Need Help With Guppies

[Vee]

Hi my daughter got a small, ok very small (3 gallon lol)tank and we got two female guppies. Our problem is the larger of the two, a yellow one keeps attacking the smaller blue one. I'm not sure what to do. The blue one's side looks like it's been nibbled at. How can I stop this from happening. The fish store said two small fish in this size tank would be fine. My 8 year old is heartbroken that her fish is going to die.

 

[glolite]

That is a bit too small for guppies, to be honest I would take them back to the shop and explain the problem then ask if you can swap them for a small shoal of neons tetras. If the tank is newly set up then I would just get some shrimps to start with as tetras do not do well in new tanks.

 

[GuppyGoddess]

Hi,

Is the tank cycled? If not, take the fish back and cycle the tank. I have a 3-gallon with two guppies, as well, and both are male and bicker a bit, but do not nip each other or damage each others fins. (it was a MISTAKE on my part to put two guppies in there - learned my lesson with that one.)

A few things. . .get an API ammonia test kit and check the levels. If the tank is new and you decide to keep the fish, you need to be doing A LOT of water changes to get the tank cycled while also keeping the fish healthy. If the ammonia levels stay high, the fish become ill.

If you take the fish back and cycle the tank a good fish for that size of a tank is a Betta. A female betta is better because she will have smaller fins and be able to manuever more easily. Bettas need slow moving currents. . .I have an elipse 3-gallon for my betta and have modified the filter to slow the water flow.

Good luck!

 

[drobbyb]

to TFF Vee! It seems like there may be more than one issue going on here. Firstly, as the others have stated, the tank is really too small for a couple of guppys. I know on the box they show the tank full of fish, but in reality this isn't possible for the long term well being of your stock. Secondly, it takes quite a few weeks to prepare the tank for fish.

You see, fish produce waste constantly in the form of ammonia. It is literally excreted through the gills and also some is found in the fish's waste. In the wild there are thousands of gallons of water to dilute the ammonia. In captivity they are stuck swimming in their own excrement. Luckily for us there are 2 species of bacteria that use ammonia (and nitrite, but I'll cover that in a minute) as food. Unfortunately they are slow growing bacteria, so adding fish too soon is a bad thing.

Once the first type of bacteria have developed, they turn the ammonia into nitrite. Now nitrite is just as harmful to the fish as ammonia. This is where the second species of bacteria come in. The second type of bacteria use nitrite as food and convert it into nitrate. Nitrate isn't as toxic to fish as the other two and some fish can handle more nitrate than others. The nitrate is then removed via a partial waterchange.

That whole process is called the Nitrogen Cycle. It's what makes keeping fish possible in captivity. Keeping fish isn't really about the fish, it's more about these harmless bacteria.

There is a wealth of information located in Beginners Resource Center. Have a read and this should get you pointed in the right direction

 

[TheAquaSpecialist]

Sorry but a 3 Gallon tank is way to small for guppies
They really need a 10 Gallon tank because they tend more to the surface of the water.
Also with a 3 Gallon tank it is nearly impossible to not re-cycle the tank every week because it is so small.
I would recommend that you take them back or get a bigger tank.
If you can't afford a bigger tank no worry. Try looking in local classifieds. If it's still to much then return them.
You could get her some snails for that tank instead.
You could also get her some livebreeder fry(babies) She could raise them til they are half an inch then sell them or give them away.

Hope this helps!
BoomBoom