# How to Breed Guppies? Help!



## SharkieTheBetta (Dec 24, 2012)

Hi, need a detailed guide on breeding guppies? Are breeding traps okay, or do they stress the female out? Is a ten gallon with a "fry nursery" a good choice? I really need someone with good advice! This is a research project, so I cannot keep all the guppy fry. If anybody wants some, let me know! I will donate all the leftover fry to a local pet store, hoping they won't use them to feed some mammoth oscars!


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## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

I suggest heavily planting a 20 gallon.


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## ebettalover963 (Jun 2, 2012)

I bred my fancytail guppy in a heavily decorated 10 gallon community tank. They are live bearers (they don't lay eggs, they are born just like a person) so you just have to have a male and a female and some baby food for them. They are very small at first but they grow a lot in the first few months though. Keep the tank well fed and clean because if you do not they and the others will take up an appetite on the babies. Be ready for a bunch of babies although some might die of natural causes. We had eleven babies and eight are still alive after 3 months. hope this will help.

any questions PM me

good luck!!!!

where are you from because i could use some new guppies (i'm from northeast nebraska)


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## Shewbert (Dec 16, 2012)

The actual act of breeding need not be explained as nature usually takes care of this.
We have a 12 step guide that we hand out for breeding guppies,
I'll copy below,,, hope it helps.

1: *You need at least two female guppies per one male gupp*y. Three is normally better so that not only one female gets chased by the male. Separate them until you want them to breed.
2: *Set up a 10-20 gallon tank with a heater and gentle filter*. If the filter is too strong, cover it with tights so the fry do not get stuck. 

*Do not use any substrate*. A bare bottom tank is good for fry as it cleans easily and you can record how many fry are alive or how much they eat.
*Java moss* or spawning mops provides a nice hiding spot for guppy fry.
*Guppy fry tend to sink*, so use low-floating plants for their cover. Some high cover is also required as healthy fry will swim upwards.
3:* Place the fish in the tank with** similar conditions* http://www.wikihow.com/Test-the-Water-in-an-Aquarium (temperature, etc.) as the tank they were in before. Set the temperature to around 77-79 degrees Fahrenheit while the females and male are in the tank together. You should also give them food with higher nutritional value to get them in the breeding condition
4:*Place the male* back into his own tank after the female/s get pregnanthttp://www.wikihow.com/Get-Pregnant. You can tell whether the female is pregnant or not by looking and seeing whether there is a dark mark in that area, called a gravid spot. All females will have this, but it becomes noticeably darker when the eggs have been fertilized.
5*:**Wait 26-31 days after fertilizatio*n, as the average gestation period is 28 days. Fish have been before and after this, however. Then, when the female will be ready to give birth, her stomach should be very large and her gravid spot will be deep black (maroon in paler guppies). Her stomach will also stop growing large and round, but square off, like a cardboard box.Some people claim to see the eyes of the babies, but this doesn't happen all the time. She gives birth to live babies, not eggs. Some signs of labor are: being very still and secluding herself, shivering (contractions), hanging out near the heater, change in appetite. Also watch how she eats, and take notes if she spits the food out again.
6:*Try to be present when she gives birth*, but if you cannot be, place lots of plants and hiding spots for the fry, else mom will eat them. When she has given birth, place her in her original tank, leaving the fry in their own tank.
7: *When the fry are born*, tank temperature should be around 78 degrees F.
8: *Immediately remove all dead fry* when you see them. Any accumulated waste is bad for guppy fry.
9:*Feed the fry brine shrimp*, micro-worms or powdered flakes, several times a day. Remember that fry are tiny and if you place too much food in the tank, the excess waste may kill them.
10: *A filterhttp://www.wikihow.com/Make-Your-Own-Underwater-Aquarium-Filter is dangerous* to the fry because they are likely to be sucked into it, so cover the end with tights.
11:* Siphonhttp://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Gentle-Aquarium-Siphon-or-Vacuum** the tank *carefully every time it gets too dirty and do 40% water changes every few days to keep the water clean. Remember that the tank should be only about half full, if you are using a five or ten gallon tank, to minimize work on your part.
12:* Move the fry when they get old enough*. When the fry are a good size, or about a month and a half to two months old you may put them in a tank with non aggressive fish, sell them to your local pet store, or give them to friends as gifts.
hope this helps
Mandy


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## SharkieTheBetta (Dec 24, 2012)

Sorry about the mis-post! I do not know if I am giving away any guppies to people yet. Thnx


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## MaisyDawgThirteen (Dec 7, 2011)

Shewbert has put if perfectly. Instead of a regular filter you could try a sponge filter.


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## ChoclateBetta (Jul 22, 2012)

For my Regular Guppies I use a Regular Filter. I Added semi aquatics to the filter. I use Sand. I have Crypts, Swords, etc.


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