Guppy Breeding

Mostly living in freshwater, guppy fish, popularly called millionfish, belong to the family of Poeciliidae and grows to a size of about 2 inches in length. Similar to the other members of the Poeciliidae family, the females of these fish give birth to young ones without releasing the eggs in the open. Most people choose these fish for their showy fins and vibrant colors. Guppy fish are tropical fish and are indigenous to Central American countries like Guyana, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and Antigua, besides East Timor, Brazil, Netherlands, Vietnam and Venezuela, but today they are found in all continents other than Antarctica. Guppy breeding can be an interesting hobby and you can selectively breed them and create a tank full of guppies of different shapes, sizes and colors.

Guppy Breeding Tank

Ideally, you should buy four tanks for guppy breeding - 3 of at least 20 gallons and 1 of 55 gallon. If you want you can buy smaller fish tanks and place some dividers in between. The basic point is you need to have four separate areas - for breeding, growth of females, growth of males and a separate area for the young ones. If you choose to buy all four tanks, the 55 gallon tank should be used to raise the young ones, while one of the other three tanks can be used to exclusively to breed females and the other males. The tank which remains can be used to keep the fish together.

Guppy Breeding Guide

While thinking of breeding guppies, you should have a proper breeding setup, so that they remain healthy and grow fast. It's important to plan how you would breed these fish as without a proper plan, your project may go astray. Try and set some goals when you start, like adding colorful fish later, increasing the size of the tank, etc. your focus should only be on one aspect of breeding, i.e. when your focus is on size, you should see to it that all the fish grow to a certain size. It's only later that you should think of adding different colored fish. If you decide to let the guppies grow to a certain size, then don't suddenly introduce another guppy fish simply because it shows brilliant colors.

While breeding guppies, make sure that you don't crowd the tank, as it can stunts their growth. In a 10 gallon tank, you should not keep about 10 guppies. If you have more than that there are chances that over time, their numbers would increase to such an extent that you will have to either fish some of them or buy another tank to keep them. You should ideally change the water once every day rather than changing it in a week. Avoid rapid changes in water quality, as it may harm these little creatures. The temperature of water should not be more than 65 to 68 F and while breeding it should be increased to about 75 F.

After birth, Guppies can be given microworms and brine shrimp, which have been newly hatched. Instead of giving your pets big serving once or twice a day, it's better if you give them small servings, number of times a day. In the first couple of months, feed them as much as possible, as they would mature very fast and that's the time when they grow rapidly.

Guppy Breeding Supplies

While looking for guppies in stores, you should ensure to have fish of the highest quality. If you purchase the inexpensive ones, there are chances that you won't get fish of the highest order. They may serve well for first time aquarium hobbyist, but they can't supplement for the high-quality ones. While buying, you should ensure that they don't come from different strains, as there are chances that they won't be able to breed well. If you are looking for guppies to breed, you should buy them from a reputed breeder, as it would save you time and effort later on. You can also search for a reputed breeder online and the best thing is they would deliver them at your home. Purchase a couple, young enough to live for sometime, so that you can see them grow and enjoy feeding them.

Guppy breeding needs a lot of care and attention, but only at an early stage, just after their birth. Once they mature, you don't need to spend a lot of time caring for them, but make sure to feed them well, so that they remain healthy.