The Guppy Ladies

[RainbowBrite]

The flow is strong, but he seems to like it and often surfs in it, but less often now that his fins are a bit heavier. When he was glass surfing all day long unless I covered the tank so that it was very dark and he went to sleep, and not eating, one of the pieces of advice I got was to switch up the current from the filter outflow. This gave him something to work against, and helped, but what really made a difference was putting frosted film on the back and sides so that he couldn't see a fish reflected in the glass, trying to get into his tank.

Did you get that advice from the fish forum?

 

[Socks Mum]

The glass surfing was a while ago when Fishy was younger. I'm relieved it's stopped as it was difficult to see him pacing up and down all the time. The forum looks good though, very interesting, thanks for letting me know about it!

 

[RainbowBrite]

Betta fish are like hamsters in a way as they like lots of clutter and space.

 

[Socks Mum]

Yes, he used to have a great deal of hornwort, like a jungle, but even that and a row of Java fern didn't hide the ghost fish reflected in the glass that was worrying Fishy Foo. We are starting again with anubia as it's nicer than hornwort, I think. No needles to shed everywhere.

 

[Socks Mum]

Yes, he used to have a great deal of hornwort, like a jungle, but even that and a row of Java fern didn't hide the ghost fish reflected in the glass that was worrying Fishy Foo. We are starting again with anubia as it's nicer than hornwort, I think. No needles to shed everywhere.

The other thing that helped was Catapa leaves but I think most Betta owners know about those

 

[RainbowBrite]

I used Indian almond leaves. It was so cute when they slept on them.

 

[SarahBee]

Yes, he used to have a great deal of hornwort, like a jungle, but even that and a row of Java fern didn't hide the ghost fish reflected in the glass that was worrying Fishy Foo. We are starting again with anubia as it's nicer than hornwort, I think. No needles to shed everywhere.

I have a betta too. I don’t have any real plants but I’ve been told you can tell when the water has enough beneficial bacteria when you see strands growing on the tank and tank decorations. Is that true? Is it harder to keep the cycle going and keep the bacteria in check when the water has plants in it? My betta is female and I’ll attach her photo.

 

[Socks Mum]

Your Betta is beautiful, lovely colours! I haven't heard about strands before, that's interesting. Live plants can be useful as they are usually able to process some of the waste and feed on it like fertiliser. They need a certain amount of light though. Some are quite hardy, like hornwort, but some are fragile and can die and go rotten. I have Elodea in my guppy tank and it seems quite hardy and fast growing. It is happy just floating with a plant weight to keep it in place. If you have green fingers, water plants can be very interesting. I like Anubia as well, it's one of my favourites. You can get water test strips to measure nitrites, ammonia etc. I do a third to half water change every weekend, rinse out the filter in a jug of water taken from the tank and gravel vac. The fish seem used to the tap water here. PH changes and changes in temperature can upset some fish, which can be a worry. The plastic plants are handy as they can be rinsed in hot water.

 

[SarahBee]

Thank you. I always tell people she looks like a Pygmy Koi fish. She’s also having hard time keeping afloat and a steady swim. She seems healthy though. Thank you for the different plants you mentioned. I will look and pick up a few. I used horn wort for my African Dwarf Frogs. I know what you mean about them “ dying off “ So, yeah I think she might like some greenery. Thanks for helping me with understanding plants and how they recycle waste. I think that’s so cool!

 

[RainbowBrite]

I have a betta too. I don’t have any real plants but I’ve been told you can tell when the water has enough beneficial bacteria when you see strands growing on the tank and tank decorations. Is that true? Is it harder to keep the cycle going and keep the bacteria in check when the water has plants in it? My betta is female and I’ll attach her photo.

She is beautiful! Do you check the water parameters regularly? That will tell you a lot about the conditions. I did not find it harder to keep the parameters healthy having plants. I found they made them more healthy and helped to keep the nitrates down.

 

[Socks Mum]

Thank you. I always tell people she looks like a Pygmy Koi fish. She’s also having hard time keeping afloat and a steady swim. She seems healthy though. Thank you for the different plants you mentioned. I will look and pick up a few. I used horn wort for my African Dwarf Frogs. I know what you mean about them “ dying off “ So, yeah I think she might like some greenery. Thanks for helping me with understanding plants and how they recycle waste. I think that’s so cool!

It's a pleasure, enjoy your beautiful fish!

 

[Socks Mum]

The guppies got a teaspoonful of warmed up frozen daphnia last night. They are tiny plankton type creatures which are very nutritious. The frozen stuff comes in a tray of small blocks. It's quite fishy smelling and soupy when thawed. The fry seemed to say, "what's this" but were eating it. The adult fish loved it. They looked quite funny, trying to eat the tiny bits as fast as they could. A bit like trying to eat snowflakes as they are falling, I think. Fishy Foo looked at the food, but he prefers food he can get to grips with, piranha style. I rinsed out the filters afterwards. I have a pack of various frozen live foods, so will try something else tomorrow. I know Fishy likes bloodworm

 

[Socks Mum]

The peaceful community of guppy ladies... and their grown up sons (in the mesh cage). There are three young males now and a further new born female, probably born a day ago. The secret to keeping guppies without babies, just keep a male only tank!

 

[Socks Mum]

The males are beautiful with rainbow colours and long tails. The older females seem to still be carrying fertilised eggs, so I need to keep checking the gender of the youngsters. I think they are all female at this stage.

 

[Maz]

That's a great photo of one of them What does the mesh box inside the tank do?

 

[Socks Mum]

Thank you! It's designed to hold a pregnant fish so that when she gives birth (if she is a live bearer) other fish can't eat them. In my case, I took the little male guppy fry out of the main tank as soon as I thought I could establish their gender. The first two have definitely turned out to be males. The mesh is useful as it allows water to circulate through the small enclosure to reduce ammonia build up and to restore oxygen levels in the enclosure. If I had room, I would give them their own tank. I am hoping they won't jump out of the enclosure into the main tank with all the females in it!

 

[Socks Mum]

The females I bought must have been fertilised before they left P@H, possibly at the breeder's as they were in a female only tank in P@H The guppy mommy can carry fertilised eggs for 9 months, deciding to bring them on inside her into fry for live bearing when she wants to, mostly when conditions are good

 

[Maz]

Thank you for explaining that

 

[Socks Mum]

Water worlds
An Amano shrimp and a big fat female guppy!

 

[Maz]

The shrimp looks to be smiling as well! (I just said the guinea pigs looked to be smiling ). Very chunky guppy. I'm sorry if I've said this before (can't remember) but I always thought guppy's were black? Or do they come in different colours?