Will my guppy have fry?

[Briggan]

Hi I’m new, to both guppies and this forum. A few months ago I purchased a female guppy and after some research I believe I may end up with fry but I need a definitive answer.

Any info would help, thx.
Ps, this is my first post so I’m not sure if I could get a pic of her but I’ll try.... thx!

 

[Jessie J.]

Yes, due to the gravid mark (black spot on the belly), she's pregnant. Congratulations! Feel free if you have any other questions.

 

[Briggan]

Thank you! I’m excited for them now, thx for your response!

While I’m asking questions, would you be able to tell me how long until she drops her fry?

Thx again

 

[fish48]

most pet shop guppies are almost guaranteed to be carrying fry
it's difficult to know when a fish is going to drop fry by looking at a photo maybe 2 weeks. keep the fish well fed you will need some plants or plastic plants will do/ for the fry to take cover from the adults

 

[Briggan]

Ok thank you!

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

Livebearers (guppies, platies, swordtails, mollies) are pregnant for about 1 month. The females develop eggs, which get fertilised inside her body. The eggs hatch and the baby fish (called fry) spend the first few weeks of life growing inside the mother before they are eventually born.

Female livebearers can carry up to 6 sperm packets from previous matings with males and they use 1 sperm packet to fertilise each batch of eggs. This allows the females to produce young for up to 6 months without any males present.

The baby fish can be fed on a commercial fry food or very finely crushed up flake food.

If you have female livebearers, you should have lots of plants in the tank. Water Sprite (Ceratopteris thalictroides/ cornuta) is the best plant for them. I naturally floats on the surface and has lots of hiding places for the fry. It grows quickly and if you get too much on the surface you can plant it in the substrate.

 

[Briggan]

Thank you, you guys are very helpful!

 

[AquariumFishRescue]

We have successfully brought on a number of fry using finely ground flake food, and all are doing fine.

 

[Briggan]

Very cool! Did you use any specific kind or just a tropical flake food?

 

[AquariumFishRescue]

We have been using a local branded fish flakes, which they seem to like a lot. Certainly brings them to the top of the aquarium at feeding time. This is what we use: https://fishrescue.wordpress.com/2018/12/09/wilko-brand-fish-flakes/

 

[NickAu]

This is what we use: https://fishrescue.wordpress.com/2018/12/09/wilko-brand-fish-flakes/

I cant find an ingredient list for this product.

 

[AquariumFishRescue]

The ingredients stated on the side of the carton are, fish derivatives, cereals, vegetable protein extracts, yeasts, molluscs and crustaceans.

 

[Briggan]

Nice! I’m going shopping so I’ll be on the lookout for supplies for the future.

 

[NickAu]

fish derivatives,

Could be bones skin and guts.

The stuff isnt getting great reviews on line.

With fish food you get what you pay for

 

[Colin_T]

The ingredients stated on the side of the carton are, fish derivatives, cereals, vegetable protein extracts, yeasts, molluscs and crustaceans.

Any fish food that has cereals or grains in the ingredients is not the best for fish. Fish never evolved to eat grains and some company's add wheat flour (or other types of flour) to make the food. They claim it is good for the fish and is used to help bind the other ingredients together. Basically it's a filler used to add weight to the product so they can make more money.

Vegetable protein extracts are usually from terrestrial plants and fish don't digest these as well or as easily as aquatic plants or algae.

And as Nick said, fish derivatives could be anything from fish flesh to bones and scales. Fish meal can be anything too.

A good fish food should have aquatic based meats as the first ingredients, and preferably no cereals, binding agents, preservatives or artificial colours. They should read something along the lines of: Fish, prawn, mussel, squid, algae, paprika (if it's a colour enhancing food), vitamins.

If the food has cereals in, make sure it is listed after the meats so it's at the end of the list. Most company's list the ingredients in the order with the largest quantity being first and smallest quantity being last so you want fish and prawn to make up the bulk of the food for predatory fishes, and algae being the main ingredient for vegetarian fishes.