Here are some of the meds listed on the web for each type of diseases:
Bacterial
MelaFix by API
All-natural botanical remedy safe for plants, invertebrates, and all fish. Repairs damaged fins, open wounds, and tail rot, as well as pop-eye, mouth fungus, and many other bacterial infections. For fresh and saltwater.
PimaFix by API
For all external bacterial infections. Can be used with MelaFix, safe for fresh and saltwater.
Fish-mox by Thomas Labratories
Amoxicillin just for fish, especially effective against bacterial gill diseases.
Fish-cillin by Thomas Labratories
The antibiotic Ampicillin in specialized fish strength takes care of fin and tail rot.
Fish-pen by Thomas Labratories
Powerful Penicillin just for fish will treat any manner of bacterial diseases.
Fish-flex by Thomas Labratories
Contains the antibiotic Cephalexin, a powerful medication for general bacterial infections.
Fish-cycline by Thomas Labratories
The common antibiotic Tetracycline is effective against gill diseases and chondroccus.
Furan-2 by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals
Treats dropsy, Furunculosis (Aeromonas), Gill Disease, Fin and Tail Rot, and Black Molly disease. For fresh and saltwater fish.
Triple Sulfa by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals
Medication for the treatment of Cotton Mouth, Fin and Tail Rot, Furunculosis, Body Slime, and Eye Cloud. For fresh and saltwater fish.
T.C. Capsules by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals
Treats common bacterial diseases such as Tail Rot, Mouth Fungus and Gill Disease. For fresh and saltwater fish.
Bio-Bandage by Pond Solutions
Treats wounds and bacterial lesions on the fish. Treats wounds, lesions, cysts, fin rot and any bacterial infection susceptible to Neomycin, the active ingredient. Must be applied directly on the fish.
Safe Rally by Ruby Reef
A reef-safe copper-free treatment for tropical and marine fish suffering from bacterial infections.
Ultra-Cure BX by Gel-tek
Treats both internal and external bacterial infections such as septicemia, wasting disease, open sores, and ulcers. Also prevents secondary infection outbreaks.
Furanase by Aquarium Products
Treats: Columnaris, Black Molly Disease, Cotton or Mouth Fungus, and Tail Rot, as well as other gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria.
ParaGuard by Seachem
Treats numerous bacterial infections.
KanaPlex by Seachem
Treats bacterial fish diseases such as dropsy, pop-eye, fin/tail rot and septicemia. Safe for fresh and saltwater fish.
NeoPlex by Seachem
Broad spectrum antibiotic that will treat any kind of internal or external bacterial infection. Safe for fresh and saltwater fish. Relatively safe with live plants and invertebrates, though extra care should be taken with sensitive species.
Polyguard by Seachem
Treats bacterial infections. Should not be used with Live Plants.
Sulfathiazole by Seachem
Treats bacterial infections, along with parasitic and fungal. Safe for freshwater and saltwater fish, caution should be used if treating with Invertebrates.
Metronidazole by Seachem
Treats bacterial infections. Safe alternative for fish sensitive to copper.
Fungus Clear by Jungle
Treats bacterial diseases in your freshwater fish. Also protects against secondary infection.
Fungus Eliminator by Jungle
Treats serious fungal and bacterial diseases such as; Cotton Fungus, Grey Skin, Fish Bloat, Fin and Mouth Rot, White Film on eyes, Red streaks on fins, and Swim Bladder Disease. For freshwater use only.
Binox Powder by Jungle
Extra strength bacterial remedy. For freshwater only.
Hole-In-Head Guard by Jungle
Treats Hole-in-Head. For freshwater use only.
Maracyn by Mardel
Gram-positive antibiotic for the treatment of internal and external bacterial diseases. Safe for fresh and saltwater, however they are packaged separately for each. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Maracyn-Two by Mardel
Gram-negative antibiotic for the treatment of internal and external bacterial diseases. Safe for fresh and saltwater, though they are sold separately. Do not use with Invertebrates.
MarOxy by Mardel
Colorless treatment for bacterial infections. Comes separately for saltwater, do not use with Invertebrates in saltwater.
Tetracycline by Mardel
Broad-spectrum Gram-negative antibiotic tablet for treating common bacterial diseases.
Bio-Spheres Anti Bacterial by Mardel
Antibacterial formula that kills bacteria that cause mouth fungus, fin and tail rot, pop-eye, dropsy, and ulcers. Prevents re-infection during treatment.
Fungal
PimaFix by API
All-natural remedy for fungal infections. Can be used with MelaFix. Safe for fresh and saltwater fish.
Fish-mycin by Thomas Labratories
Erythromycin treats gill diseases, rot, and molly disease.
Fish-fungus by Thomas Labratories
The anti-fungal ingredient Ketocanazole is a powerful treatment for all types of fish fungal infections.
E.M. Tablets by Jungle
Medication for the treatment of Body Slime, Mouth Fungus, Eye Cloud, Furunculosis and Hemorrhagic Septicemia. For fresh and saltwater.
FungusCure by Jungle
Treats Mouth Fungus, Eye Fungus, and Fin and Tail Rot. Kills cotton-like fungus patches and white body and eye slime fungus. For freshwater only.
Ich-X by Aquarium Solutions
Utilizing a safer, less harsh form of malachite green, it treats fungus in saltwater and freshwater fish. Can be used with scaleless fish and pond fish.
Aquari-Sol by AP Pro
Medication for body fungus. Freshwater use only.
KanaPlex by Seachem
A blended kanamycin medication that treats fungal infections such as pop-eye, dropsy, and fin/tail rot. Safe for freshwater and saltwater fish.
PolyGuard by Seachem
Safely treats bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections. Do not use with Live Plants.
Sulfathiazole by Seachem
Treats fungal infections in saltwater and freshwater fish. Use caution when treating a tank with Invertebrates.
Metronidazole by Seachem
Treats bacterial infections. Safe alternative for fish that are sensitive to copper.
Fungus Clear by Jungle
Cures fungal diseases in your freshwater fish. Protects against secondary infections.
Binox Powder by Jungle
Extra strength fungal remedy. For freshwater only.
Hole-In-Head Guard by Jungle
Treats Hole-In-Head. For freshwater use only.
Maracyn by Mardel
Gram-positive antibiotic for the treatment of common fungal diseases. Safe for fresh and saltwater, however they are packaged separately. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Maracyn-Two by Mardel
Gram-negative antibiotic for the treatment of fungal diseases. Safe for fresh and saltwater, though they are sold separately. Do not use with Invertebrates.
MarOxy by Mardel
Colorless medication for the treatment of true fungus diseases. Also protects eggs from fungal attack. Comes in a saltwater form too, however that one should not be used with Invertebrates.
Formalin-3 by Kordon
A convenient, pre-diluted form of formalin that is scientifically recognized as an effective medication for the treatment and control of the diseases caused by fungi, protozoa’s, and monogenetic trematodes of fresh and marine fish.
Malachite Green by Kordon
Effective against common external fungal infections of fish eggs.
Methylene Blue by Kordon
Effective agent against superficial fungal infection of fish, safe for use with fish eggs and fry. May be used as an alternative to malachite green for the treatment of fungus. Safe for freshwater and saltwater fish, but toxic to plants and may harm the biological filtration.
Parasitic
Super Ich Cure by Aquarium Pharmaceuticals
Treats Ichthyophthirius or white spot. For Freshwater Aquariums Only.
Fish Zole by Thomas Labratories
Fish-strength metronidazole will treat hole-in-head disease along with other parasitic problems.
PraziPro by Aquarium Solutions
PraizoPro is a quick, safe way to rid your tank and fish of flukes, tapeworms, flatworms and many other internal and external parasites.
Ich-X by Aquarium Solutions
Utilizing a safer, less harsh form of malachite green, Ich-X takes care of freshwater and saltwater Ich, velvet, fungus, and other Protozoan-caused diseases quickly and effectively. This treatment can be used with scaleless and pond fish.
Kick Ich by Ruby Reef
Water treatment for the control of Ich in marine and freshwater aquariums. Scientifically formulated to eliminate Ich in the free swimming infectious stage of the Ich life cycle while being safe for freshwater and marine aquariums.
Safe Rally by Ruby Reef
Reef Safe Rally is a copper free water treatment for freshwater and marine fish suffering from marine velvet, dinoflagellates, flukes and bacterial infections.
Ultra Cure PX by Gel-tek
Takes care of intestinal worms, flagellates and a number of other unwelcome internal guests. Safe for both freshwater and saltwater.
Clout by Aquarium Products
Effective medication for the treatment or parasitic and protozoan infestations of freshwater and saltwater fish. Treats: Ich, Hydra, Leeches, Planaria, Epistylis, Trichodina, Tetrahymena, Body Fungus, Argulus(Louse), Flukes, and Anchor Worms.
Fluke Tabs by Aquarium Products
Effective medication for the treatment of resistant strains of parasitic infestations in of coldwater, freshwater, and marine fish. Treats: Tapeworms, Parasitic Copepods, Anchor Worms, Body Flukes, Gill Flukes, Fish Louse, Capillaria, and other Trematodes. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Anti-Fluke by Aquarium Products
Like the tabs above, only a liquid. Treats Gill Flukes, Body Flukes, Anchor Worms, and Fish Lice. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Life Bearer by AP Pro
Eliminates flukes and fish lice. Stops shaking and rubbing of fish due to parasites in 48 hours or less. For use in fresh or saltwater. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Quick Cure by AP Pro
Quick Cure is a strong, yet safe formula for the cure of Ich and lymphocystis. Safe for fresh or saltwater. Not recommended with Invertebrates.
Aquari-Sol by AP Pro
Effective medication for Ich, clamped fins, body fungus, and velvet in freshwater fish.
Super Goldfish Disease Eliminator by ** Products
The Disease Eliminator will bring quick relief to your sick goldfish if it has the following symptoms: gasping for air; flicking against gravel, decor, etc; fins look "eaten away" or have red streaks; fish has white "sugar like" granules on fins or body; sluggish or not eating.
Aqua-Sol by Aquarium Products
A gentle yet effective treatment for Ich and other parasitic protozoan infections. For Freshwater use only.
Cure-Ick by Aquarium Products
Fast relief for Ich and other parasitic protozoan infections. Safe for fresh and saltwater. Not for use with Invertebrates or Live rock.
ParaGuard by Seachem
Takes care of ich, while keeping your fish safe. Also treats most parasitic infections.
PolyGuard by Seachem
Treats most parasitic infections. Not for use with Plants.
Sulfathiazole by Seachem
Effectively treats parasitic infections while remaining safe for saltwater and freshwater fish. Use caution when treating with Invertebrates.
Metronidazole by Seachem
Treats external "bugs" such as Ich and Hexamita, and is safe for fish sensitive to copper.
Cupramine by Seachem
Superior to copper sulfates, and is non-acidic. This is a buffered active copper, not a chelate or citrate. Do not use with Invertebrates.
Ick Guard by Jungle
A water conditioner for removing Ich or whitespot from the aquarium. For freshwater use only.
Ick Guard II by Jungle
Liquid medication for the treatment of Ich or whitespot on small, weak, or scaleless fish such as Loaches, Catfish, etc. For freshwater use only.
Parasite Guard by Jungle
Controls external parasites such as lice, Body Flukes, Gill Flukes, and Anchor Worms. For freshwater use only.
Hole-in-Head Guard by Jungle
Treats Hole-in-Head. For freshwater use only.
Ick Clear by Jungle
Clears up Ich problems in the aquarium quickly. Protects against secondary infections.
