Best way to get rid of unwanted fish

[Guppylover3x]

I am thinking of getting rid of two of my larger guppies. I feel as though for a fish in cycle I may have started with too many. There is currently 6 of them but there was 7. I feel really awful considering this but I feel it might be for the best at the moment. Has anyone got any recommendations or suggestions? Any advice is appreciated, thank you.

 

[Byron]

Stores may not want guppies, but if they are free, maybe. They might serve as feeder fish. If you have a hobby club in your area, someone there might take them.

 

[Guppylover3x]

Stores may not want guppies, but if they are free, maybe. They might serve as feeder fish. If you have a hobby club in your area, someone there might take them.

I would never want them to be used as feeder fish or treated horribly. If this was the alternative I’d rather keep them. There is no clubs that I’m aware of. I’ve given guppies away before to a store I used to buy them of. This store don’t treat their fish the best and I’ll never buy from them again. I worry that the change in water may come as a shock to them could this be the case? I was told by yourself that I needed to add minerals to my water due to t being too soft. After doing this I am now wondering if this also meant the fish being kept in soft water at the shops? I had no idea about this until you adviced. So I doubt the shop would know. Many thanks.

 

[AbbeysDad]

Hmm....a fish in cycle is in itself considered pretty cruel. There is a market for fancy guppies, while plain guppies are a dime a dozen. Since your LFS doesn't seem to be an option, perhaps there's another store in the next town or so?
In final desperation, done properly, clove oil is the best way to euthanize fish.

 

[Byron]

After doing this I am now wondering if this also meant the fish being kept in soft water at the shops? I had no idea about this until you adviced. So I doubt the shop would know.

Store tanks/water cannot be viewed the same as home tanks/water. The store may just use the tap water, or if knowledgeable may have tanks with harder water for livebearers and such. But whichever, the store intends selling the fish as quickly as possible, and within reason the fish should not normally be harmed by the store water, which frankly will be pretty bad in most cases, as are the tank conditions (décor or lack thereof), but again that is understandable. Once the fish get to your home tank, they are there for life and should have the best you can provide as it is long-term.

 

[Guppylover3x]

Hmm....a fish in cycle is in itself considered pretty cruel. There is a market for fancy guppies, while plain guppies are a dime a dozen. Since your LFS doesn't seem to be an option, perhaps there's another store in the next town or so?
In final desperation, done properly, clove oil is the best way to euthanize fish.

I agree that fish in cycles are generally cruel. I think if you do them properly though they can just about be managed. Plenty of water changes have got me by personally. A fishless cycle would never work for me I don’t think. I’d never kill or harm the fish in any way. Nor would I give them away to anyone and have them treated cruelly. I’ll have a ring around tomorrow and if no where decent accepts fish then I’ll just keep them. Many thanks for the advice.

 

[Guppylover3x]

Store tanks/water cannot be viewed the same as home tanks/water. The store may just use the tap water, or if knowledgeable may have tanks with harder water for livebearers and such. But whichever, the store intends selling the fish as quickly as possible, and within reason the fish should not normally be harmed by the store water, which frankly will be pretty bad in most cases, as are the tank conditions (décor or lack thereof), but again that is understandable. Once the fish get to your home tank, they are there for life and should have the best you can provide as it is long-term.

Many thanks for the advice.

 

[Colin_T]

Just keep them, reduce feeding to a couple of times a week, and do lots of big water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down.

If you have another tank that is established, you can take some filter media from that tank and put it in the new tank to help speed things up.

You can also get liquid bacterial supplements and add them to the tank to help inoculate it with the beneficial filter bacteria. I recommend adding them at a double dose every day for a week. Then if there is any left just pour it in the tank or put it in the fridge and use it on another tank. Try to add the supplement near the filter intake so the bacteria get sucked into the filter where they belong.

 

[Guppylover3x]

Just keep them, reduce feeding to a couple of times a week, and do lots of big water changes to keep the ammonia and nitrite levels down.

If you have another tank that is established, you can take some filter media from that tank and put it in the new tank to help speed things up.

You can also get liquid bacterial supplements and add them to the tank to help inoculate it with the beneficial filter bacteria. I recommend adding them at a double dose every day for a week. Then if there is any left just pour it in the tank or put it in the fridge and use it on another tank. Try to add the supplement near the filter intake so the bacteria get sucked into the filter where they belong.

Many thanks for your response. I think you’re right. I’ll look into buying some tetra safe start. The cycle won’t last forever. Thank you for your help.

 

[The Lumpfish Guy]

Just to add my two cents to the mix, If you have multiple tanks ( as many people do) It might be worth adding inn some extra bio-media somewhere into the tank. So if you need to start a tank in a hurry ( hospital, quarantine, or just a new tank) you can jump start the process my moving this media into the new tank.

I keep "spare" media in all my tanks, just in case .

 

[AbbeysDad]

Just to add my two cents to the mix, If you have multiple tanks ( as many people do) It might be worth adding inn some extra bio-media somewhere into the tank. So if you need to start a tank in a hurry ( hospital, quarantine, or just a new tank) you can jump start the process my moving this media into the new tank.
I keep "spare" media in all my tanks, just in case .

I use bio-sponge in my filters instead of commercial ceramic or pumice like bio-medias. A method I learned years ago is to 'clean' a bio-sponge from a healthy tank's filter in the new tank water. They called it "instant cycle" because enough beneficial bacteria is transferred to seed the new tank's filter and substrate. Then the tank is lightly stocked as the BB settles in and populates according to the available resources.
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I know that Byron has a different method. His tanks (mine too now) all use fast growing floating plants. These plants will use ammonia as their nitrogen source (so nitrites/nitrates are not created). Starting a new tank with these floating plants and a few fish and the plants will buffer as the BB develops over time. The 'trick' is they must be fast growing plants as slow growing plants just don't uptake ammonia quickly enough.
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Note: In heavily planted tanks, with some fast growing plants, plants will use ammonia as a nutrient. This results in lower nitrates since the ammonia->nitrite->nitrate cycle is bypassed.
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