feeding guppies

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Lola

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Mar 29, 2020
Messages
32
Location
Montreal
Hello, I will soon have 4 guppies in my new aquarium. What food do guppies generally prefer? Do you have favorite brands? I plan to feed them in the morning and in the evening. How much should I give? I don't want to feed them too much. Thank you:)
 
Hi Lola,
Are you aware of the nitrogen cycle and the need to have living colonies of bacteria on your tanks hard surfaces before a container becomes an aquarium?

Guppies will eat most dry foods. They are omnivorous which means they eat some plant material as part of their diet and not so much meat/ flesh.

Trying to suggest how much a beginner should feed is a hard thing. Just saying what each of us do for our fish might help?
I feed adult fish once per day . I try and only feed 6 days a week but am not very good at the rest day and often weaken.
I feed frozen food one day a week. Live food most days and vegetables a couple of times each week.A little Dry food is added most days but I have 2 or 3 different brands .

A short answer would be .
Feed only enough so that it is all eaten before it sinks to the floor of the tank.
A small pinch or about one quarter of what you first think is the amount.
 
Hi Lola,
Are you aware of the nitrogen cycle and the need to have living colonies of bacteria on your tanks hard surfaces before a container becomes an aquarium?

Guppies will eat most dry foods. They are omnivorous which means they eat some plant material as part of their diet and not so much meat/ flesh.

Trying to suggest how much a beginner should feed is a hard thing. Just saying what each of us do for our fish might help?
I feed adult fish once per day . I try and only feed 6 days a week but am not very good at the rest day and often weaken.
I feed frozen food one day a week. Live food most days and vegetables a couple of times each week.A little Dry food is added most days but I have 2 or 3 different brands .

A short answer would be .
Feed only enough so that it is all eaten before it sinks to the floor of the tank.
A small pinch or about one quarter of what you first think is the amount.
 
Hi flyfisher, thank you very much for your very complete answer. It helps me a lot. Yes I know the nitrogen cycle, I will leave my aquarium without fish for 4 weeks before putting fish. But can I put all my fish at the same time? Won't it be too much pollution for new bacteria?
 
You will need to feed a few wild bacteria an ammonia source so they multiply into two large colonies. It takes at least 4 weeks often longer.
Only a test kit will tell you if the bacteria numbers are large enough to consume a daily dose of ammonia equal to the daily poop load of the projected stocking numbers.
Shops sell bottles of what they say are the bacteria. Bacteria need oxygen, warmth and old poop ( ammonia) Ask yourself if a bottle sitting on the shelf has any of the requirements to survive?
The bacteria we all use are everywhere in small numbers. I suggest you would be wasting your money buying it.
You may be able to buy bottled ammonia In your country . If not you can add a half a dead prawn/ ( king prawn) and yes let it rot in the tank.
Alternatively you can add dry fish food and wait till that goes rotten, adding more every day.

Even if you have a full working nitrogen cycle it is recommended to only stock part of the final number of fish at one time..
 
Thanks again for these great advices. But if I have to put only one fish and wait before putting another, I will have to make several round trips between my home and the place where I bought them. How do people who buy twenty fish?
 
Morning all,
Adding the first fish to a newly established cycled tank can be done in 2 or 3 loads safely. Adding all the fish at once can also be done . Whatever number you add a simple water test and possibly EXTRA water change is the solution to pollution.

It is said that bacteria can double their numbers in 24 hours. However waiting a couple of weeks is also common practice in this situation.
Sorry if I sound vague ? Keeping fish in a glass box is not an exact science there are far to many variables to say one way works every time.

Guppies are a lot tougher than say angel fish but the same rules apply.
 
Thanks a lot! Your advices will prevent me from making beginner mistakes. You don’t sound vague, on the contrary, you have clearly explained the different possibilities. Thank you! :ROFLMAO:
 
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