pregnant platties

Question
Tina, i would like to know how to tell if your Platte is pregnant, and when will it have its babies. and is a "Mickey mouse" fish a Platte?, olso if it is pregnant should i put it in a breeder tank?

Answer
Peyton,                                                      Yes she is a platy. There is spot right behind her anal fin. It is called a gravid spot. If it looks dark (black)she probably is. Sometimes if you have a dark colored platy it is hard to tell though they do become swollen in their bellies. There really is no way to tell whether she is ready to give birth or not. Some experts say she will dart back and forth around the tank and some say they become placid. If you put her in a breeder tank she will have better access to her babies and she will eat them. So give the babies lots of places to hide in our tank and scoop them out as you can and put them into your breeder tank.Good Luck,Tina