How to Control Your Guppy Population - 9 suggestions for what to do with too many baby guppies!

One of the most (and sometimes least) attractive qualities of the humble Guppy is the speed at which they can reproduce.
In this video, I share 9 different ways you can keep your Guppy population under control.
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When you are new to Red Cherry Shrimp keeping, there is so much information, and misinformation, that it can be hard to know which is which.
I don't think Red Cherry Shrimp keepers need to worry about;
1: Water Temperature
2: Substrate
3: What to feed Red Cherry Shrimp
4: How many shrimp they should start with
5: Algae in the shrimp tank
I have been keeping and breeding shrimp for the past few years, and, at the time of recording, I have spent the last two years making a sizable income each month from breeding shrimp.
During this time, I have picked up a number of tips and tricks to help more of the baby shrimp survive to adulthood. In this video, I share those tips and tricks with you!
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Any information provided in this video is for entertainment purposes only and is just based on my own experiences and should not be considered advice.
This description may contain affiliate links.FishKeepingAnswers.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com

[@SilverSkyCloud]

Pros about having guppies: never ending supply of fish for your tank Cons about having guppies: a never ending supply of fish for your tank

[@pascal590]

Supply for ur viewing pleasure or supply of feeders?

[@Talons_N_Tails]

Love how your not afraid to make suggestions for both sides! Great video ❤

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Thank you. I find you have to be honest and true to yourself 🫶🏻

[@jmixOff]

This video really saves my time ❤

[@NatashaReeder]

All I did was give them a 20 gallon long tank, high quality food, a nice heated tank set at 80 degrees, lots of live plants, a bubble wall, and tons of filtration. Why so many babies 😂😂😂

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😂🤣😂🤣😂

[@Shleeeemp]

😂

[@ericherrera1439]

might as well have put netflix and a couch in the tank as well

[@thundrtkr8910]

I just got some guppies, I finally forgave them for eating my African dwarf frog when I was 5.

[@jeffereyhopkins750]

Great advice. I started with 6 guppies: within 3 months I was donating them to one local fish store (not a chain store). The owner of the second local fish store was very happy and is so thankful.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🫶🏻

[@user-je6xu9em8f]

Man I had my pet store take 100 of them and say "they are going to be used as feeders"😅

[@ronrosen5731]

Very well done. You hit the nail on the head my friend.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Thank you kindly

[@petenewell5377]

Excellent post ... thanks. I have a similar problem with Lyre tail mollies ... population explosion and many of your suggestions match. Cheers!

[@moonbear897]

I had the same problem with Platys. I donated most of them to my local fish shop. Now down to three that I can’t catch. Never again!

[@kyleclark4650]

Solid video!

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Thanks ⭐️

[@OllyBPlayz]

Great advice! I definitely recommend males only if you just want to have a community tank with a colourful look. Guppies can live up to 3 or even 5 years if looked after correctly. And male guppies are very pretty

[@jessicasinclair323]

Excellent advice! I have a paradise fish in with mine. It eats the majority of fry. Had it in with them for just over a year now and from 28 guppies I now have 35. So in my opinion it has worked a treat. And I get to have an awesome centerpiece fish too! They live in a very heavily planted 4ft long low boy

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

This is a great example of a guppy colony growing, but at a controlled rate. 🫶🏻

[@user-je6xu9em8f]

4 foot long is so big for guppies lol. I think anyways maybe I am thinking wrong

[@Scaperoot79]

I'm so glad I found your channel. We added 6 females to a 20 gallon with 2 males about 6 weeks ago. A few weeks ago, we saw the first group of fry, and it's been nonstop since! We currently have over 40 fry swimming around. We're deciding between using them as feeder fish or giving them to a LFS. Thanks for the suggestions👍

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Hey, glad you are having success with your guppies. Hope you decide the best way to keep your population under control

[@TheAquaTopia]

Great video, Richard, as always! I started with 5 guppies, and after 6 weeks later I needed to setup a fry tank with 30+ babies I lost counting them.😅 Keep up the great work!

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🫶🏻

[@laurabustos6560]

I'd definitely recommend anything but Tetras for most of us with smaller tanks. Tetra usually do so much better with many multiple fish together and in a 10-20 gallon tank that's just not happening😅. Dwarf Gourami are also a good fish you can keep just one of to keep that guppy population down. I love the dwarf frog idea!! I hadn't ever thought of that! Just make sure you don't add any copper meds. Back in the day when I set up my first tank, pre Google, I had a dwarf frog that got it's leg stuck in the filter intake. Local fish store guy sold me copper meds to help it... Ya, it killed it. 😱

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤦🏻‍♂️

[@samuraikitty18]

Oh no! Copper kills shrimp, too....