Parasite Clear by Jungle
Removes internal and external parasites from tropical fish including protozoa’s, flukes, lice, anchor worms, and flagellates. Protects against secondary infections.
Molly Bright by Jungle
Helps prevent shimmies in Livebearers, especially Mollies.
CopperSafe by Mardel
Safe, stable copper for the treatment of Ich, Trichodina, Gyrodactylus, Flukes, Anchor Worm and other freshwater parasites.
Maracide by Mardel
Highly effective treatment for Ich, Trichodina, Chilodonella and related parasitic infections. For freshwater use only.
Malachite Green by Kordon
Controls various external parasites of freshwater and marine fish. Controls or prevents such common protozoan parasites as Ich, costia, chilodonella, cryptocaryon and trichodina.
Rid-Ich by Kordon
A completely safe effective treatment in freshwater and saltwater on a wide range of protozoan, crustacean and other invertebrate parasites of fish.
Permoxyn-Potassium Permanganate by Kordon
Useful for disease treatment of flukes, lice, and anchor worms. Can be used to de-activate treatements such as malachite green and formalin. For freshwater only.
Medi-Gold for Goldfish
A medicated food just for Goldfish. Medi-Gold is a small slow sinking pellet, with ingredients your fish love, like, krill, shrimp, and much more, that encourages your sick fish to eat.
RREA Red Grass
Friday, July 29, 2011
Compatible Guppy Strains
Compatible Guppy Strains
by Jim Alderson, DVM
Just about every PPGA meeting I will bring a trio of fish for a new member. After handing the fish over to the new guppy enthusiast, one of the first things they always ask is "Do you think these will cross well with that pink fish that I purchased from the store last month?" Never mind the ten years of careful linebreeding used to reach this stage of development. It usually takes us one year to prove to the new members that outcrossing the fish willy-nilly doesn't work!
When making outcrosses you want to cross with lines that you are pretty sure are going to give the desired results. Somewhere around 80% to 90% of outcrosses produce fish that are inferior to both parents. When you are selecting which strains of fish you would like to work with, it is advantageous to select lines that can be used to improve each other. Over the years I have kept a mental catalog of the crosses that have worked well. Today, these crosses are the backbone of my breeding program. Below are some of the crosses that have worked well in my fish room using my lines. These are pretty well tested crosses so they should work for most lines of these colors.
Reds and H/B Reds: I will use the gold bodied red males into the gray bodied h/b red females to improve the h/b reds. First generation will give 100% h/b reds. These are show stoppers. I then discard all the females from the cross and breed the males back to the pure gray bodied h/b red females. The downside of this cross is losing the deep h/b body color in the males. Always select the females with the darkest body color. (Note: you can create an excellent gray red line by saving some of the F1 females and crossing them back to the pure gold red males. The resultant offspring will be 25% gray reds.)
Reds and Albinos: I will cross the gold red males into the albino females to improve the albino line. The F1 is 100% gray reds. I then take these gray red males back to the pure albino females. Theoretically you should get 30% albinos, but I usually end up with 25-30%. You can then brother/sister these again for about three generations without much loss in vigor or fertility. Purples and Greens: One of the best kept secrets in the hobby! This cross works both ways and will produce some excellent blues as well. The purple is dominant and will darken the greens considerably. With this in mind, use the lightest green colored male into the purple females to produce bigger and better greens. To improve the purples, cross the purple males into the green females. To select the grown females from the hybrid cross, shine a flashlight on them at night with the lights turned off. The green females will have a green crescent at the base of the peduncle and the purple females will have a purple crescent. Variegated Yellow Snakeskin and H/B AOC (leopard): To improve the pattern in the h/b Aocs, cross the snake males into h/b females. In my lines the h/b is X linked and dominant. This means that the resulting offspring will all be h/b. Take the best male from the cross and breed them back to the pure h/b females. I use this cross about every 5 or 6 generations in my h/b aoc line.
H/B Pastel and Pastels: To improve the size and finnage of the pastels, cross a gold bodied white pastel into a gray bodied h/b pastel female. The offspring from this cross will be washed out gray bodied h/b pastels. Take the best of these males and breed them back to the pure gold bodied pastel females. The offspring will be 50% gold bodied pastels. These will be bigger and more vigorous than the original pastel line.
Blue/Green Bicolors and Yellow Variegated Snakeskins: Take the largest blue/green male (don't worry too much about the color pattern) and cross this fish with the snake females. Take the males from this cross and breed them back to the bl/gr females. I have some excellent bl/gr bi's coming up from this exact cross.
by Jim Alderson, DVM
Just about every PPGA meeting I will bring a trio of fish for a new member. After handing the fish over to the new guppy enthusiast, one of the first things they always ask is "Do you think these will cross well with that pink fish that I purchased from the store last month?" Never mind the ten years of careful linebreeding used to reach this stage of development. It usually takes us one year to prove to the new members that outcrossing the fish willy-nilly doesn't work!
When making outcrosses you want to cross with lines that you are pretty sure are going to give the desired results. Somewhere around 80% to 90% of outcrosses produce fish that are inferior to both parents. When you are selecting which strains of fish you would like to work with, it is advantageous to select lines that can be used to improve each other. Over the years I have kept a mental catalog of the crosses that have worked well. Today, these crosses are the backbone of my breeding program. Below are some of the crosses that have worked well in my fish room using my lines. These are pretty well tested crosses so they should work for most lines of these colors.
Reds and H/B Reds: I will use the gold bodied red males into the gray bodied h/b red females to improve the h/b reds. First generation will give 100% h/b reds. These are show stoppers. I then discard all the females from the cross and breed the males back to the pure gray bodied h/b red females. The downside of this cross is losing the deep h/b body color in the males. Always select the females with the darkest body color. (Note: you can create an excellent gray red line by saving some of the F1 females and crossing them back to the pure gold red males. The resultant offspring will be 25% gray reds.)
Reds and Albinos: I will cross the gold red males into the albino females to improve the albino line. The F1 is 100% gray reds. I then take these gray red males back to the pure albino females. Theoretically you should get 30% albinos, but I usually end up with 25-30%. You can then brother/sister these again for about three generations without much loss in vigor or fertility. Purples and Greens: One of the best kept secrets in the hobby! This cross works both ways and will produce some excellent blues as well. The purple is dominant and will darken the greens considerably. With this in mind, use the lightest green colored male into the purple females to produce bigger and better greens. To improve the purples, cross the purple males into the green females. To select the grown females from the hybrid cross, shine a flashlight on them at night with the lights turned off. The green females will have a green crescent at the base of the peduncle and the purple females will have a purple crescent. Variegated Yellow Snakeskin and H/B AOC (leopard): To improve the pattern in the h/b Aocs, cross the snake males into h/b females. In my lines the h/b is X linked and dominant. This means that the resulting offspring will all be h/b. Take the best male from the cross and breed them back to the pure h/b females. I use this cross about every 5 or 6 generations in my h/b aoc line.
H/B Pastel and Pastels: To improve the size and finnage of the pastels, cross a gold bodied white pastel into a gray bodied h/b pastel female. The offspring from this cross will be washed out gray bodied h/b pastels. Take the best of these males and breed them back to the pure gold bodied pastel females. The offspring will be 50% gold bodied pastels. These will be bigger and more vigorous than the original pastel line.
Blue/Green Bicolors and Yellow Variegated Snakeskins: Take the largest blue/green male (don't worry too much about the color pattern) and cross this fish with the snake females. Take the males from this cross and breed them back to the bl/gr females. I have some excellent bl/gr bi's coming up from this exact cross.
How To Outcross Guppy Strains
How To Outcross Guppy Strains
By Midge Hill
We all know that the best advice one can receive (and follow) on how to breed show guppies is, ".. get a good quality well established strain and then keep it as pure as you can." Keeping a strain pure is called inbreeding the strain. Inbreeding, means the breeding of fish that are closely related to each other genetically, such as brother to sister, father to daughter, etc. A technique known as linecrossing is used by some breeders to maintain an established strain, and it also comes under the general heading which we refer to loosely as inbreeding. Outcrossing, is the opposite of inbreeding since outcrossing means the mating of fish that are genetically unrelated to each other. Now the reason that all successful guppy breeders outcross strains from time to time but seldom advise others to try it, is because outcrossing is really a form of genetic Russian roulette. A successful outcross, requires that the strains which are crossed may be genetically compatible.
The odds against finding two compatible strains are very high. Even when a good result is obtained from an outcross it is as often due to blind luck as to intelligent selection. There are times, however, when outcrossing may produce something that no amount of inbreeding within a strain will accomplish. There are also times when your only alternative is to outcross, for example, when you buy a fish at a show auction without a related mate. Fortunately, there are ways to improve your chances of getting a good result from an outcross. This is what I want to talk to you about tonight. That is, when to outcross, how to pick the outcross strain, and how to proceed after the initial outcross to get the best result in subsequent generations.
Before I get into the good reasons for outcrossing, I want to point out that there are alot of no-good reasons for outcrossing. Now there is nothing wrong with outcrossing just for the sake of idle curiosity or for some other frivolous reason, as long as you do not pass these fish along. What outcrossing does is to rearrange, to scramble together, the genetic patterns of the two parents. Therefore, offspring from an outcross are genetically all mixed up. They are referred to as hybrids. Play with these hybrids if you want to, but do not pass them along; for they are genetic accidents and are not going to do much good for the hobby.
Getting back to the good reasons for outcrossing, in my view, there are five situations in which outcrossing can be a suitable thing to do:
1) When an established strain will not produce characteristics you want (a larger dorsal, perhaps) because the gene pattern for that characteristic is simply not present in the strain.
2) When you are having trouble with an established strain, infertility, maybe.
3) To outcross for big show hybrids.
4) Necessity, as in the case of a male purchased at a show auction without a related female.
5) To create your own strain. I want to discuss each of these five situations in detail, to tell you why I think outcrossing, as chancey as it is, can be a good thing to do; and how to proceed after the initial outcross, because the breeding techniques are a little different for each type of outcross.
In the first situation, where you have a good established strain but you have not gotten a certain feature you want by inbreeding or linecrossing within the strain, outcrossing can be the solution. Lets say, that you have been working with a strain of reds which are not as bright a red as you would like. Dr. Larr has told us there are about four or five different genes for red. If your strain does not have all of these genes, no amount of inbreeding is going to produce what is not there to begin with. So, you can outcross to try to pick up the missing genes that are needed for a clearer, brighter color. 0r, perhaps, you have been trying to get a larger dorsal. You might be able through inbreeding by careful selection of parents, to get gradually over the years, a larger dorsal, maybe. But there is a chance to use an outcross to pick up a larger dorsal in less time. It goes without saying, doesn't it, that you do not want to lose the fine characteristics of your original strain. So, while you are trying an outcross, you must keep your established strain going, otherwise, it the outcross does not work, you will have lost your strain. Well, what strain do we pick to outcross into an established strain when we want to add a new feature to the established strain? The outcross strain should also be well established that means the strain has bred true over several generations, so that all of the males in each litter look very much alike and each generation looks very much like previous generations. The outcross strain should be of the same type as the strain you are going outcross it to. In other words, you should outcross red to red, blue to blue, halfblack red to halfblack red, etc. And, obviously, the outcross strain must have the particular characteristic you are looking for. When you find a strain that meets the above three requirements as much as possible, you make the outcross both ways. Take your best male, and mate him to females of the outcross strain, and also take a male from the outcross strain and mate him to females from your original strain. You do this because you do not know which way will come out best. And, of course, you have to keep the young separate so you can determine which way the outcross works best.
