# easiest breeding fish for a 10g tank w/ 3 neon tetra



## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

I really want some fish to breed in my tank so i decided to go out and buy 2 female and 1 male guppies. That didn't work out too well as they all died within a day or two of them being purchased. I still want fish that will easily breed in a 10g but I don't know what to choose. 

Please give me suggestions.

Thanks


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## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

i can take out the neon tetra if I need too.


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## aquariageek (May 27, 2006)

I would try some "moons" aka "platys". They will get along well with the neons and will breed quite easily. Look them up and see what parameters they need. I actually had a 10 with 3 neons and I think it was 4 moons and I had babies within a month. I simply put a net in and fed them crushed up food and they grew up healthy and strong. 

HTH


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## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

I already have 2 platies but i don't think that they are opposite sex as they have not bred, but I am not sure. If someone could sex them for me that would be great.
heres one:
















heres the other:


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## aquabillpers (Apr 13, 2006)

Few fish are easier to keep or breed than common guppies, but the fancy ones can be quite delicate.

You might consider buying a bunch of feeder guppies at 10 for a dollar or so. Some will die, but enough will survive to keep you in guppies forever. You might get some surprises when you see some of the males when they mature.

Good luck!

Bill


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## black_lung (Dec 19, 2006)

you didn't mention what your water perimeters are. if all your guppies died within 48 hours, there's a very good chance that your ammonia or nitrite levels could be out of whack. how long has the tank been up and running, what's your maintenance schedule like, and what sort of filteration are you running? 

as far as easily bred fish go, guppies are about as easy as it gets and i say give em a second go. i would be wary of feeders though, because often they are kept in horrible conditions and can come with a lot of problems like internal parasites, bacterial infections and so forth. if you get any of them, quarantine and treat for parasites before introducing them to your tetras. also, because feeders are often mixed common and fancy, you'd end up mixing different varieties and produce some potentially weak bloodlines. but they deserve a good life too! so if you just want to keep them and breed their offspring for fun, give them a shot. 

platies are another option; you can easily sex those by looking at their anal fin (small fin right in front of the tail fin). the males will be modified into a long rod-like shape. it looks like the fish in the 2nd picture may be a male (hard to tell from the picture.

you could also try keeping a small school of white clouds. they prefer slightly cooler water than the average tropical and like clear oxygenated water, but breed very easily.


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## aquabillpers (Apr 13, 2006)

Not to quibble  , but . . .



black_lung said:


> you didn't mention what your water perimeters are. if all your guppies died within 48 hours, there's a very good chance that your ammonia or nitrite levels could be out of whack. how long has the tank been up and running, what's your maintenance schedule like, and what sort of filteration are you running?


Since the neons seem to be doing well in that water, it is probably OK, but it might be very different from that to which the guppies were accustomed. That difference can cause stress, disease, and death. As I said, "fancy" guppies can be very sensitive and are harder to keep than the common ones.



> as far as easily bred fish go, guppies are about as easy as it gets and i say give em a second go. i would be wary of feeders though, because often they are kept in horrible conditions and can come with a lot of problems like internal parasites, bacterial infections and so forth. if you get any of them, quarantine and treat for parasites before introducing them to your tetras. also . . .


I'd remove the neons from the tank, add the feeders, and let nature take its course. I would feed the poor things well, since they don't get much food in the feeder tank. Some would die but most would probably survive. And those that do survive would be fairly hardy fish, as would be their offspring.



> . . .because feeders are often mixed common and fancy, you'd end up mixing different varieties and produce some potentially weak bloodlines. but they deserve a good life too! so if you just want to keep them and breed their offspring for fun, give them a shot.


Actually, if you have two strains of guppies or other fish that have "weak" bloodlines, mixing them together would probably result in stronger fish (although they would not look as nice.) The reason for this is that "weak" bloodlines come about because of generic deficiencies that result from generations of close breeding. Mixing them together will help to restore those deficiencies.

Obviously i like feeder guppies. They are hardy, once the sick ones die, and some of the males are quite attractive. And every now and then a real pretty one comes along. That can be the start of a new strain. It probably wouldn't win any prizes, but doing it would be fun and educational.

There! 

Good luck!

Bill


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## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

so do you think I should give guppies one more shot?
and if I do how many should I get for the 10g planted tank? ( I'd be removing the neons)
heres my tank if you need a visual:









you guys have helped me alot! tanks


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## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

PS. where can I find a good info on the drip method of introducing fish???


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## furballi (Feb 2, 2007)

The root cause of your problem appears to be LOW QUALITY guppies. It can be difficult for a novice aquarist to spot high-quality specimens. Check the web for pictures of high quality fish. The fish should be very active and come up for food if you put your hand on top of the tank.


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## aquabillpers (Apr 13, 2006)

ir0n_ma1den said:


> PS. where can I find a good info on the drip method of introducing fish???


If you do a Google search on - "drip method" introducing fish - you will find all kinds of information on that subject.

When I add sensitive fish I usually replace half of the water in which they came with tank water. After a half hour I do that again, and again in another half hour. Then I net the fish, discard the water, and dump then in. I float the bag in the aquarium to keep the temperatures the same.

Or, I just net them and dump them in. I haven't had any problems doing that. 

You have a handsome aquarium!

Good luck.