[@shinygems739]

I like to use my extra guppies (adults that don't meet the standards to breed) in some of my hydroponic plant vases to help with mosquito larvae. They are very happy, especially in the summer. But I also keep a beautiful betta and extra fry are wonderful enrichment for him. I'm going to look into my LFS and see if they are willing to trade for store credit too

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

👍🏻

[@_Clayton.Bigsby_]

I've just set up a new tank in my daughter's room as a grow out tank for our guppy fry from our community tank. I put in a few adults for her to keep permanently, but she's thrilled that she gets to raise all the babies up before we donate them to our local fish store.

[@user-je6xu9em8f]

They would do fine in the tank by themselves for the future if for some reason you only want one tank. I know it says the adults will eat them, but not to my experience(s). I have had 10 guppies start hundreds all from those 10. Awesome hobby for your daughter.

[@anokat]

I really like the idea of donating to a LFS! I just got my first guppies a few days ago, so I haven't had any fry yet, but I wanted to start breeding guppies to have a supply of feeder fish for my turtle. And I'm already getting addicted to the hobby lol, I've never actually owned fish before now. I was pretty worried about the population getting out of contol eventually, but after watching this video, I think I'll be okay!

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Glad the video has helped 🫶🏻

[@charlottegilbey6160]

The temperature control one worked wonders in my tank. I found by doing that my fish would stop breeding altogether 😮 problem solved! 😂

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤜🏻

[@jacksonwilliams5399]

I love African dwarf frogs, they’re so goofy and they do a pretty good job at population control.

[@Shmu22]

I keep my guppy tank at 74F ... it does help keep the breeding down a bit. I did this when I got a mystery snail because they need that temperature and the guppies are fine too ... then noticed they don't breed quite as crazy.

[@emhilyard6802]

Thank you for this video!! Me and my partner were also very confused about the sex of our endler babies, and why they still weren't showing color after 2 months and couldn't find any videos about the growth cycle of endler fry!

[@rsousaaquarios]

Having a Kribensis with the Guppies is also a good solution :) I actually lower the water temperature and they breed less.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Yep, Kribensis will do the trick 😂

[@kimniks791]

I started by wanting guppies, came across your channel and now i am in looove with shrimp. I was thinking about keeping them with guppys amd eventually add a frog. Does the frog eat all the shrimp or will they survive?

[@itsallwet]

I have the same problem but with my platies. I have given up on saving the fry to a grow out tank. The only reason I haven't added a predator is that there's also a colony of red cherries in the same tank. Btw, Richard, I have commented on your channel as Helder Sanches several times before, but now I'm keeping all my fishy subscriptions separated from my personal account, hence the change. Thanks.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Hey, love the fact I can chalk you down as two subscribers 🫶🏻 When they are happy, platies can be as prolific as guppies 🙄

[@ffffaaaaiiii]

Same for shrimp. I did started from 5 shrimps and exploded to > 120, to keep the number of shrimp from destroying the ecosystem themselves, I introduced a few neon tetras to the tank and they effectively dropped the number of babies from 20-30 each time to just 3-5.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Much like guppies, if shrimp are not kept under control they will take over your house, steal your car and empty your bank account ☹️

[@user-xp1ce9hc7q]

I wanted guppies, I found the perfect solution and that was to purchase only male guppies. I was stupid in that I trusted a large well known pet store, I bought six males from the male tank. Popped them in my community tank, two died as was told they can be soft and it was possible. Couple of days ago spotted a couple of babies, watched a sexing video on youtube. Studied the four guppies in the tank, and low and behold guess what? I have one female and three males. I am not a happy bunny, dont want to deal with tank explosions. Plus I have now found out that she will be stressed being the only female, I'm only seeing one baby now so reckon the other fish are getting them as I have six danios.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Thanks for taking the time to share. The one piece of good news, if you don't want Guppy babies, is the Danios are fast and veracious eaters. They will pick off almost all the babies

[@EuroGupper]

I keep my guppies at 28°C and I have to attest that they've never looked healthier. I used to get lethargic, sickly skinny guppies like they were never fed. I was always advised to keep them at 24-27°C But I bought 10 Discus and had to raise the temperature to at least 28°C I did it and never looked back. I now keep all 3 of my tropical fish tanks at 28°C. They are healthier, happier, more active fish, and as a plus, when the guppies breed, the discus will hunt down most of the babies. A good alternative hunter is basically any tetra that reaches the same size as an adult guppy (bloodfin tetra, cardinal tetra, red neon tetra). Cardinal tetra start looking like micro tuna when they hunt guppy fry. When buying fish and adding them to your 28°C tank. Acclimate them with a lot of patience, or they will die. I take between 30-60minutes to acclimate. I drop the fish with bag water (from trusted store) into a big hang on back breeding tank and then supply air and 28°C tank water to drip into the hang on back breeding tank. The water will overflow and slowly acclimate the fish. After 30 or so minutes, increase water supply and increase every 10 minutes until an hour has passed and then release the fish into the tank.