Offspring from an outcross are referred to as the F1 generation. The second generation after the original outcross is called F2 generation, and so on. If you find a male in the F1 generation that looks like your original strain and also has the new feature from the outcross strain that you were trying for - well, you are just about as lucky as it is possible to be. What has happened is that the feature you wanted proved to be dominant and so it appeared in the first generation. This happens sometimes, and when it does you breed this F1 male to females from your original strain. (Remember, you have kept your original strain going,) This is the proper procedure because you want to work back into your original strain as soon as possible after an outcross. Breeding the F1 male that looks most like your original strain and which also has the new characteristic you want, to females from your original strain produces the F2 generation. You continue to do this, using only females from your original strain, because you must keep working the new characteristic back into that original strain. We have been talking about an outcross which produced the feature we wanted in the first generation. Many outcrosses will not be so lucky. The feature we want will not appear in the first generation, but that does not mean it isn't there. There are two reasons why a feature possessed by a strain used in an outcross may not show up in the first generation:
a) the feature is recessive, or,
b) it is carried only by the females. If a special feature you want (and which was present in one of the strains used in the outcross) does not show up in the F generations, you must take brother and sister from an F1 litter and breed them together to find out if the trait is recessive. If it is recessive, it should show up in 25% of the offspring from this sibling breeding. Assuming that the feature is a recessive, and it shows up in the F2 generation (from breeding F1 brother to sister), you pick an F2 male that looks most like your original strain and which has the new feature and then breed him to females from your original, pure strain which you have kept pure for exactly this purpose. This gives you the F3 generation from the initial outcross. This F3 generation will now show the recessive trait. (From here on it is going to Sound complicated, but it really isn't.) You must remember that what we mean when we say a trait is recessive is that an individual will not display a recessive trait unless he (or she) got the necessary genes from both parents. This F3 generation had and F2 male which did have the recessive trait for their father and their mother was from your original strain which does not carry the recessive; therefore, the F3's got the recessive genes from only one parent. Each offspring in the F3 generation carries the recessive genes, but there will not be visible evidence of it.
The next step is to breed brother to sister from the F3 to give offspring, 25% of which will again show the recessive trait. You can see that when you are breeding a recessive trait back into an established strain which does not carry the recessive, you have to use a two generation cycle for a while. In other words, every other generation you will breed siblings and in the alternate generations you will breed back to your pure strain females. Remember we said there might be another reason why a trait would not show up in the first generation. It might be that the new trait was passed to the F1 females, but not the F1 males. But you never know. Therefore, besides breeding brother to sister from the F1 generation to see if the missing trait is recessive, you must also breed some of the F1 females to males from your original strain to see if the trait you are working for is not recessive, but just carried by the females. If you get the new trait by breeding F1 females to your original strain males, you are off and running. That is, you would breed the males from your original strain into the hybrid females, which will be getting closer, genetically to your original strain after each generation of breeding.
In summary, when an outcross is used to try to add a feature to an established strain, one of three things will happen in the fifth generation:
1) the desired trait is dominant;
2) it will not show in the first generation because it is recessive, or
3) it will not show in the first generation because it is carried by the females. The dominant trait and the trait carried by the females are the easiest to handle. The recessive trait is more difficult. But in all three, your whole purpose is to breed the new trait into your original strain as often as possible. This breeding back to your original strain will mean that you are purifying the hybrids, but it also means that the hybrids will be getting more and more like your original strain. You may start losing the feature you made the initial outcross for and which you got in the first generations after the initial outcross. You have to watch out for that. If things start going the wrong way, then you begin mating brother to sister within the hybrids to see what happens.
Now let us go on to the second situation in which I believe an outcross can be a good thing to do. This is the case of an established highly inbred strain which has developed a major genetic flaw such as infertility, a high percentage of crooked spines, susceptibility to disease, etc. An established strain which is rapidly going downhill because of a genetic problem (but which is still beautiful in other ways) can sometimes be rescued by careful selection of breeders without resorting to an outcross. You would want to try to do that first.
Let me say here that inbreeding guppies, even very close inbreeding, is not of itself harmful. Guppies will take close inbreeding for many generations longer than most of us continue to work with any one strain Without significant loss or size or color or vigor. Dr. Eugene Larr and Dr. W. H. Hildeman, to mention only two genetic scientists who have exhaustively tested the effect of inbreeding on guppies, have both bred guppy strains brother to sister for over eighteen consecutive generations without loss of their desirable characteristics. When highly inbred strains develop serious genetic defects, and they often do. it is not because they have been inbred for a long time. It is because the guppy breeder picked fish to use as parents that had some invisible weakness. Though, these weaknesses do not show in the parents, they will show up in succeeding generations, usually in the form of deformities and/or lack of fertility. This sort of thing happens to the best of us. It is a serious problem. After all, if the point is reached that a strain produces no young, the strain is lost. Or a well established strain will begin to throw a high percentage of deformed young in each litter, but the fish which survive undeformed are still beautiful. You would want to try to save these strains. But, what if your established strain just gets worse, no matter how carefully you tried to pick the best parents; you can try an outcross. You still must keep the original strain going if you can, because you are going to bring back the outcross hybrids into the original strain as fast as you can. Again, when you pick the outcross strain, you will want one which looks as much as possible like your own strain, one which is also well established, and one which produces fertile and vigorous young. This is a big order, I know, but having acquired a strain to outcross to your own strain for the purpose of improving fertility and/or vigor, you will proceed as follows. Outcross both ways if at all possible. That is, take your best male and mate him to females of the outcross strain and also take a male from the outcross strain and mate him to females from your original strain. Again, you must keep the offspring from these matings separate. When these F1 hybrids are old enough to select breeders, you pick a male from the best looking of the F1 litters and breed him into females from your original (pure) strain. And you keep doing this in succeeding generations, working the hybrid males back to your pure strain females. If you have enough tank space, you can also try working back into your original strain in the other direction. By that I mean you can also try mating the hybrid female~ from each generation after the outcross back to your pure strain males. My own experience is that you will get better results with the first method, that is, by breeding the hybrid males through your pure strain females. But if you have enough tank space, it wouldn't hurt to try it both ways. Perhaps I have not said enough about why you want the outcross strain to be a well established true breeding strain. Remember, that what an outcross does is scramble together the genetic patterns of the two strains which are crossed. If one side of the cross is itself only a few generations away from a previous outcross, all you have accomplished is to further mix up the genetic patterns. Long experience and experimentation have proved that these hybrid-hybrids may look good for a few generations, but that their mixed up gene patterns soon cause them to regress back to a small, motley fish like their wild ancestors.
By Midge Hill
We all know that the best advice one can receive (and follow) on how to breed show guppies is, ".. get a good quality well established strain and then keep it as pure as you can." Keeping a strain pure is called inbreeding the strain. Inbreeding, means the breeding of fish that are closely related to each other genetically, such as brother to sister, father to daughter, etc. A technique known as linecrossing is used by some breeders to maintain an established strain, and it also comes under the general heading which we refer to loosely as inbreeding. Outcrossing, is the opposite of inbreeding since outcrossing means the mating of fish that are genetically unrelated to each other. Now the reason that all successful guppy breeders outcross strains from time to time but seldom advise others to try it, is because outcrossing is really a form of genetic Russian roulette. A successful outcross, requires that the strains which are crossed may be genetically compatible.
The odds against finding two compatible strains are very high. Even when a good result is obtained from an outcross it is as often due to blind luck as to intelligent selection. There are times, however, when outcrossing may produce something that no amount of inbreeding within a strain will accomplish. There are also times when your only alternative is to outcross, for example, when you buy a fish at a show auction without a related mate. Fortunately, there are ways to improve your chances of getting a good result from an outcross. This is what I want to talk to you about tonight. That is, when to outcross, how to pick the outcross strain, and how to proceed after the initial outcross to get the best result in subsequent generations.
Before I get into the good reasons for outcrossing, I want to point out that there are alot of no-good reasons for outcrossing. Now there is nothing wrong with outcrossing just for the sake of idle curiosity or for some other frivolous reason, as long as you do not pass these fish along. What outcrossing does is to rearrange, to scramble together, the genetic patterns of the two parents. Therefore, offspring from an outcross are genetically all mixed up. They are referred to as hybrids. Play with these hybrids if you want to, but do not pass them along; for they are genetic accidents and are not going to do much good for the hobby.
Getting back to the good reasons for outcrossing, in my view, there are five situations in which outcrossing can be a suitable thing to do:
1) When an established strain will not produce characteristics you want (a larger dorsal, perhaps) because the gene pattern for that characteristic is simply not present in the strain.
2) When you are having trouble with an established strain, infertility, maybe.
3) To outcross for big show hybrids.
4) Necessity, as in the case of a male purchased at a show auction without a related female.
5) To create your own strain. I want to discuss each of these five situations in detail, to tell you why I think outcrossing, as chancey as it is, can be a good thing to do; and how to proceed after the initial outcross, because the breeding techniques are a little different for each type of outcross.
In the first situation, where you have a good established strain but you have not gotten a certain feature you want by inbreeding or linecrossing within the strain, outcrossing can be the solution. Lets say, that you have been working with a strain of reds which are not as bright a red as you would like. Dr. Larr has told us there are about four or five different genes for red. If your strain does not have all of these genes, no amount of inbreeding is going to produce what is not there to begin with. So, you can outcross to try to pick up the missing genes that are needed for a clearer, brighter color. 0r, perhaps, you have been trying to get a larger dorsal. You might be able through inbreeding by careful selection of parents, to get gradually over the years, a larger dorsal, maybe. But there is a chance to use an outcross to pick up a larger dorsal in less time. It goes without saying, doesn't it, that you do not want to lose the fine characteristics of your original strain. So, while you are trying an outcross, you must keep your established strain going, otherwise, it the outcross does not work, you will have lost your strain. Well, what strain do we pick to outcross into an established strain when we want to add a new feature to the established strain? The outcross strain should also be well established that means the strain has bred true over several generations, so that all of the males in each litter look very much alike and each generation looks very much like previous generations. The outcross strain should be of the same type as the strain you are going outcross it to. In other words, you should outcross red to red, blue to blue, halfblack red to halfblack red, etc. And, obviously, the outcross strain must have the particular characteristic you are looking for. When you find a strain that meets the above three requirements as much as possible, you make the outcross both ways. Take your best male, and mate him to females of the outcross strain, and also take a male from the outcross strain and mate him to females from your original strain. You do this because you do not know which way will come out best. And, of course, you have to keep the young separate so you can determine which way the outcross works best.
Offspring from an outcross are referred to as the F1 generation. The second generation after the original outcross is called F2 generation, and so on. If you find a male in the F1 generation that looks like your original strain and also has the new feature from the outcross strain that you were trying for - well, you are just about as lucky as it is possible to be. What has happened is that the feature you wanted proved to be dominant and so it appeared in the first generation. This happens sometimes, and when it does you breed this F1 male to females from your original strain. (Remember, you have kept your original strain going,) This is the proper procedure because you want to work back into your original strain as soon as possible after an outcross. Breeding the F1 male that looks most like your original strain and which also has the new characteristic you want, to females from your original strain produces the F2 generation. You continue to do this, using only females from your original strain, because you must keep working the new characteristic back into that original strain. We have been talking about an outcross which produced the feature we wanted in the first generation. Many outcrosses will not be so lucky. The feature we want will not appear in the first generation, but that does not mean it isn't there. There are two reasons why a feature possessed by a strain used in an outcross may not show up in the first generation:
a) the feature is recessive, or,
b) it is carried only by the females. If a special feature you want (and which was present in one of the strains used in the outcross) does not show up in the F generations, you must take brother and sister from an F1 litter and breed them together to find out if the trait is recessive. If it is recessive, it should show up in 25% of the offspring from this sibling breeding. Assuming that the feature is a recessive, and it shows up in the F2 generation (from breeding F1 brother to sister), you pick an F2 male that looks most like your original strain and which has the new feature and then breed him to females from your original, pure strain which you have kept pure for exactly this purpose. This gives you the F3 generation from the initial outcross. This F3 generation will now show the recessive trait. (From here on it is going to Sound complicated, but it really isn't.) You must remember that what we mean when we say a trait is recessive is that an individual will not display a recessive trait unless he (or she) got the necessary genes from both parents. This F3 generation had and F2 male which did have the recessive trait for their father and their mother was from your original strain which does not carry the recessive; therefore, the F3's got the recessive genes from only one parent. Each offspring in the F3 generation carries the recessive genes, but there will not be visible evidence of it.
