Why Do My Guppy Fry Keep Dying? (8 Ways To Prevent)

Guppies are also known as million fish because of their out-of-control breeding nature. A female guppy can store the sperm of a male guppy and use them in the future to get pregnant multiple times.

With such breeding behavior of guppies, you will encounter guppy fry when keeping male and female guppies together, and the main problem you will face is your guppy fry dying. I have met with this issue multiple times and was able to resolve it. So, Why do my guppy fry keep dying? How to prevent our guppy fry from dying? Let us find out.

Cannibalism and poor water condition is the primary reason behind your guppy fry dying. Other reasons include lack of oxygen, poor supply of food, and inadequate water parameters. Ensure feeding your guppy fry four to five times a day and provide adequate water temperature to prevent such issues.

This article will discuss why guppy fry is dying and how we can prevent them from dying. So, let us get into it.

Why Is my guppy fry dying?

There can be numerous reasons behind your guppy fry passing away, of which cannibalism and poor water condition are the primary reasons.

Other reasons include inadequate water temperature, poor supply of food, lack of oxygen, and ammonia spike.

Guppy fries are weak and have a weak immune system than adult guppies.

Guppy fry can easily get prone to various diseases and parasites if kept in poor tank conditions.

So, taking good care of your guppy fry is essential to ensure their lifespan.

Let us discuss in depth why your guppy fry is passing away.

Also read: When Can Guppy Fry Go With Adults?

What Is the reason behind guppy fry dying?

These are the reasons behind guppy fry dying:

1. Poor water condition
2. Deficiency of oxygen
3. Cannibalism
4. Ammonia spike
5. Inadequate and unstable water parameters.
6. Poor feeding
7. Untreated water

Your guppy fry is living in poor water conditions.

Guppies prefer to live in clean water conditions.

Poor water conditions will affect your guppy fish health.

The same goes with the guppy fry. Poor water conditions affect your guppy fry health.

Dead and decaying plants and fishes, leftovers, excess algae, and waste production make the water condition poor.

Guppy fry doesn’t have the strong immune system as adult guppies and is more vulnerable to such issues.

Poor water conditions can be the reason behind various diseases and parasites, making your guppy fry sick, and they will eventually pass away.

Also read: Can Guppy Survive In Muddy Water?

Your guppy fry tank doesn’t have enough oxygen.

A deficiency of oxygen can also make your guppy fry pass away.

Guppy fish use their gills to extract the oxygen from the water.

In the absence of oxygen in the water, your guppy fish will suffer breathing.

Guppy fry health will be more affected because of their weakness.

If your guppies are gasping for air at the water’s surface or opening and closing their mouth repeatedly, it indicates a lack of oxygen in the water.

Your guppy fry will also act the same in case of oxygen deficiency. 

Cannibalism

Cannibalism is known as eating another individual of the same species.

Guppies lack parental instinct and will happily feed on their baby, thinking of them as food.

Mother guppy will especially eat their fry when kept together after giving birth.

Mother guppy will eat the fry because of hunger and fill up the space emptied by releasing the fry.

Cannibalism is the most common reason behind guppy fry passing away.

Guppies and other fish will see your guppy fry as a tasty snack and will happily feed on them.

So, if you are keeping your guppy fry with adult guppies or in a community tank with other fish, then the adult fishes are the cause behind your guppy fry passing away.

Also read: Can Guppy Fry Survive In A Community Tank?

There has been an ammonia spike in your guppy fry tank.

An ammonia spike in your guppy fry tank can be the primary reason behind your guppy fry passing away.

All these can be the reason behind an ammonia spike in a tank:

1. An overcrowded tank will result in an ammonia spike.
2. Dead and decaying plants and fishes, leftovers, and waste will spike ammonia.
3. Introducing a large quantity of fish at a time will result in an ammonia spike.
4. A dirty filter can be the reason behind the spike of ammonia.
5. Not performing a regular water change and not maintaining the tank will result in an ammonia spike.
6. Inadequate water parameters will spike ammonia.

Guppies are very delicate when it comes to ammonia.

The ammonia level of your guppy fish tank should be 0ppm.

Guppies can’t tolerate even a low level of ammonia.

The same goes with the guppy fry. Guppy fry is more vulnerable to such issues as they are weak and don’t have a strong immune system.

Keep a regular check on the ammonia level and ensure it remains at 0ppm.

We recommend using the API Ammonia test kit as it tells you the exact result. 

You can purchase it from Amazon API TEST KIT.

The parameters of your guppy fry tank are not adequate and stable.

The water parameters play an essential role in keeping your guppies safe from various health issues.

If the water parameters are not adequate and stable, your guppies can suffer from various diseases and high-stress levels.

Especially the water temperature should be adequate and stable for your guppy fry.

Inadequate and unstable water temperature can make your guppy fry come under stress.

Guppy fry being under stress, will be prone to various diseases and parasites and will eventually pass away.

Also read: Are My Guppies Stressed?

You are not feeding your guppy fry appropriately.

When it comes to guppy fry, many aquarists end up underfeeding them.

In the case of adult guppies, aquarists end up overfeeding them.

Guppy fry requires more food than adult guppies for faster growth and development.

Guppy fry requires food in a size that can fit their mouth.

Many aquarists feed their guppy fry food that is bigger than the guppy fry mouth, and guppy fry don’t get able to feed on them, resulting in starvation and passing away.

Also read: How Long Can Guppies Go Without Food?

You have not treated the water.

