Feeding and Nutrition :: Instructions for breeding your own feeder guppies

Turtle diets and eating habits discussed here.

Post Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2006 12:20 am   Instructions for breeding your own feeder guppies

There is not a lot of information that you need to know in order to breed feeder guppies for your turtles. So long as you have at least one male and one female, you are going to have plenty of food. There are a few things that you can do to better your chances for healthy offspring and quantity.

Here’s what I recommend:

- A 10-30 gallon size tank. Depends on how many guppies you plan on working with, and how many you plan on maintaining. I maintain about 3 dozen or so in a 30 gallon tank.
- When purchasing my initial feeder guppies, I was sure to ask for more mature feeders. The people at the store didn’t like me much, because it was more work for them, but when you are the customer, you get what you want. You can start with younger feeders, but it will take longer for reproduction to start.
- Rule of thumb suggests that there should be 2 females for every male that you have. The male guppies will chase your females all over the tank. As they begin to breed, this becomes harder to maintain. I use this information to decide who gets thrown in with the turtles.
- Hiding places are recommended for your fry (baby guppies) and for your females. I personally choose to use hiding places rather than breeding containers. They do make breeding containers that attach to the side of your tank, but mine did not and it tips to easy. I’ve never got around to replacing it since I have plants for the babies to hide in. Some breeders suggest that hiding places aren’t enough, but I’ve never had a problem with my fry surviving.
- If you choose to use a breeding container, you will need to know when your females are pregnant. You can watch for the gravid spot, a place near the anal vent, to turn a dark gray or blackish color. There is no good way to know exactly when the female is going to give birth, but some people will say it’s when that area becomes squarer and not round. This is another reason why I don’t use the breeder container, because I hated to confine the female guppy when I was unsure how close she was to giving birth.
- Tank temperature should be between 76F and 78F. Try to avoid sudden changes; this can kill your fish. Fish kept at lower temps will mature more slowly, and reach sexual maturity at a slower rate.
- Gestation period for females is around every 28 days. It can be varied as much as every 3-4 weeks. Once a female has given birth, she can continue to do so without a male for 3-4 more months. Depending on the level of sexual maturity, your female will give birth to 15 – 30 fry.

It is very easy for your tank to become overpopulated. I personally use www.freecycle.org as my out when I have too many. You can also help control your population by using your more mature females as your food source.
Missi

2 RES, 1 cat, and a spoiled rotten pug.
missibsu
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