Beginner's Guide to Guppy Keeping: Detailed Explanation of Breeding Methods and Techniques for Newcomers

For keeping guppies at home, you can choose your equipment and varieties according to your own circumstances. Those with a larger budget can buy a relatively high-end aquarium, equip it with advanced keeping equipment, and purchase relatively expensive varieties; those with a smaller budget or beginners can buy or make a general aquarium themselves, or use a small fish tank or container for keeping, and the varieties kept can also be of a lower grade. After gaining some keeping experience, you can then switch to keeping some expensive varieties, and the keeping equipment can also be gradually upgraded. Below, taking a beginner keeping guppies as an example, the keeping process is introduced.

First, go to the ornamental fish market and buy an aquarium. The simplest aquarium costs about 20-50 yuan. Do not get one that is too large; generally, a length of 60, a width of 30, and a height of 40 is suitable. When buying, it must be tested for water to ensure it does not leak. You can also make one yourself according to your own indoor environment or have one custom-made at a glass shop, so you can choose a more suitable size that fits your home more harmoniously. To make a fish tank yourself, you can go to a glass shop and buy glass of a suitable size (generally 5 mm thick), have the edges polished, then buy a tube of special glass glue for fish tanks and glue it together yourself. The glued fish tank must be left to stand for more than 24 hours before water testing. When testing, first add a small amount of water, just enough to cover the bottom of the tank, and see whether it leaks. If it leaks, first pour out the water, wipe it dry, let it dry, repair the seal with glue, wait for the glue to set, and then test again, gradually increasing the water level during testing. After water testing is complete, soak the fish tank in water for one day, pour out the water, add tap water that has been exposed to the sun for 2-3 days in advance, and then you can introduce the guppies.

Guppies can be purchased at the ornamental fish market. Purebred guppies are relatively expensive; depending on the quality of the strain, they cost about 10-30 yuan per pair, while hybrids or degenerated strains are generally cheaper, usually 1-3 yuan per pair. Purebred guppies generally have better traits, for example, a larger body, large and spread tail and dorsal fins, relatively uniform coloration, and more distinct characteristics. Hybrids or degenerated strains are the opposite; often the guppies in the seller's tank are relatively mixed, and the differences in color and appearance are also relatively large. For friends who are just starting to keep tropical fish, it is still more cost-effective to buy hybrids and degenerated strains, and after gaining some keeping experience, it is not too late to keep purebreds. Among hybrids there are also many outstanding individuals, and the coloration is relatively rich; through your own careful keeping, perhaps you can even breed new varieties with excellent traits. When selecting, the key is to choose the males; try to choose individuals that are relatively large, with relatively large and spread tail fins, and that swim lively. For females, try to choose mature individuals that are large and swim lively.

After choosing the guppies, you can put them in the fish tank and keep them. Next is the issue of bait. Guppies do not have high requirements for bait; generally, water fleas, tubifex worms, or compound pellet feed can be used. These baits can be bought from the ornamental fish market or specialty flower, bird, fish, and insect shops. Among the above three kinds of bait, guppies prefer water fleas (live), followed by tubifex worms, and then compound feed. However, there are exceptions; if the compound feed is of very high quality, it may be even more beneficial to the guppies. Because live bait is not easy to store, compound feed is basically essential. Normally, you can feed as much live bait as possible. If you are busy with work and do not have time to buy live bait, use compound feed as an emergency substitute. Compared with live water fleas and tubifex worms, because of their survival time, tubifex worms are generally used more. The tubifex worms you buy can be placed in a relatively shallow container, with water just enough to cover the tubifex worms, and you should persist in changing the water once a day, so the tubifex worms can survive for a longer time. Each feeding should not be too much; it is enough for them to eat their fill. This prevents overfeeding, which can cause the fish to be greedy and overeat, affecting growth, or even leave leftover bait to decompose in the water and spoil the water quality, making the fish sick.

During the keeping process, do not change the water frequently, because too large a change in the water environment can cause discomfort to the fish and may even lead to fish disease. Generally, if the water in the aquarium is not too dirty, changing the water once a week is enough. When changing water, never change all of it; change only 1/4-1/3, and at most no more than 1/2. The most suitable water temperature for guppies is 18-24°C. Without heating equipment, general room temperature can very well meet their requirements.