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One of my female fancy guppies FINALLY gave birth. My first mistake was putting two pregnant females in the same breeding net. All the fry from the first female got eaten! (Eek!) I could tell because there was only one fry left and the female poop was...er... fry colored. I had moved the remaining female to a small portable tank for awhile. Last night I put the breeder net back into the 29 gallon because I thought she'd be happier in there. (This is two weeks after the first female gave birth, and i swear this female was holding out on me!!!) This morning when I got up to get ready, I went to feed my fish. I first noticed that she wasn't swollen like she was last night. I looked towards the top, and I see all of these little swimming pencil leads. There must be about 30 or so in there. She must have felt a lot more comfortable in the net. Any advice is welcome. I'm feeding them finely crushed flakes. How big do they have to be before they can be let out in the tank? They don't normally survive (fry) because of my paradise fish. I swear, he stalks down the fry one by one to eat them. Of course, I'm not mad because he is so cute, but how long until they're big enough.
Thanks!
Tina

I've got a fever... and the only prescription... is more cowbell!

congrats.

Yay! Babies are so fun, aren't they?

How big is your breeders net? If it's pretty small, you shouldn't keep the fry in there for very long or you will stunt them. Do you have anything bigger that you could move the babies to while they get big enough to not get eaten? (the rule of thumb is when they are bigger than any fishes' mouth) And crushed flake food is just fine to feed them.

Good luck with your babies!

Wow That Will Be Fun And They Will Be Beautiful When They Grow Up. Congrats

Do you have java moss or other plants that the fry or small guppies can hide in? That increases their survival rate if the female drops the fry in the tank.

Yea pugperson Is Right! U Should Eather Take Them Out ANd Put Them In A Different Tank Or Get Some Plants That The Fry Can Hide In Like Java Moss, Java Fern Or Najas And If U Have A Good Lighting U Can Try Dwarf Hair Grass They Will Help The Fry To Survive. Best Of Luck:^)

If any of the above plants aren't available, get yourself some Anarcharis...plant it really thick in a section of your tank, and leave some floating above it. This is just what I do and I usually have more than plenty fry survive...Yes, your female was holding out on you...by moving them into an unknown place they feel totally uncomfortable and tend not to give birth...sometimes they reabsorb the fry, and sometimes it kills them in trying to hold back the fry...So when you put them back into the tank she was comfortable again, and boom she dropped them...also if the water temp was slightly higher, a degree or two it could have been part of the reason she dropped the fry.

Feeding them the crushed flakes is perfect...it's what i've been doing...also if you have and dried brine shrimp or other dried foods you occassionally give your guppies add some to the crushed mixture...just add it to the crushing bags, and grind it, crush it, whatever...

Best of luck, and congratulations!!!

heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

Grats! Hope they go all good for you. In next than no time you will be grandmother