Guppy aggression

[Irksome]

I have just two remaining male guppies out of 10, I call them blondie and ginge and they do not get on very well. Since the others got poorly and started dying blondie has become bigger and more aggressive. I had assumed he was a short tail but even his tail has fanned out and become much larger than his conpanions from the same batch. Every time one got weak he has bullied them relentlessly and now ginge hides all the time. What is the best way to reduce aggression in guppies?

 

[Crispii]

Upgrade the aquarium (assuming you keep them in a too small of a tank) or get more male guppies in order to diffuse aggression.

 

[Irksome]

Upgrade the aquarium (assuming you keep them in a too small of a tank) or get more male guppies in order to diffuse aggression.

Thanks, they are in a 10 gallon/37litre planted tank. I’ll see if my lfs has any when I’m next there.

 

[Colin_T]

Don't add more males because your current one is being a bully. If you add more males they will fight. If you want to have more male guppies, get rid of the big dominant male and buy in a group of new males and hope they settle down.

Guppies have a pecking order with bigger dominant males bullying smaller males into submission. If the smaller males can't get away from the big dominant male, the stress can kill the smaller ones.

 

[Irksome]

Don't add more males because your current one is being a bully. If you add more males they will fight. If you want to have more male guppies, get rid of the big dominant male and buy in a group of new males and hope they settle down.

Guppies have a pecking order with bigger dominant males bullying smaller males into submission. If the smaller males can't get away from the big dominant male, the stress can kill the smaller ones.

Thankyou colin t. I am coming to the conclusion that male guppies are gits and I might try something else. Do Endler guppies or females have the same issues?

 

[Colin_T]

All livebearers have a pecking order with dominant males and dominant females bullying smaller weaker fish. However, it's not normally to the point of killing other fish.
Females are less aggressive than males but big females will still bully smaller ones.

Endlers Livebearers aren't as bad as guppies but they still show the same behaviour.

If you buy a group of young fish and grow them up together, they usually have less issues because they all grew up together.

If you buy mature/ adult fish, they will be more likely to fight.

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If you want a group of male guppies, get a few females and put them in their own tank and let them breed. Move the baby males into a separate tank and grow them up together and you have a tank of male guppies that should get along together.

Having lots of plants in the tank can help reduce aggression and bigger tanks help too because the fish have more room.