The next step is to breed brother to sister from the F3 to give offspring, 25% of which will again show the recessive trait. You can see that when you are breeding a recessive trait back into an established strain which does not carry the recessive, you have to use a two generation cycle for a while. In other words, every other generation you will breed siblings and in the alternate generations you will breed back to your pure strain females. Remember we said there might be another reason why a trait would not show up in the first generation. It might be that the new trait was passed to the F1 females, but not the F1 males. But you never know. Therefore, besides breeding brother to sister from the F1 generation to see if the missing trait is recessive, you must also breed some of the F1 females to males from your original strain to see if the trait you are working for is not recessive, but just carried by the females. If you get the new trait by breeding F1 females to your original strain males, you are off and running. That is, you would breed the males from your original strain into the hybrid females, which will be getting closer, genetically to your original strain after each generation of breeding.
In summary, when an outcross is used to try to add a feature to an established strain, one of three things will happen in the fifth generation:
1) the desired trait is dominant;
2) it will not show in the first generation because it is recessive, or
3) it will not show in the first generation because it is carried by the females. The dominant trait and the trait carried by the females are the easiest to handle. The recessive trait is more difficult. But in all three, your whole purpose is to breed the new trait into your original strain as often as possible. This breeding back to your original strain will mean that you are purifying the hybrids, but it also means that the hybrids will be getting more and more like your original strain. You may start losing the feature you made the initial outcross for and which you got in the first generations after the initial outcross. You have to watch out for that. If things start going the wrong way, then you begin mating brother to sister within the hybrids to see what happens.
Now let us go on to the second situation in which I believe an outcross can be a good thing to do. This is the case of an established highly inbred strain which has developed a major genetic flaw such as infertility, a high percentage of crooked spines, susceptibility to disease, etc. An established strain which is rapidly going downhill because of a genetic problem (but which is still beautiful in other ways) can sometimes be rescued by careful selection of breeders without resorting to an outcross. You would want to try to do that first.
Let me say here that inbreeding guppies, even very close inbreeding, is not of itself harmful. Guppies will take close inbreeding for many generations longer than most of us continue to work with any one strain Without significant loss or size or color or vigor. Dr. Eugene Larr and Dr. W. H. Hildeman, to mention only two genetic scientists who have exhaustively tested the effect of inbreeding on guppies, have both bred guppy strains brother to sister for over eighteen consecutive generations without loss of their desirable characteristics. When highly inbred strains develop serious genetic defects, and they often do. it is not because they have been inbred for a long time. It is because the guppy breeder picked fish to use as parents that had some invisible weakness. Though, these weaknesses do not show in the parents, they will show up in succeeding generations, usually in the form of deformities and/or lack of fertility. This sort of thing happens to the best of us. It is a serious problem. After all, if the point is reached that a strain produces no young, the strain is lost. Or a well established strain will begin to throw a high percentage of deformed young in each litter, but the fish which survive undeformed are still beautiful. You would want to try to save these strains. But, what if your established strain just gets worse, no matter how carefully you tried to pick the best parents; you can try an outcross. You still must keep the original strain going if you can, because you are going to bring back the outcross hybrids into the original strain as fast as you can. Again, when you pick the outcross strain, you will want one which looks as much as possible like your own strain, one which is also well established, and one which produces fertile and vigorous young. This is a big order, I know, but having acquired a strain to outcross to your own strain for the purpose of improving fertility and/or vigor, you will proceed as follows. Outcross both ways if at all possible. That is, take your best male and mate him to females of the outcross strain and also take a male from the outcross strain and mate him to females from your original strain. Again, you must keep the offspring from these matings separate. When these F1 hybrids are old enough to select breeders, you pick a male from the best looking of the F1 litters and breed him into females from your original (pure) strain. And you keep doing this in succeeding generations, working the hybrid males back to your pure strain females. If you have enough tank space, you can also try working back into your original strain in the other direction. By that I mean you can also try mating the hybrid female~ from each generation after the outcross back to your pure strain males. My own experience is that you will get better results with the first method, that is, by breeding the hybrid males through your pure strain females. But if you have enough tank space, it wouldn't hurt to try it both ways. Perhaps I have not said enough about why you want the outcross strain to be a well established true breeding strain. Remember, that what an outcross does is scramble together the genetic patterns of the two strains which are crossed. If one side of the cross is itself only a few generations away from a previous outcross, all you have accomplished is to further mix up the genetic patterns. Long experience and experimentation have proved that these hybrid-hybrids may look good for a few generations, but that their mixed up gene patterns soon cause them to regress back to a small, motley fish like their wild ancestors.
Breeding Techniques
Inbreeding:
This is basically keeping a strain pure. The fish are kept closely related and brother and sister, father and daughter are routinely bred. A breeder will do this sometimes to fix a trait, such as a particular colour or shape. Mostly, you take the best male and female from the drop and breed them. Doing this can provide beautiful fish for years, provided the fish that you start out with are quality and you are lucky enough to choose not only the most attractive fish, but to pick fish as breeders that do not have an invisible weakness-for these will show up in the form of genetic defects, often looked upon as simply the result of "too much inbreeding". Take great care in choosing breeders; many times a strong body is the most desirable trait to keep an inbred line strong.
Line Breeding/Line Crossing:
This method is also a form of inbreeding, however here you start by keeping the fry from two females (either from your new trio or chosen fry from a drop) separate, so that they form two distinct lines. Since you cannot mix batches, this takes more tanks. It is best to choose breeders differently for each line; for instance, in one line, you may pursue a large body mass, and with the other, you may concentrate on finnage. The purpose is to help maintain your established strain, since each line becomes distinct and more distantly related; also, you can have your own two lines to cross occasionally. When you want to increase the size in your fish, for instance, or make an outcross to avoid too much inbreeding, taking someone else's line to do this with is risky and you may loose the traits in your line that you have worked hard to achieve, as well as loosing the homozygous quality of your guppies.
Out Crossing:
This is the opposite of inbreeding - the mating of fish that are unrelated to other. This creates what is called a "hybrid" guppy. "Hybrid" vigor may be seen in such fish-outstanding size, colour, and health. The genetic patterns of the parents are scrambled/mixed up, and such fish may be good for show but not for breeding. An outcross with a fish that itself is only a few generations ahead of an outcross may produce beautiful fish for a few generations, but the loose gene patterns will turn them eventually into a fish resembling the small, original wild guppy usually sold as feeders in pet stores. Although this is, of course, how new strains are produced, it takes much time and knowledge of genetics to create a pure strain. Thus, it is not advisable for the novice to attempt an out cross in order to fix a strain.
PARASITIC DISEASES
In discussing diseases with several of the guppy breeders with longest experience, their greatest difficulties have been shimmies and “ich’, both most often caused in Lebistesby parasites. Another has been troubled by velvet and another who feeds a great deal of live food which he collects from ponds, finds that hydra gives him no end of trouble. There is no uniformity of experience. Ichthyopthirius (Ich)
The microscopic protozoan parasite is named Ichthyophirius multifilis. It attaches itself to the guppy and gets inside the layers or under the skin. There it produces a white spot-sometimes a great many white spots can be seen on one fish. After a few days, depending on the temperature, it emerges and falls to the gravel bottom, and becomes a cyst inside of which hundreds or thousands of tiny parasites develop, eventually released to swim about in this infective stage. In this stage, they are able to live no more than ten days without nourishment and then only in cool water. So you almost never see “ich’ on guppies kept at 80 degrees or more in temperature.
Treatment: Raise the temperature to the 80 -85 degree range. Use any chemical treatment: (1) Metaphen. (2) Mercurochrome. (3) Methylene blue will destroy the organism but blues the tank’s contents. Owning my own guppies, I have never had “‘ich’ since a uniform temperature of 76 – 80 degrees was maintained. No treatment has been necessary.
Ichthyophonus
Ichthyophonus disease is caused by a small organism, Ichthyophonus hoferi, which attacks principally the ovary but is also found in other parts of the fish; causes the fish to become emaciated with a shrunken belly, lose its appetite and move with shaky and unnatural movements (not shimmy). On post mortem the ovary appears to contain a large number of yellowish-white knobs up to the size of a pinhead which are frequently mistaken for tubercles as seen in tuberculosis. The knobs fill the ovary as small ones grow on the larger. In time, the knobs grow through the skin; if the fish lives long enough, these can be seen plainly. Affected fishes have been known to live many months. No cure is known. The best method of control appears to be to remove all victims at the earliest signs of the disease.
Gyrodactylus
When guppies shimmy and when with careful observation you can discern a faint whitish abnormality on their scales, the chances are excellent that they have this tiny leech clinging to their scales and in their gills. This parasite has caused me more trouble than all other parasites combined and until I found cures for it, it made guppy keeping far less fun than it now is. An invasion of gyrodactylus causes a fish to shimmy his life away. It makes one shudder to realize what is happening, that is, when one knows the cause.
The parasite reproduces with great rapidity because of a curious fact. A young individual becomes sexually mature while still in its mother’s uterus and inside of it may be another sexually mature individual and so on. Four generations may be found, one inside the other. No wonder they multiply so rapidly.
The irritation they cause is by their hooks. Each has large (large considering their microscopic size) pair of hooks with which to anchor themselves, and, around their bases, sixteen marginal hooks. The body moves about standing upright from the base. It can elongate or withdraw in accordion-like movements. It is the presence of huge numbers which drives the guppy frantic and eventually kills him.
Treatment: For a slower, but effective cure, use formaldehyde. (2) For immediate curing use 3% ordinary (drugstore strength) hydrogen peroxide diluted with an equal amount of water. Catch all the fish in the tank in one net and dip them for two seconds in the solution. Return them at once to their home. Only very weak ones will succumb. Those without too many parasites will be only momentarily affected. It is seldom necessary to dip a single fish from that aquarium again. This is a drastic cure and is done at the fancier’s risk. Better try it on a few fish first to assure one’s self of the efficiency.
Velvet
A few of these parasites on a fish appear as “ich’. It is when the infestation is heavy and the numbers of organisms together give a velvety appearance that the seriousness of the condition becomes apparent. Velvet is caused by a small yellowish organism called Oodinium linineticum. It has whip-like flagellum to propel itself and another in a constriction in its middle.
On small fry velvet is particularly serious. The parasites have root-like tentacles which penetrate the fish’s skin and through which they draw nourishment from the body. During only the free-swimming, state it is infective. As soon as it anchors itself, it starts to become pear-shaped; the constriction about its middle disappears, and it grows to be about eight times the size of the free-swimming form. After few days feeding from the fish, it drops off and divides, as do its descendants, until it has become almost two-hundred of the free-swimming, infective forms.
