Breeder net fail??

[FishandBirdLover]

The breeder nets and breeder boxes stink. I ended up buying a nursery tank for the fry.

 

[VioletThePurple]

The breeder nets and breeder boxes stink. I ended up buying a nursery tank for the fry.

If I did that it would mean having to cycle and keep up with water changes for another tank. No thanks. I wouldn't do that unless I was a serious breeder. In my case I just want a couple fry to survive.

 

[NearMeBettas]

Agreeing with @FishandBirdLover , I would recommend having a separate tank for the fry. I've tried the breeder net thing and almost all of the guppy fry escaped. You could always float a big bowl of water on the tank with a few plants. Then you wouldn't have to get a whole other tank. Specific strains of gups will hunt down and eat their fry, others will leave them alone for the most part.

They will eat the adult's food as long as it is smashed down well. I feed mine twice a day.

 

[Rocky998]

Yah I just used a vreeder box to hold my fry until I was able to move them to a separate tank...
Some escaped the net and others somehow got in lol.
But the best option is to catch them and then move them to a small aquarium. That's what I had to do

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

No, the best option would be to fill the tank with plants and just leave the fry as they are

 

[Rocky998]

No, the best option would be to fill the tank with plants and just leave the fry as they are

Yes that is a very good option but they would be COMPLETELY safe in their own tank with no worries at all

 

[CaptainBarnicles]

Yes that is a very good option but they would be COMPLETELY safe in their own tank with no worries at all

Not necessarily fry feed on tiny organisms, biofilm etc when they're not sneaking flake or whatever from the adults. In a brand new set up there's none of that which means you'd have to probably feed them more frequently...which leads to more water changes and faff

 

[NearMeBettas]

Not necessarily fry feed on tiny organisms, biofilm etc when they're not sneaking flake or whatever from the adults. In a brand new set up there's none of that which means you'd have to probably feed them more frequently...which leads to more water changes and faff

Good point, but not if you move some live plants, water, and maybe some decor containing the microorganisms into the fry bowel, OR have a cycled aquarium with its own microorganisms.

 

[Rocky998]

Not necessarily fry feed on tiny organisms, biofilm etc when they're not sneaking flake or whatever from the adults. In a brand new set up there's none of that which means you'd have to probably feed them more frequently...which leads to more water changes and faff

I just put a plant from my main tank in there along with a rock or two and they love it. Also the sponge filter I used was from my main tank!

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

@VioletThePurple Which method have you decided to go with? Have you any surviving fry, or more female livebearers due soon?

 

[VioletThePurple]

@VioletThePurple Which method have you decided to go with? Have you any surviving fry, or more female livebearers due soon?

Since the breeder net didn't work and nothing else appealed to me, I decided to just let it be survival of the fittest and see how they do. I have several fry but I'm not sure if they're big enough to make it to adulthood, but I have a few I know for sure. No idea if more are due because when they were pregnant, they looked just as big as the male.

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

Nothing wrong with letting them grow with the adults, and having fewer make it to adulthood. It weeds out sickly and weak ones, so better for their genetic stock overall, and less likely to get overwhelmed and overstocked.

Since you have females that have had fry, there will be more. Don't doubt it! It's inevitable with female livebearers that have been around males.
You were worried before about them getting food - you'll notice the babies will tend to congregate in one hiding spot, usually in some plant towards the surface in the early days. I cultivated "nursery planting" just for that purpose. So when I fed the tank, I'd feed the adult on one side of the tank, then add some tiny, finely crushed food for the fry in that nursery area, so they didn't have to venture out among the adults. Alternatively you can feed small foods that cloud in the water, like cyclops, daphnia, moina, microworms. The adults love that food too, it's small enough for fry, and it spreads out and floats in the water, giving everyone a chance to eat.

 

[Rocky998]

That's why I have Captain Nemo... He is the "last fry" of them all. Every spawn I've had after him dies. He is a legend which is why I promoted him to captain.

No but seriously I have no idea how that fry in my tank is still alive... I swear one time I tried killing the thing (joking) didn't work