Why Is My Guppy Not Giving Birth?

Written by John Sawyer in Fish Species,Guppy

Guppies are the species that are easiest to breed. However, there can be some issues of the Guppy not giving birth, and it is important to know a guppy keeper the reason so that they can provide them with the treatment needed. So, Why is my Guppy not giving birth? Let us find the answers to the question. 

Guppies don’t give birth when they come under stress due to disturbance by other tank mates, suffering from infection or disease, or poor water conditions. Thus providing adequate water conditions, a proper diet, and enough space is essential for guppies to give birth.

We will discuss it profoundly and try to solve your problem. So, let’s get into it.

Female guppy not giving birth

It takes 25-35 days to release the fry after female guppy mates with a male guppy. So you should don’t panic if they don’t give birth in 10 or 20 days after mating.

There can be various reasons for your female guppy is not giving birth:

  1. Stress
  2. Bad water condition
  3. Male guppy has lost their interest in female guppy. 
  4. The female guppy is sick.
  5. The female guppy is old.

Stress can be the reason for your pregnant guppy not giving birth. Your guppy can come under stress for various reasons, like angry tankmates present in the tank or poor water conditions.

Bad water conditions can lead to your pregnant guppy not giving birth.

When your female guppy is not being pregnant after keeping with male guppies, that will mean that the male guppy has lost interest in the female guppy.

Signs to know that your guppy is pregnant

You can know whether your Guppy is pregnant by watching these all symptoms in your Guppy:

  1. Your Guppy’s eating habits will get changed; either they will have a huge appetite or will not eat anything at all. 
  2. The gills of your Guppy will remain partially open.
  3. Your Guppy’s stomach will almost take the shape of a square.
  4. Your Guppy may behave more aggressively or will become more nervous.
  5. Guppy will remain in or around one spot of the aquarium, mainly on a side with a heater. 
  6. The color of your Guppy will get faded. 
  7. Your Guppy will have an arched back and will emerge to be pushing.

Reasons for guppy not giving birth

There are various reasons for Guppy not giving birth:

Stress

Stress can be the main reason for your Guppy not giving birth. Guppies get very stressed during pregnancy, and their stress level goes high in a natural manner.

However, pregnant Guppy, with a high amount of stress, cannot tolerate any external or internal stress anymore, resulting in guppy cause to abort the fry. 

Pregnant Guppy usually can hold to release the fry if they are under stress or harassed by the other tankmates. In such a case, shifting the Guppy to another tank is wise to live comfortably and not feel scared. 

Your pregnant Guppy can quickly come under stress if other aggressive tankmates are present in their aquarium. An owner can shift the pregnant Guppy to another tank for a short period. 

It is necessary to ensure that the water condition is 100 percent perfect for your pregnant Guppy during your guppies pregnancy.

An owner can shift their Guppy to another tank during pregnancy for some time so that they get their best water condition and enough space to move. 

Don’t let your Guppy be alone in another tank or breeder box for an extended period, as it can also make your Guppy come under stress. 

Also read: 10 Signs Of Stress In Freshwater Fishes?

Bad water condition

The lousy water condition can make your pregnant Guppy come under stress, resulting in the abortion of fry. So water parameters are equally essential to be 100 percent perfect as same as water conditions. 

The dirty water will not help at all. Dirty water can contain various bacteria and viruses which can harm your pregnant Guppy.

In addition, dirty water will make your pregnant Guppy stressed out, which can result in the pregnant guppy causing to abort the fry. 

Male guppy has lost interest in the female guppy.

If Your female Guppy is not getting pregnant after a long period of having both male and female Guppy in a tank, then the male Guppy may have lost interest in the female Guppy. 

In such a case, you can add some more male guppies to the tank to raise the competition. 

How to fix the problem of guppy not giving birth

When female Guppy gets pregnant, they get highly stressed naturally, and you can do nothing about that, but you can ensure that they don’t get additional stress from their surroundings.

To make your pregnant Guppy comfortable, you can provide them with these things:

  1. Good water condition
  2. Proper diet
  3. No rapid changes in surroundings
  4. Enough space

Provide your guppy fish with good water conditions.

An owner should make sure to provide their pregnant Guppy a good water condition. Inadequate water can make your Guppy come under stress.

Perform a weekly water change of at least 35% to keep the water clean.

Make sure to treat the water using a water conditioner to dechlorinate it.

We recommend using the API water conditioner to treat the water, as it will help you eliminate chlorine, chloramine, ammonia, nitrite, and heavy metals from the water.

You can buy this product on amazon: API TAP WATER CONDITIONER.

Pregnant guppies get stressed out naturally, so providing them with adequate water temperature and pH levels is essential.

Consider adding a heater to your guppy fish tank to ensure stable water temperature.

We recommend using the Fluval M200 Submersible heater for your tank.

You can buy this product at amazon: Fluval M200 Submersible Heater.

The water temperature should be between 54 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, and the ph level should be between 6.8 and 7.8 to make your Guppy live comfortably. 

Keep a regular check on ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate, and make sure to maintain ammonia and nitrite at 0 ppm, whereas nitrate should be below 20 ppm.

We recommend using the API freshwater master test kit to check your fish tank’s ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH level, as it shows an accurate result.

You can buy it from amazon:  API FRESHWATER MASTER TEST KIT.

Also, use a good filtration system with biofilter media to keep the water clean from excessive waste and protect your guppy tank from harmful toxins like ammonia and nitrite.

You can consider using a Fluval high-performance aquarium filter for your tank, as it will ensure that your water is clean and protected from harmful toxins like ammonia and nitrite.

You can buy this product at amazon: Fluval High-Performance Aquarium Filter.

Also read: What Is The Ideal Water Temperature For Guppies?

Provide your guppy fish with a proper diet.

Providing a high-quality diet is essential for pregnant Guppy. An owner should feed their pregnant guppies with a high-nutrition diet in small meals 4 to 5 times a day.

A high-quality diet will help Guppy be safe from diseases and feel better and more comfortable. 

We recommend feeding your guppy fish with Hikari Micro Pellets as it is a high-quality food that provides all the nutritional value required by guppy fish.

You can buy this product at amazon: Hikari Micro Pellets.

Also read: Best Homemade Food For Guppies.

Ensure no rapid changes in surroundings.

There should not be an immediate change in their surrounding, as it will shock your Guppy, and they will come under stress, resulting in aborting the fry, or your pregnant Guppy can also die.

If you are shifting pregnant Guppy to another tank, prepare another tank to match the water condition of the tank in which your pregnant Guppy was living till now. 

Ensure enough space for your pregnant guppies.

An owner should ensure their pregnant guppies have enough space to live comfortably. 

An owner should provide their guppies all they want during their pregnancy so that they live comfortably.

In pregnancy, guppies are naturally stressed out, so providing adequate water, proper food, and enough space will help them a lot. 

Also read: How Many Guppies In A 20-Gallon Tank?

CONCLUSION:

Guppies are the easiest to breed. While the guppies are pregnant, they come under stress naturally in which we can do nothing but provide them with the adequate facilities they want during their pregnancy.

Giving pregnant guppies a perfect facility will help them a lot to give birth to the fry.

Providing our pregnant Guppy with adequate water conditions, a proper rich diet, and a safer environment is essential.

So they don’t come under stress, as coming under pressure can result in Guppy aborting a fry and harming the female Guppy itself. 

Reference: Futurity, NCBI

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