Treatment: (1) Acriflavin. (2) Methylene blue diluted as much as one-hundredth of a grain in a gallon of water, killed velvet, provided the temperature has been maintained from 77 to 86 degrees. (3) Mercurochrome. (4) Salt water. Do not remove the fish until all the adult forms have dropped off. These are the hard forms to kill; the infective free-swimming form is easily destroyed. (5) Probably simplest-12 copper pennies in a gallon of water.
Leeches
In introducing pond water to tanks, one is quite likely to bring in a few leeches. These may be of many species. Some can be harmless plant leeches. Others live in the gravel, come out and move rapidly about in the water, especially if disturbed. To most persons this species is obnoxious, yet they do not touch the guppies. In rare instances a young leech may be found attached to a guppy’s side. They have been reported but I have never seen one.
Treatment: To eliminate all kinds of leeches from a tank, clean it completely. New water, new gravel, new plants. Leeches are both male and female in the same individual and need no partner to populate an aquarium when only one is left. In pouring out the old water, take care to see that no leechs slid down under the rim made by the top angle iron, or it will drop back again into the water later on. Any sucking leech clinging to a guppy must be pulled loose with tweezers. This is very dangerous to guppies
Fish Lice
This flat creature which lives on fish is a Copepod of which there are eight suborders, one of which is the argulus with twenty-two species found in America. The female louse lays from 30 to 200 eggs. The young must pass through eight transitions or stages before they become adult, a process requiring about eight weeks. Some are salt-water and some fresh-water forms. A. versicalor is prevalent in fresh water. It has two sucking discs, is about a sixteenth of an inch long. In outdoor pools it can destroy all the fish.
Treatment: (1) Salt water cure. (2) Potassium permanganate added to the tank at the rate of one-fourth grain per gallon once a week for three weeks. (3) Pick lice off u>ith tweezers and disinfect the spot.
ABNORMAL GROWTHS
Quite a wide variety of tumors appear on or in guppies. Some are benign, some malignant. Scientists are very interested in such growths but from a practical point of view, it is best to destroy affected fishes.
ENEMIES
Hydra
This little creature, anywhere from a third to one inch in length, is illustrative of how the guppy hobby carries us into related bypaths. Hydra are often introduced into aquaria with pond water and have become the “number one” enemies of guppies. To call them animals may seem like stretching a point if we judge from their appearance. A whole chapter could be written about them-here only the high spots. The animal attaches itself with a sticky substance to the glass or an object in the water. It cannot swim but it can move by a looping movement. The free end of the body has a conical projection called a hypostome on which its mouth is located. At its base is a circlet of long tentacles, five to ten in number. The hydra pulls the fry to its mouth by means of the tentacles, after interesting devices called menatocystshave caught it. Some of the menatocystscontain long spines in long rows. The prey is pierced and paralyzed by the spines whichinject poison. Other cells have thread tubes in them which can lash out and wind around any protuberances on the fry to hold it securely, aided by a glue-like substance which it secretes. In a daphniaculture hydra create havoc. Hydra, when at rest, contract into soft balls. After eating, too, they retract into irregular globular forms. Because they reproduce both by budding and by fertilized eggs, hydra breed very rapidly. They are difficult to eliminate from a tank by washing it or even drying because their eggs have a hard outer shell which resists both drying and washing. The contents of the shell come to life quickly once favorable conditions are established.
A heavy infestation of hydra can destroy or retard the growth of many fry both by killing them and by eating their food which starves them. Hydra are easily seen protruding from their attachments and swaying about.
Treatment: (1) Hydra cannot stand chlorine or heat. If you have city water, remove the fish, drain tank and fill with fresh water. Return guppies two or three days later to the tank. (2) Remove fish, raise water temperature to 105' for 24 hours. When the water has returned to normal, return the fish. (3) Use of ammonium nitrite or ammonium sulphate at the rate of 5 grains per gallon of water will destroy hydra. Dissolve crystals in small amount of water first, then pour this solution into the larger tank. In 3-5 days all hydra will be dead, the guppies remaining unharmed by the solution!!!
Almost all of the other guppy enemies are introduced unintentionally along with tubificids, daphnia or live plants. and belong to the insect kingdom. Nostof them are outdoor enemies, invading pools or large tanks in which fish are kept. There is no treatment for them that will not additionally effect your fish, so all you can do is put mosquito screening over the tanks to prevent entrance by the insects. Here are the principal insect enemies: Dragon fly larvae, Damsel fly larvae, Dobsonfly larvae, Water scorpions, Water boatmen, Back swimmers, Water tigers which are larvae of whirligig beetles, Water scavenger’s larvae, Predacious diving beetle larvae and the Giant water bug.
Leon F. Whitney, D.V.M..
The microscopic protozoan parasite is named Ichthyophirius multifilis. It attaches itself to the guppy and gets inside the layers or under the skin. There it produces a white spot-sometimes a great many white spots can be seen on one fish. After a few days, depending on the temperature, it emerges and falls to the gravel bottom, and becomes a cyst inside of which hundreds or thousands of tiny parasites develop, eventually released to swim about in this infective stage. In this stage, they are able to live no more than ten days without nourishment and then only in cool water. So you almost never see “ich’ on guppies kept at 80 degrees or more in temperature.
Treatment: Raise the temperature to the 80 -85 degree range. Use any chemical treatment: (1) Metaphen. (2) Mercurochrome. (3) Methylene blue will destroy the organism but blues the tank’s contents. Owning my own guppies, I have never had “‘ich’ since a uniform temperature of 76 – 80 degrees was maintained. No treatment has been necessary.
Ichthyophonus
Ichthyophonus disease is caused by a small organism, Ichthyophonus hoferi, which attacks principally the ovary but is also found in other parts of the fish; causes the fish to become emaciated with a shrunken belly, lose its appetite and move with shaky and unnatural movements (not shimmy). On post mortem the ovary appears to contain a large number of yellowish-white knobs up to the size of a pinhead which are frequently mistaken for tubercles as seen in tuberculosis. The knobs fill the ovary as small ones grow on the larger. In time, the knobs grow through the skin; if the fish lives long enough, these can be seen plainly. Affected fishes have been known to live many months. No cure is known. The best method of control appears to be to remove all victims at the earliest signs of the disease.
Gyrodactylus
When guppies shimmy and when with careful observation you can discern a faint whitish abnormality on their scales, the chances are excellent that they have this tiny leech clinging to their scales and in their gills. This parasite has caused me more trouble than all other parasites combined and until I found cures for it, it made guppy keeping far less fun than it now is. An invasion of gyrodactylus causes a fish to shimmy his life away. It makes one shudder to realize what is happening, that is, when one knows the cause.
The parasite reproduces with great rapidity because of a curious fact. A young individual becomes sexually mature while still in its mother’s uterus and inside of it may be another sexually mature individual and so on. Four generations may be found, one inside the other. No wonder they multiply so rapidly.
The irritation they cause is by their hooks. Each has large (large considering their microscopic size) pair of hooks with which to anchor themselves, and, around their bases, sixteen marginal hooks. The body moves about standing upright from the base. It can elongate or withdraw in accordion-like movements. It is the presence of huge numbers which drives the guppy frantic and eventually kills him.
Treatment: For a slower, but effective cure, use formaldehyde. (2) For immediate curing use 3% ordinary (drugstore strength) hydrogen peroxide diluted with an equal amount of water. Catch all the fish in the tank in one net and dip them for two seconds in the solution. Return them at once to their home. Only very weak ones will succumb. Those without too many parasites will be only momentarily affected. It is seldom necessary to dip a single fish from that aquarium again. This is a drastic cure and is done at the fancier’s risk. Better try it on a few fish first to assure one’s self of the efficiency.
Velvet
A few of these parasites on a fish appear as “ich’. It is when the infestation is heavy and the numbers of organisms together give a velvety appearance that the seriousness of the condition becomes apparent. Velvet is caused by a small yellowish organism called Oodinium linineticum. It has whip-like flagellum to propel itself and another in a constriction in its middle.
On small fry velvet is particularly serious. The parasites have root-like tentacles which penetrate the fish’s skin and through which they draw nourishment from the body. During only the free-swimming, state it is infective. As soon as it anchors itself, it starts to become pear-shaped; the constriction about its middle disappears, and it grows to be about eight times the size of the free-swimming form. After few days feeding from the fish, it drops off and divides, as do its descendants, until it has become almost two-hundred of the free-swimming, infective forms.
Treatment: (1) Acriflavin. (2) Methylene blue diluted as much as one-hundredth of a grain in a gallon of water, killed velvet, provided the temperature has been maintained from 77 to 86 degrees. (3) Mercurochrome. (4) Salt water. Do not remove the fish until all the adult forms have dropped off. These are the hard forms to kill; the infective free-swimming form is easily destroyed. (5) Probably simplest-12 copper pennies in a gallon of water.
Leeches
In introducing pond water to tanks, one is quite likely to bring in a few leeches. These may be of many species. Some can be harmless plant leeches. Others live in the gravel, come out and move rapidly about in the water, especially if disturbed. To most persons this species is obnoxious, yet they do not touch the guppies. In rare instances a young leech may be found attached to a guppy’s side. They have been reported but I have never seen one.
Treatment: To eliminate all kinds of leeches from a tank, clean it completely. New water, new gravel, new plants. Leeches are both male and female in the same individual and need no partner to populate an aquarium when only one is left. In pouring out the old water, take care to see that no leechs slid down under the rim made by the top angle iron, or it will drop back again into the water later on. Any sucking leech clinging to a guppy must be pulled loose with tweezers. This is very dangerous to guppies
Fish Lice
This flat creature which lives on fish is a Copepod of which there are eight suborders, one of which is the argulus with twenty-two species found in America. The female louse lays from 30 to 200 eggs. The young must pass through eight transitions or stages before they become adult, a process requiring about eight weeks. Some are salt-water and some fresh-water forms. A. versicalor is prevalent in fresh water. It has two sucking discs, is about a sixteenth of an inch long. In outdoor pools it can destroy all the fish.
Treatment: (1) Salt water cure. (2) Potassium permanganate added to the tank at the rate of one-fourth grain per gallon once a week for three weeks. (3) Pick lice off u>ith tweezers and disinfect the spot.
ABNORMAL GROWTHS
Quite a wide variety of tumors appear on or in guppies. Some are benign, some malignant. Scientists are very interested in such growths but from a practical point of view, it is best to destroy affected fishes.
ENEMIES
Hydra
This little creature, anywhere from a third to one inch in length, is illustrative of how the guppy hobby carries us into related bypaths. Hydra are often introduced into aquaria with pond water and have become the “number one” enemies of guppies. To call them animals may seem like stretching a point if we judge from their appearance. A whole chapter could be written about them-here only the high spots. The animal attaches itself with a sticky substance to the glass or an object in the water. It cannot swim but it can move by a looping movement. The free end of the body has a conical projection called a hypostome on which its mouth is located. At its base is a circlet of long tentacles, five to ten in number. The hydra pulls the fry to its mouth by means of the tentacles, after interesting devices called menatocystshave caught it. Some of the menatocystscontain long spines in long rows. The prey is pierced and paralyzed by the spines whichinject poison. Other cells have thread tubes in them which can lash out and wind around any protuberances on the fry to hold it securely, aided by a glue-like substance which it secretes. In a daphniaculture hydra create havoc. Hydra, when at rest, contract into soft balls. After eating, too, they retract into irregular globular forms. Because they reproduce both by budding and by fertilized eggs, hydra breed very rapidly. They are difficult to eliminate from a tank by washing it or even drying because their eggs have a hard outer shell which resists both drying and washing. The contents of the shell come to life quickly once favorable conditions are established.
