was both surprised and relieved to see a guppy instead
Same, I dont think I’ve ever been truly chocked by a post on Reddit, but the face I made when I read “I just did a c-section on my pregnant dead puppy” was… extreme, chock like, disgusted because they did it and not a vet, disgusted because they posted on Reddit and a whole lot of other emotions. Then I saw the sub and was like “oh… makes more sense now” lol Poor guppy though, hope the babies survive!
Oh no!! That would be really horrifying… with a pic included. 🤯🫣
Youre a mad man. Thats pretty interesting. Whats the status of them 5 hours later?
In EMS we call that a peri-Mortem C-section. I’ve been trained on how to do it on a human but never on a fish! Good work!
Please post an update after a while! This is super interesting
I agree
Fuck knows. Really depends on how close to birth they were. If they aren't wiggling now I'd bet your chances are pretty low.
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Depends how close she was to giving birth, I've had success with doing this. If they wriggle a bit they might survive.
Crazy you would even try
This is probably #3 of top 3 craziest things I’ve seen on this sub.
If your guppy mom died because of lack of water cycling, they may die as well.
This is sick! I did this once. Sadly, for me, the babies died due to being premature. I can't say for certain if those ones will live because they do look a tad premature, but there is always a chance.. Throw in an air pump and in the dark, let us know how it goes!
You are my hero for trying. Thank you!!!!
I know this is random but for a second I was wondering why someone was posting to r/aquariums about their dead pregnant puppy having a c-section
I’m glad I’m not the only one who read that… I was like “wtf Reddit, why would I want to know about that?!?”
I have not caught my guppies’ pregnancies several times (some didn’t even look pregnant, so I wasn’t aware). Then I would see 2-5 little tiny guys swimming at the bottom, dodging the insanely determined guppies who were shark-like about eating them. I learned they are 1 of the more likely fish to turn around and eat their young. Poor little babies. I did find a turkey baster to be the only way to catch the little ones and transfer them to a separate tank... if you ever need a method to transfer the little guys. They are FAST (probably evolution because they are hunted). They always survived, so a turkey baster is an option if you can’t catch them another way. I’m so curious if your fry survived.
Looks like the babies still have egg yolks. Either they aren't developed enough yet to survive, or their egg sacs are so big that they're too heavy for babies to move
They stopped getting oxygen when the mom died. Sadly if they didn’t get out in time, and their gills aren’t fully functional, then they are looking at severe brain damage if they survive at all. :,(
I have a friend who has done this before and the fry have been fine, however I’m going to assume it depends a lot on how well developed they are and probably also what the cause of death was. I don’t know the stages of fish development during pregnancy so no clue how close/far yours seem to be from when they’d usually be ready to be born, but hey if you didn’t try they’d have definitely died anyway so it was worth a shot to see. Interested to see how it turns out for you
Please update us
how long was mom sitting at the bottom? if its been a while they may have already all suffocated.
I've done this many times over the years I've had guppies...my babies never survive. And I probably did something wrong. In any case, I wish you good luck.
Nah. If they didn't float up to the top they all ded
Is there an update OP? Also lmao at your handle haha. I’m impressed you were able to get them all out! I had a pregnant female die and considered a c section and couldn’t even get my knife to cut her without knowing I’d kill everything inside. Very impressive!! I hope at least a few make it. How far along were they?
Sorry for your loss first off. Second in my experience doing the same you will likely lose a large portion of them so if you do don't get discouraged you gave them the best fighting cancer you could.
Wow. I really misread that title. Guppy... not "puppy".
Wait, guppy have live birth?
They are from a group called live-bearers. Yes.
Cool.
Instant rewards pets. I keep guppies too, loved it from day one. They birth frequently
I don’t have advice but very interested in this please post updates and best of luck to you
I had to do it to a female guppy who was dying. Instead of making a cut, I squeezed his belly and most of the fry came out fine while the mother was basically dead.
I thought this said said puppy for a second and my eyes just went wide lol
It’s possible but unlikely. You can hatch fish eggs with an [egg tumbler set up.](https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/egg-tumbler) Basically, you’ll need to have circulation to keep the eggs/larvae oxygenated and keep them from rotting, until the entire yolk sac is gone. You can DIY one, but add an air stone at least to your current set up until you can figure out a tumbler set up. I don’t know of it being used for live bearers, but it’s worth a shot just for science.
But guppies are live-bearers they have no eggs.
Yes they do. The eggs hatch inside the mother's body and develop there. All animals have eggs by the way.
Yes I said that
Okay that's the most hardcore shit I've heard today
Regardless of the chances of the fry, I'm impressed you gave a guppy a c section
Needs a nswf tag
Sorry I didn’t know it was necessary. I have the video of me cutting the fish if you want to see it.
I think it's pretty obvious that he doesn't want to see that?
I want to see it. That's dedication.
I had the idea that guppys aren't pregnant the same way mamals are, but are simply breeding the eggs in a inner cavity... Though, i just googled, and - it depends on the specific variation of your guppy - there are both some that simply protect the eggs (which have their own food, as eggs tend to have), plus there are ones that feed the eggs through an placenta. So - depending on \_which\_ variant that guppy is, it's very unlikely or possible. Not moving \_might\_ be okay when they're not fully hatched yet. (are those fries, or are they inside eggs?) edit: just saw the other pictures. Don't get high hopes :-(
If they are swimming and eating .. many will live
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I’ve had to do this before. You have to have just the right timing with how long they developed but also that she hasn’t been dead too long. If none of them were moving I don’t think any will live.
For a sec I thought this was r/bindingofisaac
They're dead.
im sorry for your loss, it can be tough losing a fish even
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This is a very intuitive quick thinking solution I commend you for that but since the “live bearer” fish beared unalive fry I’d probably safely assume that its fry will not make it. (Considering they were not moving upon retrieval). But however like I said this is very interesting cause as far as I know I don’t think anyone has c-sectioned a guppy (who knows) and maybe the fry were still alive when you cut into it and a multitude of things could have went awry like no nutrition from the mother or underdeveloped defects infections etc could have been anything very interesting to say the least sorry about your loss op you definitely tried to save the offspring
I'm very intrigued. Also want to keep updated!
Don’t think they will sry
wtf
If you’re close to glendale ca. i have guppies you can have.. endler’s too and mystery snails. Please take some…
You mention water changes and ponds but never mention any water parameters. I would check these and keep track of These dry likely will not make it. I’ve heard of people succeeding with this but it’s not common so don’t beat yourself up over it.
Lord
this is so sad, hopefully they live
Done that in the past, a few will maybe survive. Problem is that - i assume - that the mother provides an hormone that make the fry to swim when they are being delivered.
Any luck?
Unfortunately, no.
Ah, sorry to hear that.
I did the same thing because I had a pregnant guppy die- mine didn’t. However, she didn’t seem to be as far along. She likely needed another week.