[@garrypeak4277]

Hell, I can’t get enough of them breeding, and I kept them on and off for 30 odd years. I almost play Michael Bolton and Barry White CDs next to the tanks to encourage it 😂

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😂

[@garrypeak4277]

@@FishKeepingAnswers Enjoy the channel, mate. You’re edging me closer to trying shrimp for the first time. Cheers from Sydney 👍

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Thanks for the feedback. You should definitely get some shrimp 🦐😎

[@jessicasinclair323]

You must be the only person who can't then. 🤣 I started off with 5 and in the space of a year had around 200plus. The fish shops didn't want them. Thought I'd given them all away to someone who wanted a colony (later found out they fed them to their Oscar). Then discovered that a few fry still in there. Soon bacame 28 so added a paradise fish who does keep a great job at keeping them under control. And I have lowered the temperature 😁

[@garrypeak4277]

@@jessicasinclair323 Guilty as charged 😂. I’m almost 54. I get the same thrill when I see new fry as I did when I was 10. Was one of the main reasons I avoided livebearers for a long time. I’ve never been somebody who could cull or use them as feeders. I do have 2 fish shops within 25 minutes of me that take some off my hands once a month, but pardon the pun, I’m always swimming in guppies and Platys 😊

[@hillaryg7668]

When i was little we kept guppies in a fish bowl with no filter or heater. They bred like crazy but since the bowl was so bare a lot ended as food. The bowl lasted for years and years. I feel bad they were kept in that boring environment knowing what i know today but they adapt easy.

[@mitsubishi2802]

Lol 😂 the best motivational video for me

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤜🏻

[@alinafischbach]

When I was a child I kept Guppies. We have soft water and I didn´t know that Guppies need hard water. Furthermore my father was responsible for the tank and he only did waterchanges 3 to 4 times a year and the waterquality had to be quiet bad. Those 2 reasons led to a short lifespan and a poor reproduction rate of the fish. I never had a probleme of having to many fish. At the moment I only keep Trigonostigma espei and I do weakly waterchanges. I already had some offspring, but not many babies. In the future I will keep Guppies some day again, but I will produce harder water for them by useing mineral salt. I'm curious to see if they will have more offspring then.

[@NathanMUFCfan]

They definitely overtake the tank fast. I had to give away probably 100 guppies to one of my LFS. Luckily, I have one that will take them. I still have some fry in the tank that I couldn't catch. I'm looking to buy some honey gouramis and hoping they eat some of the rest that I didn't get. Livebearers breed way too much, so I'll look to keep some other fish.

[@MacTechG4]

My guppy predator ‘solution’… Crawfish… Specifically the Northern Virile crawfish, native to the northern USA, I got a dozen for $7! I only took two, but paid for the dozen anyway, still cheaper than the $20-40 “fancy” crawfish, and just as much personality. Problem is, they’re so laid back that they ignore the guppies, food pellets don’t swim away from them after all…

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😂 this made me chuckle 👍🏻

[@onlyontfish3784]

What was that little yellow shrimp? He was cute

[@callumberry3652]

Well I actually done #9 without even trying. I keep my guppies without a heater in the UK. Tank varies from 18-20 degrees Celsius. None of them have had any young in 3+ months!

[@samuraikitty18]

Great video! I have a question...I just got a pair of Blue Hawaaiian Moscow guppies, and was told by the seller that these particular guppies don't eat their babies. My female gave birth the day after they arrived to eleven babies. My tank is planted but not heavily, and the babies are all staying at the top. Four days later I still have 11 fry. Am I in trouble? I also have shrimp in the tank so leary of putting in a "predator." I have a female betta but not sure if she would attack the adult guppies. The male's body is so small...he's mostly tail! I'm sure you know, hving shrimp, that they also slow their breeding in cooler water. Thanks and subscribed!