A heavy infestation of hydra can destroy or retard the growth of many fry both by killing them and by eating their food which starves them. Hydra are easily seen protruding from their attachments and swaying about.
Treatment: (1) Hydra cannot stand chlorine or heat. If you have city water, remove the fish, drain tank and fill with fresh water. Return guppies two or three days later to the tank. (2) Remove fish, raise water temperature to 105' for 24 hours. When the water has returned to normal, return the fish. (3) Use of ammonium nitrite or ammonium sulphate at the rate of 5 grains per gallon of water will destroy hydra. Dissolve crystals in small amount of water first, then pour this solution into the larger tank. In 3-5 days all hydra will be dead, the guppies remaining unharmed by the solution!!!
Almost all of the other guppy enemies are introduced unintentionally along with tubificids, daphnia or live plants. and belong to the insect kingdom. Nostof them are outdoor enemies, invading pools or large tanks in which fish are kept. There is no treatment for them that will not additionally effect your fish, so all you can do is put mosquito screening over the tanks to prevent entrance by the insects. Here are the principal insect enemies: Dragon fly larvae, Damsel fly larvae, Dobsonfly larvae, Water scorpions, Water boatmen, Back swimmers, Water tigers which are larvae of whirligig beetles, Water scavenger’s larvae, Predacious diving beetle larvae and the Giant water bug.
Leon F. Whitney, D.V.M..
BACTERIAL DISEASES
Tuberculosis
This disease kills more fishes than is realized because the effects are generally slow and fishes do not waste as do birds and mammals; they stay plump until they die. The germ, called mycobacterium piscium, has been found in many parts of guppies, even in the eyes. You are not likely to know if your guppies have the disease even when you find them dead. A bacteriologist can make the determination for you. Despite the fact that we keep so many guppies in such small places, tuberculosis does not seem to spread among all the inhabitants. If it does, it is quite rare.
Bloat
When a guppy shows a roughened appearance from the scales standing on end, and it appears to be bloated, it may have an intestinal infection which distends its intestines so greatly that it cannot swim below the surface without great exertion. Some stay in an upright position.
Treatment: Treatment: Try placing the bloated fish in a solution made of two tablespoonfuls of Epsom salts and two tablespoonfuls of Turk Island salt in per gallon of water. Leave it there for 4-6 hours. Then add another gallon of water and let the fish remain in this weaker solution for twelve hours before returning it to tank.
Air Bladder Disease
Some fishes with air bladder ailments will appear to settle on the bottom of the tank and make violent efforts to rise, only to settle down again. Others, called floaters, rise to the top of the tank and are unable to swim down. Students of fish diseases tell us that inflamed organs can reduce the size of the air bladder. Inflammation of the bladder wall also exerts a disastrous influence.
Treatment: Dissolve a teaspoonful of Epsom salts in a pint of water. Immerse the fish in it until it almost ceases its efforts to escape and lies exhausted. Then change the fish to a shallow container in which the water is not more than three times as deep as the fish is thick. Leave him in this water in which you have dissolved an antibiotic until he appears recovered.
Gas Bubble Disease
Bacteria which invade portions of the fish’s body sometimes cause gas which produces lumps. The gas may collect behind the eyes and pop them forward. The exact cause is not known for certain, but successful treatments are.
Treatment: (1) Aurcomycin. (2) An old successful method involving the simple matter of placing the fish in a tank of long-used water. The high nitrogen content is believed to relieve the condition.
DEFICIENCY DISEASES
Except for vitamin D deficiency, very little is known about fish deficiency diseases. The very nature of their natural food almost warrants they receive all the known vitamins, but under artificial conditions they could conceivably have a deficiency. Mineral deficiencies are doubtless common, a fact we can determine knowing the inadequate diets often fed to guppies.
Rickets
A disease caused by a deficiency of calcium or phosphorus or vitamin D; one, two or all three. A crooked spine and the resulting bend in the fish’s body is the usual evidence, although the unfortunate humpback can live and even reproduce. It is not a pleasant sight among the fishes of the aquarium.
Proper lighting can prevent D deficiency; the active rays affect ergosterol in the skin of the fish and change it to the irradiated form which is vitamin D. Sometimes whole aquariums will show bent spines but generally only a few of the fishes are affected. There is no treatment; it is all a matter of prevention which is primarily a matter of proper feeding of a complete diet. TOP
This disease kills more fishes than is realized because the effects are generally slow and fishes do not waste as do birds and mammals; they stay plump until they die. The germ, called mycobacterium piscium, has been found in many parts of guppies, even in the eyes. You are not likely to know if your guppies have the disease even when you find them dead. A bacteriologist can make the determination for you. Despite the fact that we keep so many guppies in such small places, tuberculosis does not seem to spread among all the inhabitants. If it does, it is quite rare.
Bloat
When a guppy shows a roughened appearance from the scales standing on end, and it appears to be bloated, it may have an intestinal infection which distends its intestines so greatly that it cannot swim below the surface without great exertion. Some stay in an upright position.
Treatment: Treatment: Try placing the bloated fish in a solution made of two tablespoonfuls of Epsom salts and two tablespoonfuls of Turk Island salt in per gallon of water. Leave it there for 4-6 hours. Then add another gallon of water and let the fish remain in this weaker solution for twelve hours before returning it to tank.
Air Bladder Disease
Some fishes with air bladder ailments will appear to settle on the bottom of the tank and make violent efforts to rise, only to settle down again. Others, called floaters, rise to the top of the tank and are unable to swim down. Students of fish diseases tell us that inflamed organs can reduce the size of the air bladder. Inflammation of the bladder wall also exerts a disastrous influence.
Treatment: Dissolve a teaspoonful of Epsom salts in a pint of water. Immerse the fish in it until it almost ceases its efforts to escape and lies exhausted. Then change the fish to a shallow container in which the water is not more than three times as deep as the fish is thick. Leave him in this water in which you have dissolved an antibiotic until he appears recovered.
Gas Bubble Disease
Bacteria which invade portions of the fish’s body sometimes cause gas which produces lumps. The gas may collect behind the eyes and pop them forward. The exact cause is not known for certain, but successful treatments are.
Treatment: (1) Aurcomycin. (2) An old successful method involving the simple matter of placing the fish in a tank of long-used water. The high nitrogen content is believed to relieve the condition.
DEFICIENCY DISEASES
Except for vitamin D deficiency, very little is known about fish deficiency diseases. The very nature of their natural food almost warrants they receive all the known vitamins, but under artificial conditions they could conceivably have a deficiency. Mineral deficiencies are doubtless common, a fact we can determine knowing the inadequate diets often fed to guppies.
Rickets
A disease caused by a deficiency of calcium or phosphorus or vitamin D; one, two or all three. A crooked spine and the resulting bend in the fish’s body is the usual evidence, although the unfortunate humpback can live and even reproduce. It is not a pleasant sight among the fishes of the aquarium.
Proper lighting can prevent D deficiency; the active rays affect ergosterol in the skin of the fish and change it to the irradiated form which is vitamin D. Sometimes whole aquariums will show bent spines but generally only a few of the fishes are affected. There is no treatment; it is all a matter of prevention which is primarily a matter of proper feeding of a complete diet. TOP
Guppy Diseases
Guppies have a common way of getting sick. Well see all fish have a slime coat on their skin, and this slime coat protects them from bacteria and parasites. So when fish get stressed their slime coat wears off. So since their slime coat is gone they are open for all these germs to attack them which usually gets them really sick. There’s many way guppies can get stressed. Well one way is that other fish in the tank chase them. Or if you keep putting the net in the tank and making them run from it, and many other ways. So always try to keep your guppies stress free as much as possible.
Guppies can get some unpleasant diseases. So here are some of the diseases and the treatment for the guppy.
Note these cures are home cures, it’s easier to just go to the store and buy medicine for the fish!
Water Poisoning
The most common killer of guppies is water poisoning. Water with minerals which kills guppies, poisons them. Water running through long lead pipes can kill them insidiously as it has been known to have killed human beings. Just as lethal are copper pipes which can be found in most homes in Americans have built since the early 50′s. Copper in concentration of 0.2 parts per million will kill some fishes in twenty-four hours. Such small tiny amounts of copper as to seem inconsequential have been found to destroy infusoria and other minute foods on which guppy fry (babies) need to thrive. Water too acid, too alkaline or too salty may be lethal. Fresh water from a tap from the city supply may kill due to its high chlorine content. Some spring water, much deep well water and rain water is unfit for guppies to live in, contrary from what you’ve probably heard in the past. Improper aquarium cement, silicone sealer and ornamentation are also potentially lethal through poisoning. Improper water, caused by any of the above mentioned sources is probably the #1 killer of guppies.
Food Poisoning
A very common, yet oftentimes overlooked cause of death to guppies is food poisoning. Overfeeding produces fermentation and decomposition; where insufficient aeration is afforded, the toxins made by the bacteria growing in the uneaten food can kill your fish. Food poisoning creates secondary problems through bacterial growth that can result in fungal diseases.
Since most people who raise fancy guppies tend to feed from 5 to 10 times a day, it is important to feed only what your fish will consume in 5 minutes, to make sure that you have adequate aeration and filtration and to maintain a strong regimen of partial water changes. Doing these things will virtually eliminate any possibility of food poisoning. TOP
Carbon Dioxide Poisoning
Overcrowding usually accounts for this fate. Too much carbon dioxide given off, insufficient plants and light to turn it into plant growth, low or no aeration to help with the carbon dioxide/oxygen exchange in the water, and the end result is, of course, dead guppies. The effects of this are quite visible by the fish hanging near the surface, gasping for air. A simple air stone emitting a stream of fine bubbles is all that is needed to prevent carbon dioxide poisoning.
Dying Plants Poisoning
Under certain conditions, decomposing plants which have died will release chemical compounds into the water which can kill your guppies. The water may take on an acrid odor, which sometimes is so strong you will notice it upon first entering your fish room. Any trace or hint of an abnormal odor emanating from your aquaria should set you immediately to search for the cause. Even algae, being plants, have the potential to kill your guppies if enough die at one time.
I know that it is a common practice among many guppy breeders to keep bare tanks without any plants at all. Personally, I have always kept potted plants in all of my tanks, mainly Water Sprite as an indicator of overall water quality and java moss as an excellent hiding place for newborn guppies. In my opinion, guppies prefer this environment and they are certainly more interesting and aesthetically pleasing to look at. Again, I repeat, the top breeders eschew any plants in their tanks but for me keeping bare tanks is boring and unattractive. I enjoy watching my guppies pick at the plants and the bits of food and algae they contain. It’s simply a matter of taste, as to which type of guppy tank you keep.
Household Contaminants
Fly sprays used in the home have killed fishes for as long as they’ve been in use. One variety of insect killer, rotonone, will kill guppies in a dilution of one part in 13,000,000 parts of water. Others are just, if not more deadly, so never allow anyone in your household to use any of these sprays to control flying insects. Even if used in another room, or another floor of a house, they can still be quite deadly to your fishes. In out-door pools, the killing of fishes by dogs covered with flea powder, jumping into the pools, or by poison dust or sprays used on bushes, flowers or vegetable gardens in the area which blows onto the water’s surface, have accounted for many large losses.
