Odd fry

[gm72]

Some of my fancy guppy fry are crooked! Yes, you read that right. Where the body meets the tail there exists an angle upward of about 20-30 degrees. Strangest thing I've ever seen. They seem to be acting fine. This afflicts about half of the brood of 12. Anyone ever see anything like this? Genetic abnormality of some kind? Thanks!

[bettaboy691]

they might be inbreds?
if they are sriously harmed, they will probally die,

[Willyleigh]

Probably mutated as eggs, its probably best to cull those affected unless, you are going to use them as feeders.

[gm72]

Strangely enough these little guys are about a month old and don't seem to be affected by their...disposition. Part of me wants to do away with them, but part of me wonders what in the world they will look like if they make it to adulthood! Thanks for the input!

[Willyleigh]

Strangely enough these little guys are about a month old and don't seem to be affected by their...disposition. Part of me wants to do away with them, but part of me wonders what in the world they will look like if they make it to adulthood! Thanks for the input!

If you do let them get to adulthood don't let them breed or their babies may have the same problem or at least be carrying the gene.

[xoolooxunny]

can we see a picture?

[gm72]

I just tried to take pictures of these guys, no good ones though. Is there a trick to taking pictures of an aquarium? I keep getting flash bounce from the glass and if I turn off the flash the exposure is too long. Any advice? Camera is a Nikon Coolpix 5000 if that helps.

[Sasquatch]

Maybe use a tripod or stand to keep the camera stable.

As for the fish, spinal curbature is pretty common, partly because a lot of different things can cause it.

I work with metals pollution and a lot of the metals in tap water can have that effect, though if you use water conditioner, it shouldn't be a problem.

It could also be genetic, so as suggested, don't let them breed.

They should be able to live as adults though. I've seen deformed perch living in the wild. Polluted lakes with no predators means that they have an easier time of it and can survive to adulthood.

[Abbeys_Mom]

It's fish TB. I would freeze them and treat your tanks.

[gm72]

I use water from the well, tests clean. Fish TB? Please elaborate, I didn't know there was such a thing? They have been this way since birth.

[Lauren B.]

I would separate them by gender into different tanks and let them live out their lives. Perhaps keep them in their own special tanks (with no other inhabitants) in case the deformity was due to environmental issues. I don't believe anything handicapped should be bred, but I also dont' believe that everything handicapped should be killed.

Just because the fish are not perfectly pleasing to the eye doesn't mean they should be eradicated. I thought we left the Nazi regime behind in history?

(And before someone wrinkles their nose and accuses me of being a whiney overly-sensitive person, this opinion comes from someone who previously euthanized animals as part of her daily job).

[Abbeys_Mom]

It's very contagious and will spread to most fish and ALL tanks. It was probably passed on by the mother. Here's a good article on it. You also have to be careful, it can cause lesions on people.
http://www.4qd.org/Aqua/disease/tb.html

[gm72]

At what point though would I see the disease passed on to the other fry in the tank? All of the fry are from the same mother, but only about half of them have this affliction. Sorry to be asking so many questions--I want to be absolutely sure that I know what I am dealing with. If it is just a genetic abnormality I do not want to euthanize them. In that area I strongly agree with Lauren B. Ongoing thanks!

[cocoa_pleco]

i personally wouldnt want to take any chances with the disease. If you want to keep them still, put them in a sealed rubbermaid container with plastic wrap ontop. If they get worse, dispose of the fish and container.

[gm72]

Just an update--still no deaths in the tank. I have it quarantined, different cleaning equipment/safe handling procedures/etc. Shouldn't they be dead or dying by now?