How can I get my guppies to mate, what should I do when the female guppy is in labor?
March 1st, 2010 | by admin |When will my guppies mate i have 2 males and 2 females or i think i do, how can u tell them apart? I had them for at least a month, do I have to wait longer? I have so many questions, I just want them to mate and know how to take good care of them. Can someone tell me, I am really clueless about this?
Haha, waco, do you know what guppies are?
To the asker- your fish will be happier if you have three females for every one male. If you only have one female for each male the males will probably start fighting and get stressed. Females usually have much smaller tails and have very little color, while the males have big tails and lots of color.
You’ve probably had the fish too long for you to exchange, see if maybe a friend wants one of your male guppies and then go buy another female, so you still have only four fish. You don’t just want to buy more females because once you have the babies, you’ll run out of room quickly and you want as much space as possible.
If your fish are happy and healthy, which doesn’t take much at all, you’ll get babies. Lots of babies. In fact, at this point they’re probably already pregnant.
Now, as for once you have the babies, I like to just add lots of plants and hiding places and leave them in the tank. This way, instead of getting dozens and dozens of guppies that need new homes, you’ll get two or three strong babies each time that you can keep in your tank, and you don’t have to worry about overcrowding.
I can’t tell you much more than that, sorry. I think the fry (the baby fish) need special food but I don’t know what, I’ve only ever bred mollies. Hopefully someone else will be able to fill you in on that. Good luck!
5 Responses to “How can I get my guppies to mate, what should I do when the female guppy is in labor?”
By cdtmajor46 on Mar 1, 2010 | Reply
leave them alone is the best thing to do they will mate and mate alot trust me if you want them to hurry feed them brine shrimp or blood worms.
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By wacowacoismellachickentaco on Mar 1, 2010 | Reply
i think guppies would have to be grown into frogs before they mate. its like trying to get a six year old to have kids. not gonna happen
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By VivaNozzers on Mar 1, 2010 | Reply
Haha, waco, do you know what guppies are?
To the asker- your fish will be happier if you have three females for every one male. If you only have one female for each male the males will probably start fighting and get stressed. Females usually have much smaller tails and have very little color, while the males have big tails and lots of color.
You’ve probably had the fish too long for you to exchange, see if maybe a friend wants one of your male guppies and then go buy another female, so you still have only four fish. You don’t just want to buy more females because once you have the babies, you’ll run out of room quickly and you want as much space as possible.
If your fish are happy and healthy, which doesn’t take much at all, you’ll get babies. Lots of babies. In fact, at this point they’re probably already pregnant.
Now, as for once you have the babies, I like to just add lots of plants and hiding places and leave them in the tank. This way, instead of getting dozens and dozens of guppies that need new homes, you’ll get two or three strong babies each time that you can keep in your tank, and you don’t have to worry about overcrowding.
I can’t tell you much more than that, sorry. I think the fry (the baby fish) need special food but I don’t know what, I’ve only ever bred mollies. Hopefully someone else will be able to fill you in on that. Good luck!
References :
By grubbderek on Mar 1, 2010 | Reply
your guppys will mate it just takes a little time sometimes, males will have brighter colors and will be smaller than the female. the female usually has just one solid color, once you notice that one of the females are pregnant i would seperate her as the others and herself will most likely eat the baby fry. while she is pregnant she will need room to swim up and down and this excercise helps the pregnancy, before she gives birth she will more less sit in one spot thats when she ready to have them. its a good idea to get a filter net to cover the bottom of the filter that sucks so that they will not get sucked up into the filter, and seperate the mom from the babys so she will not eat them. but do not put the female back in the tank with the other guppys right after as she will need rest and a good feeding after she gives birth.i used a breeding net when i breed guppys i would leave the babys in the net till the mother goes in the other tank again. hope this helps good luck.
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long time fish keeper and guppy breeder.
By Conan on Mar 1, 2010 | Reply
The males have A LOT colors, while the females are usually pale. My rule of thumb is to buy more females, exactly two more, 1 male per two females, this way is a lot more mating, and less hiding and fighting. Once you get them to mate once, your set for life cause the females can have several batches of fry throughout time with only one sperm cell in their system! Once the female is in labor, extract her and put her either in a breeder you can buy for 5 dollars, or a separate tank, cause the other fish WILL EAT THE FRY.
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I waited 2 months and 1 week before i had my first batch.