As adult guppies, guppy fry health can also be affected if you add the tap water without treating it with a water conditioner.

Tap water contains toxins like chlorine, chloramine, and metals that are harmful to your guppy fry.

Chlorine and other chemicals are not harmful to us but are harmful to fishes.

So, treat the water with a water conditioner before adding it to your guppy fish tank to prevent such issues.

We recommend using API TAP WATER CONDITIONER as it eliminates chlorine, chloramine, and other chemicals. 

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

How to prevent my guppy fry from dying?

Ensure these things to prevent your guppy fry from dying:

1. Raise your guppy fry in a separate tank.
2. Provide adequate and stable water parameters to your guppy fry.
3. Feed your guppy fry adequately high-quality nutritional food.
4. Add plenty of live aquatic plants to create hiding spots for your guppy fry.
5. Keep your guppy fry in a big size tank and avoid overcrowding.
6. Keep the lights on of your guppy fry tank for at least 8 hours a day.
7. Add an airstone to your guppy fry tank to ensure enough oxygenation.
8. Maintain the tank by removing the dead and decaying plants and fishes and leftovers and cleaning the tank to remove the waste.

Raise guppy fry in a separate tank.

Raising the guppy fry in a separate tank is essential for their survivability.

If you keep your guppy fry with other fishes and adult guppies, the adult fishes (including guppies) will hunt your guppy fry down, thinking of them as a tasty snack.

Guppies lack parental instinct, and even mother guppy will happily feed on their fry when hungry.

So, consider raising your guppy fry in a separate tank until they reach the size which doesn’t fit the adult fish’s mouth.

Also read: Do Guppy Fry Need A Heater?

Provide adequate and stable water parameters.

Guppy fry will require the same water parameters as adult guppies.

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 the water temperature between 72-82 °F.

Ensure to maintain the water pH level between 6.7 and 7.8.

Make sure to provide the water TDS between 400-600ppm.

You must know that stable water temperature is also necessary for your guppy fry’s good health with adequate water temperature.

We consider adding a heater to your guppy fry tank to stabilize the water temperature.

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

Feed high-quality nutritional food adequately to your guppy fry.

Guppy fry requires more food than adult guppies to ensure their growth and development.

Feed your guppy fry four to five times a day in small quantities.

Feed your guppy fry live food like bloodworms, daphnia, mosquito larvae, and baby brine shrimp.

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

Also, feed them blanched vegetables like zucchini and cucumber to fulfill their plant-based nutritional requirement. 

Provide your guppy fry food in a quantity that they can finish eating in one to two minutes to avoid overfeeding them.

Also read: How Often Should Guppy Fry Be Fed?

Add plenty of aquatic plants to create hiding spots for your guppy fry.

Guppy fry requires hiding spots to hide and make themselves safe from other adult fishes.

Add plenty of live aquatic plants to your guppy fry tank to create hiding spots for them.

Adding live aquatic plants will also ensure enough oxygen and will help you keep the water clean of your guppy fry tank.

Keep your guppy fry in a large tank.

Consider keeping your fry and young guppy in a large tank to avoid overcrowding.

Overcrowding will result in oxygen deficiency and more production of more waste, contaminating the water condition.

Also, a small size tank will attract the adult guppies and fishes toward the smaller guppies.

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

Keep the aquarium lights on for at least 8 hours a day.

Consider keeping the lights on for at least 8 hours a day of your guppy fry tank.

Lights help the guppy fry enhance their color and faster growth.

Light keeps the guppy fry active throughout the day.

However, keep the lights off during the nighttime as guppy fry requires rest during the night, and providing dark is essential for their sleep.

We advise you to purchase Hygger Spectrum Led Aquarium Light.

You can buy it from Amazon Hygger Spectrum Led Aquarium Light.

Also read: Does Guppy Fry Need Light?

Add an air pump to your guppy fry tank to ensure enough oxygen.

Guppy fry requires oxygen for their comfortable living.

Lack of oxygen will make them suffer breathing and come into critical condition.

Adding an air pump to your guppy fry tank will help aerate the water surface, which will help in more oxygen exchange from the air.

We recommend using the Tetra Whisper air pump as it is very silent and easy to use.

You can buy this product on amazon: Tetra Whisper Air Pump.

Also read: Do Guppy Fry Need An Air Pump?

Do proper maintenance of your guppy fry tank.

Ensure proper maintenance of your guppy fry tank.

Remove all the dead and decaying plants and fish from your guppy fry tank to prevent ammonia and poor water conditions.

Particulars	Guppy Fry Requirement
Ammonia	0ppm
Nitrite	0ppm
Nitrate	Below 25ppm

Regularly perform a weekly water change of at least 35% to ensure clean water.

Siphon out the solid debris present in the gravel while performing the water change.

Clean the water filter once a month to extract all the waste from the filter.

Also read: Do Guppy Fry Need A Filter?

Conclusion:

There can be various reasons behind your guppy fry dying, of which cannibalism and poor water condition are the primary reasons.

Other reasons are oxygen deficiency, poor supply of food, a spike in ammonia level, untreated water, and inadequate and unstable water parameters.

Guppy fry requires more care than adult guppies because they are weak and can be easily prone to various diseases and parasites if kept in poor tank conditions.

Feed your guppy fry four to five times a day in small quantities, provide stable and adequate water temperature, raise them in a separate tank, and ensure good water condition to prevent your guppy fry from dying.

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Reference: ResearchGate, Journals, JSTOR