Guppies are the most common fish aquarist prefer to keep in their community tank. You must know that guppies breed out of control, which means that if you keep male and female guppy in the same tank, you will encounter lots of guppy fry in your tank.
When deciding to raise the guppy fry, you can go through some issues like they are not eating. I have faced this issue and was able to know the reason and the solution for that. So, Why are my guppy fry not eating? How to make my guppy fry eat? Let us find out.
Stress due to poor water conditions and inadequate water parameters are the reason behind guppy fry not eating. Other causes include feeding one type of food every day. Ensure good water quality and stable water temperature to prevent your guppy fry from stress and make them eat.
This article will discuss why guppy fry is not eating and how to make them eat. So, let us get into it.
Contents
Why Is my guppy fry not eating?
There can be various reasons behind your guppy fry not eating, of which the primary reason is stress due to poor water conditions.
Other reasons are inadequate water parameters, unstable water temperature, boredom eating the same food, and feeding big-size food to your guppy fry.
Guppy fry will require more food than adult guppies to ensure their faster growth and development.
Guppy fries are weaker than adult guppies. They can become easily vulnerable to various diseases and parasites and lose their appetite when kept in poor conditions.
Let us discuss in depth the reason behind guppy fry not eating.
Also read: Why Is My Guppy Not Eating?
What are the reasons behind guppy fry not eating?
These are the reasons behind guppy fry not eating:
- The water condition of your guppy fry tank is not adequate.
- The water parameter of your guppy fry tank is not stable and adequate.
- You are feeding only one type of food to your guppy fry.
- The size of the food is big enough to fit your guppy fry mouth.
Inadequate water condition
Inadequate water conditions can be the reason behind your guppy fry not eating.
Guppy fry is weak than adult guppies and can easily become prone to various diseases and parasites if kept in poor water conditions.
Also, poor water conditions will result in your guppy fry coming under constant stress and losing appetite.
Poor water quality will lack oxygen and can cause an ammonia spike.
All these issues can make your guppy fry sick, and they will avoid eating because of a loss of appetite.
Also read: What To Do If My Guppy Is Stressed?
Inadequate and unstable water parameters.
Inadequate and unstable water parameters can also be the reason behind your guppy fry not eating.
When raising guppy fry, the water temperature is the primary thing to consider.
Guppy fry will require their ideal water temperature to prevent stress and other issues.
Inadequate water temperature will make your guppy fry vulnerable to various diseases and parasites.
Also, the unstable water temperature will make your guppy fry come under constant stress, making your guppy fry weak and lose their appetite, and stop eating.
Also read: Are My Guppies Stressed?
Feeding one type of food to your guppy fry.
Feeding only one type of food is also the common reason behind guppy fry not eating.
When you feed only one type of food to your guppy fry every day, they can get bored of that food and will stop eating.
Also, guppy fry requires various types of food to ensure their faster growth and development.
The size of the food is big.
Guppy fries are smaller in size and have a small mouth.
When you provide them food without crushing it or breaking it down into small pieces that can fit in their mouth, they will not be able to crush it.
So, feeding food without crushing it or breaking it into small pieces will make your guppy fry avoid eating as they will not be able to.
How long can guppy fry go without food?
Guppy fries are weak than adult guppies and have a weaker immune system.
They require more nutrition than adult guppies for their faster growth and to enhance their color.
So, this means guppy fry will eat more than adult guppies.
Adult guppies can survive for 10-14 days without food, whereas guppy fry can survive up to 3-4 days.
We don’t recommend not feeding your guppy fry for 2-3 days as at such stage; guppy fry will require more food for their good health and longer lifespan.
However, if you are going out for 3-4 days and there is nobody to feed to your guppy fry, then you don’t have to worry as your guppy fry will survive by themselves for three to four days.
Also read: How Long Can Guppies Go Without Food?
How to make our guppy fry to eat?
Ensure these things to make your guppy fry eat:
- Ensure the good water quality of your guppy fry tank.
- Provide adequate and stable water parameters to your guppy fry.
- Feed your guppy fry various types of food.
- Break down the food before feeding it to your guppy fry.
Good water quality
Provide your guppy fry with good water quality to prevent stress and make them eat.
Perform weekly water changes of at least 35% to keep your aquarium water clean.
Treat the water with a water conditioner to eliminate harmful toxins like chlorine, chloramine, and heavy metals before adding it to your guppy fry tank.
We recommend using API TAP WATER CONDITIONER as it eliminates chlorine, chloramine, and other chemicals.Â
You can buy this product on amazon: API TAP WATER CONDITIONER.
Also, consider adding a good filtration system with biofilter media to keep the water safe from harmful toxins like ammonia and nitrite.
Adding live aquatic plants will also help keep the water clean and oxygenated.
Keep a regular check on ammonia level and keep the ammonia level at 0ppm.
We recommend using the API ammonia test kit to check the ammonia level as it shows an accurate result.
You can purchase it from Amazon API TEST KIT.
Provide adequate and stable water parameters.
Provide your guppy fry with adequate and stable water parameters to prevent them from stress and other issues like loss of appetite.
| Particulars | Guppy Fry Requirement |
|---|---|
| Water temperature | 72-82 °F |
| Water pH level | 6.7 and 7.8 |
| Water TDS level | 400-600ppm |
Provide your guppy fry water temperature between 72-82 °F.
Maintain the water pH level between 6.7 and 7.8.
Ensure to maintain the TDS level of water between 400-600ppm.
We recommend adding a heater to your guppy fry tank to stabilize the water temperature.
Also read: What Is The Ideal Water Temperature For Guppies?
Feed various types of food to your guppy fry.
Feeding only one type of food to your guppy fry will make them bored with that food, and they can avoid eating.
So, consider feeding your guppy fry various types of live, frozen, and other commercial food to ensure they don’t get bored by eating only one kind of food.
| Guppy Fry Food | Link To Buy |
|---|---|
| Ocean Nutrition Instant Baby Brine Shrimp | Baby brine shrimp |
| Sera Micron Nature | Sera micron |
| Hikari Bio-Pure Freeze-Dried Daphnia | Freeze-dried daphnia |
| Hikari Bio-Pure Freeze Dried Bloodworms | Freeze-dried bloodworms |
Guppies are omnivore fish and require various types of food, including both meat and plant matter food, to ensure their growth and development.
Feed your guppy fry four to five times a day in small quantities.
Also read: Best Food For Guppy Fish.
Break down the food before feeding it to your guppy fry.
Guppy fry has a small mouth and cannot eat big-sized food.
If you are feeding flake food to your guppy fry, ensure to crush them before feeding it to your guppy fry.
Whatever you feed to your guppy fry, bring it first to the size that can fit in their mouth.
Conclusion:
There are various reasons behind guppy fry not eating.
The primary reasons are stress due to poor water conditions and inadequate water parameters.
Feeding your guppy fry only one type of food and providing them food of a size that is big enough to fit in their mouth can also be the common reason behind your guppy fry not eating food.
Provide adequate and stable water parameters to your guppy fry and ensure performing a regular water change to provide your guppy fry with good living conditions.
Also, feed your guppy fry various types of food to fulfill their ideal dietary requirements.
Reference: ResearchGate, NCBI