Petsmart

[Tyler777]

Does anybody knows if petsmart has n sells fishes from both sexes ?

Like do they have females n males gouramies or angels ?

Cause the only fish I can see the difference are swordtails but even when I looked at females n males gouramies n angels I can't see the difference

 

[Connershawzz]

Does anybody knows if petsmart has n sells fishes from both sexes ?

Like do they have females n males gouramies or angels ?

Cause the only fish I can see the difference are swordtails but even when I looked at females n males gouramies n angels I can't see the differences

I know for certain fish it’s hard like my bichir I think like 80% or 90% of captive bred are female. I know my buddy went to Petsmart when we started up his tank and got a m and f dwarf gourami

Is There an Easy Way to Determine the Gender of a Gourami?

Determining the gender of your freshwater fish isn't always straightforward. These tips will help you determine if your Gourami is male or female.

www.thesprucepets.com

 

[GaryE]

There are some species only sold single sex, often as a result of hormone use making males. That's not petsmart or any store - that's from the farms.

Any employee who knows how will sex fish for you, but a lot of them aren't fish people and may be newer to this than you are. Not all fish are easy to sex with certainty - some gouramis and certainly angels can be tough even if you've bred them in the past.

 

[Tyler777]

There are some species only sold single sex, often as a result of hormone use making males. That's not petsmart or any store - that's from the farms.

Any employee who knows how will sex fish for you, but a lot of them aren't fish people and may be newer to this than you are. Not all fish are easy to sex with certainty - some gouramis and certainly angels can be tough even if you've bred them in the past.

Ok thank you

I know for certain fish it’s hard like my bichir I think like 80% or 90% of captive bred are female. I know my buddy went to Petsmart when we started up his tank and got a m and f dwarf gourami

Is There an Easy Way to Determine the Gender of a Gourami?

Determining the gender of your freshwater fish isn't always straightforward. These tips will help you determine if your Gourami is male or female.

www.thesprucepets.com

Thank you my friend

 

[GaryE]

A lot of the systems for sexing the young fish we see in stores break down because of colour being their basis - when fish are in bare store tanks with their companions constantly being hunted down by nets, they drop all colour and try to be invisible. Some of the most beautiful fish in the hobby don't sell well because they show badly in stores. Get them home, and wow.

Honey gouramis (the real T chuna, not the lumpy hybrid often sold under the same name) are a classic. An hour after they're in the tank at home, there is no mistaking their sexes. But in the store, it takes close observation sometimes, even if you've had the fish before. Stressed, they're colourless.

I like to breed my fish, so finding both sexes is kind of key. The breeder's trick when the fish are too young or when there is no "sexual dimorphism" (ie, they know but there's nothing the human eye can see as a difference) is to buy at least 6 of the species. Your odds on getting a pair are good that way. So are your odds of having 4 males trying to kill each other over the 2 females, so it does lead to multiple tanks, or membership in a fish club where you can share out the fish you bought but can't keep longterm.

The best way to proceed is to first, expect nothing from the fish sellers unless they radiate interest in fish. You can fake knowledge, but interest is another thing easier to spot. Curious people learn things. But be the curious person. A site like Seriously fish is great for learning. You are best to find out the Latin name of the fish, because English names are often used for 4 or 5 species, if they even look similar. Read up on the fish that interests you, then maybe image search so you can practice sexing them. Then go back to the store prepared.

A lot of your fish can live for many years, so it's good to take a little time and effort to get it right from the start.

 

[Colin_T]

As Gary mentioned, most fish sold in shops are in groups consisting of males and females, they are also usually young. About the only fishes I know of that are sold as separate sexes are guppies, Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens) and dwarf gouramis (Colisa lalius). You regularly see tanks of male guppies. Male Betta splendens are always kept on their own to stop them fighting. Male dwarf gouramis are colourful and sell, whereas the females are silver/ grey and have no bright colours.

Most of the bigger species of gourami can be sexed by looking at their dorsal (top) fin. In males it will be longer and more pointed, the females have a smaller more rounded dorsal fin.

Freshwater angelfish are normally sold as juveniles and can't be sexed until they are mature (around 12 months old). Good quality male fish will normally develop a more rounded forehead, which is from fat building up in that area. It indicates to a female that the male is eating well and might be a good food provider. Females don't get the rounded forehead. However, poor quality fish and inbred fish don't always show the rounded forehead. The main way people sex mature angelfish is to look at the fish's ovipositor (egg laying tube). When they are breeding, they produce an ovipositor, which sticks out a little way from their butt. The females have a shorter wider ovipositor and the males have a longer thinner one. The wider ovipositor is designed to let bigger eggs out of the female. The males thinner ovipositor allows sperm out out, which is significantly smaller than the eggs.

Other fishes like rasboras, tetras, barbs and danios can usually be sexed by body shape. The females tend to grow bigger and get fatter than males who are smaller and thinner. The females look fatter due to the eggs they are carrying in their belly. Female neon tetras have a kink in the blue line about half way along the body whereas males have a straight blue line. Male cherry barbs have red in their body and fins while the females are brown and don't show any red. Some male barbs and tetras will also develop a longer more pointed dorsal fin, similar to gouramis. The longer more flamboyant dorsal fin is common in lots of male fishes and is often used for display purposes.

Common livebearers like swordtails, platies, guppies and mollies can be sexed by looking at their anal (bottom) fin. Mature males have a long thin anal fin called a gonopodium. The males use the gonopodium to impregnate the females. Females have a fan/ triangle shaped anal fin.

Most male rainbowfishes from Australia and New Guinea have longer more pointed dorsal and anal fins than the females. Rainbowfishes have 2 dorsal fins and in good quality males the first dorsal fin will overlap the start of the second dorsal fin. Many species have different colours for the different sexes and males that are showing off will produce a dorsal blaze (coloured stripe that runs along the snout from the start of the first dorsal fin to the nose). Females don't produce a dorsal blaze. Interestingly male Galaxias occidentalis also produce a dorsal blaze when showing off to females and other males.

If you can't sex a fish and want males and females, buy 8-10 (or more) young fish and grow them up together. You should then get males and females in the group, which will be more easily identifiable when they become sexually mature.