Soap and other household disinfectants not rinsed out properly after washing tanks will kill fishes. Cleaning aquarium glass with improperly washed containers which may have held soap or scouring powder is a dangerous practice. Always keep a bucket to be used ONLY for your fish, and never for any other household chore. Even your own hands which always seem to be in a tank for one reason or another can be dangerous. Fish have been killed by reaching into an aquarium without properly rinsing their hands after they have handled the aforementioned insect poisons, or treated their pets with a flea and tick compound, or even given them a dry bath. Oh, by the way. The best way to clean aquarium glass is with newspaper and white vinegar. Nothing beats it. Stay away from Windex, Glass Plus and all the other commercial glass cleaning products. They can cause you trouble.
Fungus Diseases
Fungus grows differently from bacteria and the organisms whichconstitute this group do strange things. Some turn into resistant forms called spores which wait for suitable conditions before they develop into characteristic and recognizable patterns. Others, like yeast, push out buds which break off and become organisms. The so-called myceleumthreads of some fungi are most interesting because they produce the effect which we call mold – a dense thicket of such small threads, that they appear like satin but are easily smashed flat. Some invade an area and grow what appears to be slime. Some fungi are motile, that is they have whip-like appendages with which they propel themselves, much in the same manner as human spermatozoa.
Note: The reference for this section is a bit dated. Although many of these products and treatments are still helpful and available, there are new classes of drugs and treatment compounds available at your local tropical fish store. Once I get the basic information entered, I will update the material to include the very latest in treatments.
Always remember that it is impossible to effectively treat a sick fish without first making an accurate diagnosis. Since so many questions on the Guppy Forum were disease and treatment related, I felt it necessary to make the completion of this page a priority. I hope it helps you maintain a healthy aquarium.
Saprolegnia
If on the fishes body, a white slimy, flattish patch appears which seems to have replaced a part of the fish’s skin, it is probably saprolegnia.
Treatment: Isolate the affected fish and disinfect the net. (1) Add two drops of tincture of metaphen to each gallon of water in the tank to attempt to destroy the organism. Several other treatments of the sick fish are also recommended: (2) Salt treatment, (3) heat treatment, (4) Apply hydrogen peroxide to the spot while holding fish in a damp net. Let it disinfect for 15-30 seconds before returning fish to the aquarium. Be sure to re-disinfect the net. (5) Malachite green, (6) Methyline Blue, (7) Acriflavin.
Mouth Fungus
A very common guppy disease, mouth fungus, kills millions of guppies every year. From a small whitish area which prevents the fish from closing its mouth, the whole mouth becomes filled with a spongy-looking accumulation and the fish dies. If you examine the cottony growth from the mouth through a microscope, you will find it to be composed of an enormous number of moving organisms. The growth not only occludes the mouth but etches away at the tissue. Most people believe that this occlusion prevents the guppy from eating and therefore the guppy starves to death, but this is not the case. The necessary stream of water through the mouth and out of the gills can no longer pass and this is what ultimately kills the fish. Affected fish are extremely listless and hang near the surface, even in well aerated tanks.
Treatment: (1) Aureomycin, 250 mg. to a IO-gallon tank. (2) Mercurochrome, only 1 drop per gallon, is said to destroy organism. (3) Metaphen, 2 drops per gallon.
Crown Fungus
When you see tiny myceleum threads radiating upward and outward from a smallish spot, making what looks like a crown or miniature drawing of the sun’s rays, it is probably crown fungus. The rays may grow an eighth of an inch long before they are brushed off.
Treatment: (1) Mercurochrome. (2) Touch Spot with hydrogen peroxide. (3) Aureomycin, 50-100 mg. per gallon and water changed after 3 days.
Fin and Tail Fungus
Sometimes grayish or whitish areas appear on the fins and the tail, etching out areas and interfering with swimming. This is more prevalent in fishes kept at temperature too cool for their comfort.
Treatment: (1) Raise the temperature. (2) Hold the fish in a damp cloth and apply a 1-3 solution of hydrogen peroxide. If the fungus is in the tail only, let the tail swish in the solution. The dead tissue will slough off. (3) Mercurochrome. (4) Metaphen in tank or applied directly.
Gill Sickness
Possibly gill inflammation is caused by many organisms. The gills appear redder than normal and the gill covers, the operculistand well out so the gills are visible. The progress of the disease is slow- In older fishes, emaciation occurs, the fish. may eat, but not well, and it swims about in an apprehensive fashion. Small fry are lulled quickly. Some experts believe the disease to be a virus, some bacterial, but the type which affects most guppies has consistently been a fungus.
Treatment: Since affected fishes are seldom hardy even if they do recover, it seems best to destroy the diseased fish as soon as they show signs of the sickness. Treatments which have been tried and have not been successful in the gill inflammation among guppies are aureomycin, penicillin, terramycin, hydrogen peroxide. Yet some fanciers have reported miraculous results with antibiotics, an indication that there are several causes, some of which are killed by antibiotics and some not. (1) Metaphen. (2) Mercurochrome. (3) Potassium permanganate. (4) Give fishes some more room. (5) Try using chlorinated city water, leaving fishes in an hour at a time. (6) For large fry and adults, the salt treatment.
Leon F. Whitney, D.V.M..
Guppies can get some unpleasant diseases. So here are some of the diseases and the treatment for the guppy.
Note these cures are home cures, it’s easier to just go to the store and buy medicine for the fish!
Water Poisoning
The most common killer of guppies is water poisoning. Water with minerals which kills guppies, poisons them. Water running through long lead pipes can kill them insidiously as it has been known to have killed human beings. Just as lethal are copper pipes which can be found in most homes in Americans have built since the early 50′s. Copper in concentration of 0.2 parts per million will kill some fishes in twenty-four hours. Such small tiny amounts of copper as to seem inconsequential have been found to destroy infusoria and other minute foods on which guppy fry (babies) need to thrive. Water too acid, too alkaline or too salty may be lethal. Fresh water from a tap from the city supply may kill due to its high chlorine content. Some spring water, much deep well water and rain water is unfit for guppies to live in, contrary from what you’ve probably heard in the past. Improper aquarium cement, silicone sealer and ornamentation are also potentially lethal through poisoning. Improper water, caused by any of the above mentioned sources is probably the #1 killer of guppies.
Food Poisoning
A very common, yet oftentimes overlooked cause of death to guppies is food poisoning. Overfeeding produces fermentation and decomposition; where insufficient aeration is afforded, the toxins made by the bacteria growing in the uneaten food can kill your fish. Food poisoning creates secondary problems through bacterial growth that can result in fungal diseases.
Since most people who raise fancy guppies tend to feed from 5 to 10 times a day, it is important to feed only what your fish will consume in 5 minutes, to make sure that you have adequate aeration and filtration and to maintain a strong regimen of partial water changes. Doing these things will virtually eliminate any possibility of food poisoning. TOP
Carbon Dioxide Poisoning
Overcrowding usually accounts for this fate. Too much carbon dioxide given off, insufficient plants and light to turn it into plant growth, low or no aeration to help with the carbon dioxide/oxygen exchange in the water, and the end result is, of course, dead guppies. The effects of this are quite visible by the fish hanging near the surface, gasping for air. A simple air stone emitting a stream of fine bubbles is all that is needed to prevent carbon dioxide poisoning.
Dying Plants Poisoning
Under certain conditions, decomposing plants which have died will release chemical compounds into the water which can kill your guppies. The water may take on an acrid odor, which sometimes is so strong you will notice it upon first entering your fish room. Any trace or hint of an abnormal odor emanating from your aquaria should set you immediately to search for the cause. Even algae, being plants, have the potential to kill your guppies if enough die at one time.
I know that it is a common practice among many guppy breeders to keep bare tanks without any plants at all. Personally, I have always kept potted plants in all of my tanks, mainly Water Sprite as an indicator of overall water quality and java moss as an excellent hiding place for newborn guppies. In my opinion, guppies prefer this environment and they are certainly more interesting and aesthetically pleasing to look at. Again, I repeat, the top breeders eschew any plants in their tanks but for me keeping bare tanks is boring and unattractive. I enjoy watching my guppies pick at the plants and the bits of food and algae they contain. It’s simply a matter of taste, as to which type of guppy tank you keep.
Household Contaminants
Fly sprays used in the home have killed fishes for as long as they’ve been in use. One variety of insect killer, rotonone, will kill guppies in a dilution of one part in 13,000,000 parts of water. Others are just, if not more deadly, so never allow anyone in your household to use any of these sprays to control flying insects. Even if used in another room, or another floor of a house, they can still be quite deadly to your fishes. In out-door pools, the killing of fishes by dogs covered with flea powder, jumping into the pools, or by poison dust or sprays used on bushes, flowers or vegetable gardens in the area which blows onto the water’s surface, have accounted for many large losses.
Soap and other household disinfectants not rinsed out properly after washing tanks will kill fishes. Cleaning aquarium glass with improperly washed containers which may have held soap or scouring powder is a dangerous practice. Always keep a bucket to be used ONLY for your fish, and never for any other household chore. Even your own hands which always seem to be in a tank for one reason or another can be dangerous. Fish have been killed by reaching into an aquarium without properly rinsing their hands after they have handled the aforementioned insect poisons, or treated their pets with a flea and tick compound, or even given them a dry bath. Oh, by the way. The best way to clean aquarium glass is with newspaper and white vinegar. Nothing beats it. Stay away from Windex, Glass Plus and all the other commercial glass cleaning products. They can cause you trouble.
Fungus Diseases
Fungus grows differently from bacteria and the organisms whichconstitute this group do strange things. Some turn into resistant forms called spores which wait for suitable conditions before they develop into characteristic and recognizable patterns. Others, like yeast, push out buds which break off and become organisms. The so-called myceleumthreads of some fungi are most interesting because they produce the effect which we call mold – a dense thicket of such small threads, that they appear like satin but are easily smashed flat. Some invade an area and grow what appears to be slime. Some fungi are motile, that is they have whip-like appendages with which they propel themselves, much in the same manner as human spermatozoa.
Note: The reference for this section is a bit dated. Although many of these products and treatments are still helpful and available, there are new classes of drugs and treatment compounds available at your local tropical fish store. Once I get the basic information entered, I will update the material to include the very latest in treatments.
Always remember that it is impossible to effectively treat a sick fish without first making an accurate diagnosis. Since so many questions on the Guppy Forum were disease and treatment related, I felt it necessary to make the completion of this page a priority. I hope it helps you maintain a healthy aquarium.
Saprolegnia
If on the fishes body, a white slimy, flattish patch appears which seems to have replaced a part of the fish’s skin, it is probably saprolegnia.
Treatment: Isolate the affected fish and disinfect the net. (1) Add two drops of tincture of metaphen to each gallon of water in the tank to attempt to destroy the organism. Several other treatments of the sick fish are also recommended: (2) Salt treatment, (3) heat treatment, (4) Apply hydrogen peroxide to the spot while holding fish in a damp net. Let it disinfect for 15-30 seconds before returning fish to the aquarium. Be sure to re-disinfect the net. (5) Malachite green, (6) Methyline Blue, (7) Acriflavin.
Mouth Fungus
A very common guppy disease, mouth fungus, kills millions of guppies every year. From a small whitish area which prevents the fish from closing its mouth, the whole mouth becomes filled with a spongy-looking accumulation and the fish dies. If you examine the cottony growth from the mouth through a microscope, you will find it to be composed of an enormous number of moving organisms. The growth not only occludes the mouth but etches away at the tissue. Most people believe that this occlusion prevents the guppy from eating and therefore the guppy starves to death, but this is not the case. The necessary stream of water through the mouth and out of the gills can no longer pass and this is what ultimately kills the fish. Affected fish are extremely listless and hang near the surface, even in well aerated tanks.
