New To Guppies

[Night61]

this is my guppy

he is a fin nipper with an attitude. he was my brothers fish for two years now after a series of bad happies. (chasing other fish until they die) he has now given up on the fish and has given me. (the betta keeper) the task of caring for this fish.

at the moment he is in a one gallon on his own, and given his past he is likely to stay on his own. he is certiantly not going in the tank with my betta.
my question is what is the proper care for this fish. i still want to do right by this fish. what is the minium sized tank he should have? does he need a heater? what is there life span? he is currently at least two that i know about.
what should i give him? i currently have freeze dried blood worm, frozen blood worm, betta pellets and some flakes with shirmp in it designed for bettas. i used water conditioner in his tank like i normally do for bettas is this ok?


also are there different types of guppies? if there are what type of guppy is this little guy.

thank you for the infor.

 

[OldMan47]

All guppies are P reticulata. They are bred to be lots of different colors and fin patterns but they are all the same fish. Care is very easy. They need fresh water just like the betta, they do well at anything from about 70F to 78F. They generally prosper in tanks where the water is a little hard and the pH is over 7.0 but less than about 8.0. They will eat anything the betta will but need more plant material in their food than a betta. In the short term, he will be fine living on betta food but its a bit expensive for the guppy's needs. Any good quality flake food will be fine as the main diet. As far as age, the warmer the water the faster they grow and the shorter they live. I have some that have gone over 3 years but would be surprised by one making it past 5 years. The minimum that I would keep a guppy in would be about 5 gallons but I would not keep him in it alone so the 1 gallon may be enough for a single fish. If your home is comfortable for people, it is probably warm enough to meet the minimum temperature for a guppy. Temperature stability can become a problem but the question is how much can you spend to look after a single guppy in a small tank.

 

[Night61]

All guppies are P reticulata. They are bred to be lots of different colors and fin patterns but they are all the same fish. Care is very easy. They need fresh water just like the betta, they do well at anything from about 70F to 78F. They generally prosper in tanks where the water is a little hard and the pH is over 7.0 but less than about 8.0. They will eat anything the betta will but need more plant material in their food than a betta. In the short term, he will be fine living on betta food but its a bit expensive for the guppy's needs. Any good quality flake food will be fine as the main diet. As far as age, the warmer the water the faster they grow and the shorter they live. I have some that have gone over 3 years but would be surprised by one making it past 5 years. The minimum that I would keep a guppy in would be about 5 gallons but I would not keep him in it alone so the 1 gallon may be enough for a single fish. If your home is comfortable for people, it is probably warm enough to meet the minimum temperature for a guppy. Temperature stability can become a problem but the question is how much can you spend to look after a single guppy in a small tank.

my trouble with this little guy, is he really doesn't play well with other fish. he has left alge eaters alone and the aquatic frogs, but honestly the way he acts some times i think he has a betta personality in a guppy body.

 

[kribensis12]

Wait, so he's been in a tank with betta's? Male or female betta's?

 

[freddythefish]

Nah he didn't say that he said it was like a betta in a guppies body...in other words he acts like a betta.
For a care guide have a look on the aquarium wiki

 

[Hawkins]

If he isnt with a betta, why is there a bubble nest? Is that his?! Are you sure hes a guppy?

 

[kribensis12]

^ There are tooo many bubbles to be a bubble nest, looks to me like in the corner of the pic there is a air driver filter, Air= Bubbles.

 

[Night61]

oh lol thats from a bubbler. he didn't make them. if he was truly a betta. he would be hiding from it.
and he was living with male betta fish. i have two bettas on my own one thats a male, and one thats a shim.

 

[Night61]

how big of a tank should i get him, i was looking into a five gallon hex tank, and get him a couple of ottos do you think this would be a good idea? he has shown no agreession to ottos in the past

 

[lilfishie]

i think a bigger heated filtered tank would be good for him, and if he has shown no aggression to ottos then you may be safe with them