breeding guppys

[Matt181]

thanks

any way of moving a gravid female gently or is that a complete no-no?

so guppys or mollies?


thanks
Matt

 

[Arizonagrace]

I don't like the idea of moving the female. I believe it is better to keep them in the original tank and provide lots of cover for the babies. I have raised guppies and bred them this way before, and it worked well. Yes, you might lose a few, but it is better then losing the mother. I have even used the breeder where the babies fall into the bottom, but they didn't seem to do as well that way, and the mother was always stressed out.

 

[Alistriwen]

I move pregnant females to 5 gal birthing tanks with no problems. I usually have nearly 100% fry survival rate and have never lost a mother doing this.

 

[Alistriwen]

Also, I use one of the containers for holding milk bags which I try if possible to use to catch the female so she isnt lifted out of the water. The container can then be floated like a plastic baggie would be. This will further reduce stress on your females.

 

[jredner]

how do you guys feed the babies if they are still in the tank with the parents?

 

[Matt181]

thanks for the reply

i have moved gravid females before but wasn't as concerned with healt of fry as i wasnt feeding them to fish.

i am not sure wht you mean by "one of the containers for holding milk bags" what are they? i'm in england so they may not have them here. i was thinking of using a plastic cup to cup the female, leave her cup in the water for several minutes and then put the cup in the smal tank and let her swim out, would that do?

i think i have changed my mind. i think i will breed platies as most of the time they would live with my betta and bettas get on best with platies. how big are platy fry? bigger than molly's?

thanks
Matt

 

[pitbullbadass]

i still prefer convicts in the end cause it puts up more of a fight and the fish have to work for them and way more entertaining and they breed like wild fire so you really cant go wrong

 

[Alistriwen]

The container Im talking about might not exist there since bagged milk isnt even available some places in the U.S. It's only real advantage is that it is larger than a cup and has a nice handle you can hook onto your tank inside or out for ease. Also makes it real easy to pour them into a bag when you wanna move em out of the house. A lot of people use yogurt containers and stuff.

As for platy fry.. they are smaller than guppies although often more numerous. The fish grow less quickly and have a more akward body shape than guppies.

To be honest, if youre just looking for an occaisional treat, guppies might work. As long as you arent trying to raise them in large quantities or anything your setup could work.

 

[Ianab]

how do you guys feed the babies if they are still in the tank with the parents?

Just feed really finely ground flake food several times a day. The adults cant eat it all right away so lots of fine bits float around the tank and to the fry in the plants and rocks. Dont overfeed of course, but a small amount of stray food gets cleaned up pretty quick by lots of small guppys. Keeping them well fed cuts down on the predation of the fry too.

You wont raise all the fry this way, but you will still get 100s survive

Cheers

Ian

 

[Alistriwen]

You can also leave some algae if it is a soft variety for them to nibble on. The adults like it too and if the fish aren't eating that there are little organisms they support which fry can eat at first. Java moss is another great baby feeding plant and it provides amazing cover in dense clumps.