Treatment: (1) Aureomycin, 250 mg. to a IO-gallon tank. (2) Mercurochrome, only 1 drop per gallon, is said to destroy organism. (3) Metaphen, 2 drops per gallon.
Crown Fungus
When you see tiny myceleum threads radiating upward and outward from a smallish spot, making what looks like a crown or miniature drawing of the sun’s rays, it is probably crown fungus. The rays may grow an eighth of an inch long before they are brushed off.
Treatment: (1) Mercurochrome. (2) Touch Spot with hydrogen peroxide. (3) Aureomycin, 50-100 mg. per gallon and water changed after 3 days.
Fin and Tail Fungus
Sometimes grayish or whitish areas appear on the fins and the tail, etching out areas and interfering with swimming. This is more prevalent in fishes kept at temperature too cool for their comfort.
Treatment: (1) Raise the temperature. (2) Hold the fish in a damp cloth and apply a 1-3 solution of hydrogen peroxide. If the fungus is in the tail only, let the tail swish in the solution. The dead tissue will slough off. (3) Mercurochrome. (4) Metaphen in tank or applied directly.
Gill Sickness
Possibly gill inflammation is caused by many organisms. The gills appear redder than normal and the gill covers, the operculistand well out so the gills are visible. The progress of the disease is slow- In older fishes, emaciation occurs, the fish. may eat, but not well, and it swims about in an apprehensive fashion. Small fry are lulled quickly. Some experts believe the disease to be a virus, some bacterial, but the type which affects most guppies has consistently been a fungus.
Treatment: Since affected fishes are seldom hardy even if they do recover, it seems best to destroy the diseased fish as soon as they show signs of the sickness. Treatments which have been tried and have not been successful in the gill inflammation among guppies are aureomycin, penicillin, terramycin, hydrogen peroxide. Yet some fanciers have reported miraculous results with antibiotics, an indication that there are several causes, some of which are killed by antibiotics and some not. (1) Metaphen. (2) Mercurochrome. (3) Potassium permanganate. (4) Give fishes some more room. (5) Try using chlorinated city water, leaving fishes in an hour at a time. (6) For large fry and adults, the salt treatment.
Leon F. Whitney, D.V.M..
Caring for the new born fry
What do I feed the newly born fries?
As guppy is live bearer, it is quite easy to raise their fries. Some may take finely crushed flake foods from the start, and only require frequent water changes to keep up with their growth.
Personally I prefer to feed them with hatched baby brine shrimp. You may also use live daphnia or microworms. These live food are most ideal for fries in their first 1 month.
Try not to overfeed in each feeding session as uneaten food may cause the water to foul up. Feed what the fries can finish up in not more than 5 minutes.
Tank setup and maintenance
Tank care and feeding are two vital considerations in getting young fish started to develop into fine mature guppies. Tank care can be broken into temperature of the water, filtration, water changes and the number of fish per unit of water. Young guppies should be maintained at a water temperature of 76 to 80 degrees At these temperatures they consume more food, allowing them to grow and develop much faster compared to lower temperatures (72 to 74 degrees).
A tank without gravel is best for young guppies. A box filter with medium air is the adequate filtration. The filter should be kept clean with floss changed every two weeks. Before changing the filter, the sides and bottom of the tank should be wiped with a clean sponge and the water change should be made in conjunction with the filter change. Water changes should be made when the fish are two weeks of age and weekly thereafter. A 35 to 50% change weekIy should be adequate with aged water at the same temperature. If unaged water is used, changes may be dropped to 20 to 35% weekly as fish may become uncomfortable if larger changes are made.
The entire litter (20 to 50) can be maintained in a five gallon tank the first two weeks, but then should be given more space. At one month of age, young males should be placed in a tank by themselves with no more than two fish per gallon of water. As the males develop, they should be given one gallon of water per fish.
How often do I feed the fries?
Guppy fries have very small intestinal tracts that must be refilled every 20 minutes to get maximum growth. Since a twenty-minute feeding regime is impractical, one may feed every 2 hours for 8-10 feedings a day.
Fries may be fed solely on live brine shrimp for the first week, and then begins supplementing with dry crushed flake food. Ensure that the crushed flake food is not too big for the fry’s mouth.
The first feed in the morning is best to start off with the crushed flake food as the fries will be hungry, and alternate it with brime shrimp throughout the day.
To get maximum growth rate for fries, it is best to use live food especially the first month.
How fast will the fries grow?
Depending on the strain, if fed with live food and properly maintained, the fries can double or triple in size within the first month.
The first month of the fries is the most critical. In this first month, most of the food energy is devoted to body growth, including the development of muscle and bone structure.
It is best to boost the growth of the guppy size between birth and the development of sexual organs.
For most strains, once the sexual development begins (which is about weeks after birth), most food energy is diverted to gamete production.
After the sixth week, more and more energy is devoted to sexual activity. Since female guppies can have their first drop a couple of months after birth, their food energy may be diverted to egg production and providing some nutrition to her fry. As such, breeders usually keep males and females separately to maximize the growth of the guppy.
Growth rate is also affected by the temperature of the tank. Higher temperatures speed up guppy metabolism. However, guppies raised in high temperatures and fed aggressively will have shorter lives and are more prone to disease.
At about six week, the fins start to grow, diverting energy once again from body growth. Therefore, it is important to concentrate on the first month where most growth are exclusive to the guppy size before the energy starts to divert in other directions.
The age at which the guppies start to show secondary colors depends upon the strain. Some strains darken within a day, others may take several weeks. Some male guppies can be selected for color as early as four months.
There are many factors affecting the expression of color in male guppies, from genetic to the food you feed them.
How the Male guppy court the Female guppy?
There are 2 main methods of mating displayed by the male guppy. They may perform a sigmoid display in which the body is held in an S-shape while the fins are extended and quivered. The male often leaps away by as much as 10 cm. A full sigmoid display lasts for several seconds.
Alternatively, males may attempt a sneaky or forced mating in which the female is approached sideways or from behind and the gonopodium is thrust towards her genital pore.
Females are sexually receptive only as virgins or for a few hours once a month following the birth of a brood.
Most non-virgin females ignore male displays and try to avoid sneaky mating attempts. Receptive females respond to a male’s advances by Gliding towards him.
Copulation is accompanied by Arching (in which the female moves close to the male, halts and raises her head and tail slightly) and Wheeling (in which both move round in a tight circle). When it is completed the male often jerks away and may cease sexual activity for 30 min or so.
Below shows some displayed behaviour while courting and copulating;
Preliminary courting activities;
Note :
P = Posturing male orients towards female’s head, but not with body in Signoid curve.
FS = Following Side male swims beside female.
FB = Following Behind male swims behind female.
BC = Biting Cloaca during Following Behind (see below) male bites female near the cloaca (genital pore).
Advanced courting activities;
Note :
SH = Sigmoid High intensity usually directed towards females. Male flexes his body into a strong “C” or “S” shape and vibrates rapidly. Male may be at various angles to female, or even facing away. Degree of intensity (ie. high, medium or low) can depend on either duration of amount of flex in the male’s body. Criterion for intensity should be given.
SL = Sigmoid Low intensity as above, but with either shorter duration or less flex in the male’s body.
Copulation attempt;
Note :
GT = Gonopodial Thrust male swing gonopodium toward female’s cloaca, without making contact.
GC = Gonopodial Contact male touches female’s cloaca briefly with his gonopodium (intromittent organ)
How soon can a pair of guppy start spawning?
Some male guppies will start developing sexual characteristics as early as three weeks, while on the average about 4 to 6 weeks.
Females at this time is best to be separated from the male (sexing them) before they start spawning. Young male guppies with strong sex drives can relentlessly chase females, often to exhaustion. If you are not sexing them, it’s best to maintain a 2:1 ratio (females to males).
How to tell if the female guppy is pregnant?
It is easy to tell if the female guppy is pregnant – signs of pregnancy are a large belly, a boxy-look from the front view, and a darker gravid spot. The obvious black “gravid” spot is where the fry’s eyes forming inside the mother, and this is just in front of her anal fin.
When delivery is near, the female will start having difficulties swimming due the weight of the developing fry. The female will also try to find a hiding place, and will probably start refusing to eat. If you watch them daily during feeding times, you should be able to notice that they may not be eating. Even though some females may appear to ingest food, if you watch carefully they may often spit it out again.
Below shows a 2.5 weeks pregnant female guppy:
Rear view of the gravid spot:
How long does a female guppy gets pregnant?
If you put a male and a virgin female together, as long as the male guppy successfully impregnant the female guppy, she will get pregnant. The gestation period is usually 28 days or 4 weeks.
Virgin females can be bred as early as six weeks and as late as fourteen months, depending on the strain and environmental conditions.
Most breeders recommend that virgin females be bred in the range of three to six months. If you keep the male and females separate, the female will grow bigger and stronger than females raised with males.
In my experience the guppy can get pregnant between 20-24 days after being hit by the males. But some will take a while to get pregnant specially if you don't observed your male. Be sure that all your males are good candidate for breeding.
How long will a female guppy takes to give birth?
Some female guppies will drop young within a couple of hours. Most female guppies will drop during the course of a day, starting early in the day. And a few may drop over a day and a half.
But i have experienced with some females taking a week to drop her fry in a drop tank or cage.
Some females will eat their own fry specialyl gold and albino strain. You may check if the female has eaten her own fries but examining the black fecal matter passed by the mother.
How to tell Male and Female Guppy Apart?
It is easy to tell males and females apart. The males are a lot more colourful and have an elongated and pointed anal fin called the gonopodium. The gonopodium is used to transfer milt to the female.
Females on the other hand, are a lot rounder, have duller colouration and have a rounded anal fin.
Male guppies grow to around 3.5 cm, females are larger and grow to around 6 cm when fully grown.
Male Guppy:
Female Guppy:
Breeder Setup
I followed this approach on the setup I have in my fish room:
A: 2 males to 4 females per 5 1/2 gallon tank
B: 3 males to 3 females per 5 1/2 gallon tank
C: 5 males to 6 females per 10 gallon tank.
D: But never one male to one female because it has low success.
E: A father to daughter is the perfect line breed! (Closest Match)
1: Sister to brother is generally what most breeders use today!
2: Always have a second backup set of breeders.
3: One out of every three generations to keep body size.
Breeding Guppies
Tank Set-Up
1. Breeding tank. A 10-gallon is suitable but I also used 5 and 2.5 gallons on some of my trio.
2. Filtration. You can used a boxed filter or sponge filter they both have good benefits for your tank.(You can also used substrate(gravel) if you prefer) I just got all my tanks barebottom
3. Plants. This is an option but it will also helps your bioload environment in your tank. I would suggest java moss, water sprite, hornwort, cabomba and hydrilla.
4. Temperature. The standard recommendation for Guppies is 65-68 degrees F (18-20 degrees C), but in a breeding aquarium you should increase the temperature to 74-78 degrees F (23-25 degrees C).
5. Female Grow-Out Tank. A 10 gallon is okay.
6. Male Grow-Out Tank. A 10 is good, a 20 long is better.
7. Fry Tank. I've been using 10 gallons for my fry tank and then I moved them to a bigger tank after 2-4 weeks in a bigger tank like a 20-gallon or 55-gallon. The larger your raising tank, the faster the fry will reach maturity. (More frequent water changes and smaller, more frequent feedings will also help.)
ATI Sponge Filter
Boxed Filters
Tank with Boxed Filter
Tank with Sponge Filter
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