Impromptu Fry Tank

[parker313]

Hey all,
I bought a bunch of guppies for my community tank (my angels are still little). I had planned on letting the guppies do their thing in the community tank and just letting nature take its course.

Well, I severely underestimated the appallingly poor condition that these guppies are in. I've lost countless guppies, almost all to what I assume to be TB (need to do more research) and have NO fry. Currently I have 3 males and 2 females and one of those females is looking pretty bad off. My other female though, is pretty heavy and looks ready to drop. I would love to get some guppy fry and raise them to be big enough to add back to my community tank.

I don't have a spare 5-10 gallon tank, the best I have currently is a large, 1 gallon Mason jar. I put the guppy in there, along with a plant from my main tank - both for cover for her and the fry and also for the biological stuff on the plant that the fry may nibble on.

I have sponge filters on order, but they aren't here yet and not cycled in any case.

So, for now, is this a good setup, or can you suggest improvements?

1 gallon mason jar
1 female guppy - very pregnant
1 fake plant, cambomba imitation
1 airline tube for surface agitation and aeration (airstone coming in the shipment)

I can do water changes daily with no trouble until the filter comes. I just used my established filter media from my 46g to start my 28g, so I don't want to deplete that any further, though I will if I have to.

Thanks! I'd love to get some good, healthy fry out of this female!

 

[modaz]

you wont any fry b/c she will be dead by the morning with a non cycled tank of any size, i think you are just jumping too hard and she should be put back in the community, she will drop fry again in 4 weeks which will give you enough time to get the new filter and add the mature media to it. just be patient and do the correct thing for the female and not pending fry, you will get more fry from her but you cant if she is DEAD.
sorry to be blunt but thats just the way it is

 

[theotheragentm]

Whether or not the fish came in poor health to begin with, if she is not exhibiting signs of illness currently, it is best for her to be in the community tank. If she is exhibiting signs of poor health, you may want a quarantine tank to keep her separated from the other fish. Like Modaz mentioned, you should be considering the mother and not the upcoming fry only. To increase chance of fry survival, Java Moss is a great addition to the tank. It helps polish off the water for nitrates a bit and provides a hiding place for new fry.

 

[parker313]

OK, back in the community tank she goes then!

I was thinking that in an uncycled tank, that I could change the water often enough to get rid of the nitrates, but it wasn't until just now that I even gave a thought to the other two stages, and that she probably wouldn't be real thrilled with the preceding ammonia buildup.

I don't mind blunt answers at all - just want to clarify though that I wasn't trying to diregard the mother's health - that's why I posted here, to get opinions and think it through from another angle.

Thank you
--Kristin

 

[modaz]

OK, back in the community tank she goes then!

I was thinking that in an uncycled tank, that I could change the water often enough to get rid of the nitrates, but it wasn't until just now that I even gave a thought to the other two stages, and that she probably wouldn't be real thrilled with the preceding ammonia buildup.

I don't mind blunt answers at all - just want to clarify though that I wasn't trying to diregard the mother's health - that's why I posted here, to get opinions and think it through from another angle.

Thank you
--Kristin

thats ok

 

[Jimb0b]

A good tip for fry tank filtration is to use sponge filters and when fry tank isn't in use place them in the community tank to keep them cycled and more importantly ready as by the time you spot a pregnant fish it isn't enough time to cycle a tank properly anyway.

Water changes are a must anyway in fry tanks.Just syphoning off the mess from the tanks floor everyday with airline and replacing the water keeps a clean fry tank i find.

 

[parker313]

Thank you. I have an order in with liveaquaria.com already and in that order will be 2 sponge filters as that was my plan all along I was hoping to catch this batch of fry, but I can wait! I have 1 other female, but she's not very far along.