How to Breed Guppies

If you house together at least one female guppy and at least one male guppy, chances are you will eventually have a crowded fish tank. Guppies breed like rabbits and watching the babies grow is a pleasure. Here are some tips on how breed guppies.

Things You'll Need

• A fish tank -- at least 10 gallons
• Oxygen pump
• Filter
• Heater
• Fish food-veggie flakes and protein (dried bloodworms or shrimp)
• Plastic grass

Instructions

Let nature take its course

1. Set up a basic tropical fish tank, using a rectangle acrylic or glass fish tank that can hold at least 10 gallons of water. Assemble your heater and keep it between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Assemble an oxygen pump as well. Let your fish tank cycle for several weeks until you add your guppies. Enrich your water and make it healthier by adding manufactured bacteria from your local fish store.

2. Purchase and add to your tank two or three female adult guppies and one male guppy. The number of females should always outnumber the number of males because the males are going to chase after them and could wear them out if there are not enough for the males to alternate between. Choose wisely-these fish are going to mate and mate often, and you want their babies to be attractive. You may opt to purchase half of your fish stock from a different pet store to discourage inbreeding. Guppies who are inbred are more susceptible to genetic disorders and diseases.

3. Feed your fish a pinch of veggie flakes or protein once or twice a day. Do not allow your water to become cloudy. Clean it regularly as you would any other fish tank. If one fish shows signs of disease, remove it from the aquarium and treat it in another "hospital" tank.

4. Let nature take its course. The male guppy is going to chase the female guppies. The guppies are going to mate. The females are going to become pregnant. They will stay pregnant for about a month. Their stomachs will grow, obviously. Their gravid spot-the black spot near their abdomens -will grow. Around the time they are due to pop, you will see little pairs of baby guppy eyes through their spot, and their abdomens will appear boxy.

5. Set up several plastic "grass" plants in your tank before the babies are born. They can be rooted into the gravel on the bottom of the tank or placed to float on the surface. Either way, they are going to serve as shelters for the babies. Guppies are livebearers. They give birth to fry rather than hatch eggs. They also have no maternal instincts-they eat their young.

6. Watch as your baby guppies appear out of the blue one day. Out of the dozens of guppy babies that each female is going to produce, only a handful will survive. It's Guppy Darwinism. Accept this.

7. Feed your baby guppies a pinch of finely-crushed veggie flakes, bloodworms or shrimp at least twice a day. The pieces must be small enough to fit in their little mouths. They also enjoy crushed egg yolks, although this will make your water dirty.

8. Enjoy watching your babies develop. They will show their colors and markings after about 1-2 months. They will be able to breed themselves after they are about four months old.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not allow your tank to become overcrowded with guppies. This is probably going to happen anyway, as female guppies who live with males are almost always pregnant. There should be about one inch of fish per gallon of water, and you should take into account that adult guppies are about 1-2 inches long and that any accessories or decorations you have inside your tank take up room as well. Most independent pet stores will take baby fish off your hands and may offer store credit in return. Note that they are likely to use them to feed other fish.

• If a guppy is born deformed, consider culling it or, if you are unable to bring yourself to do this, donate it to your pet store.