Bill


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

I'm a big fan of guppies, if you can get a healthy pair or triplet (1 male, 2 females). If your tank remains healthy, you'll never need to buy another fish again. 

BTW, the platty in the first pic is not healthy, and will not be long for this world.  Notice the difference in the stomach. The second fish's stomach is nice and round, the first fish is 'caved in'.


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## NatalieT (Mar 20, 2007)

How many guppies? Well, one pregnant female can do it... Maybe more if you want to hedge your bets. Any female from a tank of mixed sexes can be considered pregnant, or you can pick very pregnant ones by sight (they look about fat enough to burst). A female guppy can have multiple batches of babies without mating again, so buying a male is optional--by the time you need one, the young ones are grown up. (And that female from the tank at the store probably carries babies by several different fathers, so her babies won't all look the same, either.)


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## black_lung (Dec 19, 2006)

> Not to quibble  , but . . .
> 
> Since the neons seem to be doing well in that water, it is probably OK, but it might be very different from that to which the guppies were accustomed. That difference can cause stress, disease, and death. As I said, "fancy" guppies can be very sensitive and are harder to keep than the common ones.


- haha, yeah, it doesn't look like you enjoyed my reply very much 

oh i'm sure his water is fine from the points you made as well as i've seen pics of his tanks and they're stunning. but its never a bad idea IMO to double check just in case especially in the event of sudden death. my thought being that if the tank hadn't been cycled for very long than it's possibly that trace levels of ammonia/nitrite could have briefly shot up enough to kill the already sensitive fancies.



> I'd remove the neons from the tank, add the feeders, and let nature take its course. I would feed the poor things well, since they don't get much food in the feeder tank. Some would die but most would probably survive. And those that do survive would be fairly hardy fish, as would be their offspring.


-that would be the best route to go, i'd think. i was just giving warning about the potential for disease introduction with feeders .



> Actually, if you have two strains of guppies or other fish that have "weak" bloodlines, mixing them together would probably result in stronger fish (although they would not look as nice.) The reason for this is that "weak" bloodlines come about because of generic deficiencies that result from generations of close breeding. Mixing them together will help to restore those deficiencies.
> 
> Obviously i like feeder guppies. They are hardy, once the sick ones die, and some of the males are quite attractive. And every now and then a real pretty one comes along. That can be the start of a new strain. It probably wouldn't win any prizes, but doing it would be fun and educational.


-what i was getting at with that is i'm not sure if he was wanting to take a serious stab at breeding, or if it was just going to be a fun experiment/hobby. if it's just going to be a fun species to keep, than feeders are beyond great and the survivors are indeed hardy creatures. but if he's wanting to produce more viable offspring to resell or give away as something other than feeders, it'd be best to stick with one color strain and make sure they're healthy stock.

i'm a huge fan of giving anything sold as a 'feeder' a great life, i had a pond of rescued goldfish for the longest time and got started keeping fish through feeder guppies. i swear that the 'rescues' are about 20 times more prolific than the actual breeders i've bought in both species, and they can reward you with some unexpectedly beautiful babies sometimes.


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## ir0n_ma1den (Apr 27, 2007)

wow!! So much help  

this tank has been going for about a month so I am pretty sure its cycled. I may have a few reasons why they died. right now I don't have AC so the temperature fluctuates from around 75 at night to 85 through out the day (including right now). I am getting my AC fixed hopefully by tomorrow. Also, when i was introducing them into my tank, the bag slipped into the tank about 15 minutes into the process and therefor the I think it screwed their chances of survival. 

I will give them another try after my AC gets fixed because rapid temperature fluctuation is not fun for the fish or me ( I am sweating just sitting here).
I am also going to scape the tank so it doesn't look like crap and to give the fish and the few remaining ghost shrimp some hiding.

How many guppies should I get?? I was thinking a pair or trio or a quad since I the good LFS sells them in pairs (i think).

thanks for all the help


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## aquabillpers (Apr 13, 2006)

Hi,

I don't think the temperature fluctuations had anything to do with the demise of your guppies. Healthy fish can stand more than that.

As far as how many guppies to buy, that depends on your goals. If you want to raise real pretty guppies, you should by a trio or more from a breeder of guppies, not from your local fish store. The breeder will ensure that you get a pure strain (hopefully).

Or, you can buy a trio from a tank in your local fish store but assume that the offspring will be not as good looking as their parents.

If you just want "easy breeding fish" then buy 10 to 20 feeders for a dollar or two and sit back and enjoy them.

Let us know what you do and how it works out.

Bill


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## bigtroutz (Nov 17, 2006)

Those pictured red wags are both males, it appears to me.

As mentioned by someone else here, the first wag with the caved in belly is sick or extremely underfed.

While red wag females don't get anywhere near as fat as sunburst platys, they are much fatter than males and the male anal fin is modified into a rod shaped gonopodium when the fish reaches sexual maturity

pic of gonopodium here:
http://www.afae.it/pages/tematica/articolipoecilidi/immagini articoloplatycodalira/Lyrapl 4.jpg

My platys, both adults and fry, do fine with those kinds of temperature fluctuations. These are hardy fish and they are pretty hard to kill as long as you take a minimal care of them. Red wags are especially hardy, in my experience.


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## vancat (Nov 5, 2004)

Mollies breed pretty easily too.


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## coolfish15 (Mar 11, 2011)

try swordtails, i have a pair in my 5 g but you could keep, but you could have 4.


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