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Hello. Thanks for subscribing. Welcome to the team! I have never heard of a guppy that doesn’t eat it’s babies, but I am always learning. I would watch out! In a few months your tank will be more guppies than water 😂

[@samuraikitty18]

@@FishKeepingAnswers that is my fear, even with a 20L. Wish I could have a larger tank, but space prohibits! Check out these kind, maybe we'll both learn something! I already have interested parties in my local fish group, that's not even talking to LFSs or posting on state fish boards! It will either be a fun hobby with a little $, or a nightmare, lol! Thank you for responding!

[@usmc187]

I started with 8 full grown guppies 50 days ago. Today, I have an additional 22 baby guppies! Oh man😂

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😱😂

[@HeRo-qd6tk]

ha ha so true!

[@sarahdecubellis8991]

Why do you have a snail and a shrimp as the tank mates? Do they serve any benefit?

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

In my experience having both shrimp and snails in a tank builds the perfect clean up crew and helps keep the aquarium water parameters stable 👍🏻

[@dilanbonnie3075]

i have diving bettle and water bugs and shrimps for that and they were terible

[@glosfishgb6267]

i did 9 kept my fish at 70f within 2 years i ended up with just the same problem as b4 having a colder temp tolerant population

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😞

[@forg0tten]

wait what - people use guppies as feeders? I've been breeding my own guppies for years and have them in at least 8 of my tanks. I admit I do breed guppies in my dwarf frog aquarium because the frogs eat the babies - but they're not feeders technically.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😎

[@davidrix804]

Hi friend,can I add guppy’s to my tank that has 2/ 3inch goldfish🙏🙏🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Assuming we are talking Fancy Goldfish, then I have before and it worked fine 👍🏻

[@davidrix804]

Hi friend,if I put guppy’s in with my goldfish which have long fins the fancy type,will the guppy’s nip at their fins?🙏🙏🙏🇬🇧🇬🇧

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Hi. I have run this set up and I didn’t see any fin nipping. 👍🏻

[@jackflory7747]

@@FishKeepingAnswers Never seen a fin nipping guppy yet

[@yusra1519]

What is the strain called (of the guppy shown in Thumbnail)

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

I think they were just a generic fancy guppy. I created the thumbnail in Photoshop using a single photo of a guppy 😳

[@yusra1519]

@@FishKeepingAnswers oh ok.. If you created the thumbnail using single guppy photo.. You're really v. creative.. I really appreciate your efforts🥰💝

[@EuroGupper]

My best and easiest suggestion is to remove enough hiding spots so that when the female gives birth, 8 out of 10 guppy fry will be eaten by the guppies already in the tank 👍🏽

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Great plan 👍🏻

[@MrOkojie]

I started this hobby to make $$, now I refuse to sell. I just like having shrimp lol

[@adonisperezabreu3163]

I have hundreds of guppies in a big tank for selling them.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤩

[@rosalindaretana2977]

I’m having a hard time keeping them alive. Every time I get more fish, even after putting them thru quarantine lol

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Sorry to hear that. Can you get them from a different shop/supplier? Maybe they are poor quality to start with. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@jennynovoa8586]

I have so many babies >.< their moms just don't eat them, I might put 1 of my African dwarf frogs in there

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

👍🏻

[@danielh89]

I'm goin t try a predator fish in my tank will a dwarf gourami eat guppy fry

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

I suspect they will. I have kept Pearl Gourami with guppies and they help keep guppy numbers in check 👍🏻

[@danielh89]

Magic I will look at getting a couple and try that to see if that helps

[@ohlalabrowbar3789]

Can bettas be with them

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Sometimes! It dependes on the individual Betta. My advice, is try it, but have a plan B in case your Betta prefers his own company.

[@marvideladiv3983]

I do not want to control my guppy population I want more guppies.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😎

[@Latenivenatrix_Mcmasterae]

I have 150/15 gallons and I need serious help

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

You got it bad 😉😂😂😂

[@rehan_awan1]

All my guppies stay at the top. No other fish at the moment in the tank

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Guppies do spend much of their time at the surface. The question is, are they just swimming around (normal) or do they appear to be gasping at the surface (bad) ?

[@rehan_awan1]

@@FishKeepingAnswers no just swimming around normal.

[@jamierogers1680]

Not true I keep the babies if I find any but i dont keep all as them as they be to many so i leave them in tank with adlut if they get eaten well it life but the other which do surived get to grow up in that tank

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

👍🏻

[@jamierogers1680]

@@FishKeepingAnswers I have over 37 adlut guppies 28 females and 8 males with 4 platys 3 females 1 male and I just put about 10 1 to 2 month old fry in tank today

[@nethiuz9165]

I see $ signs when this happens.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Agreed 🤑🤑🤑

[@teemjayvlogs9110]

Right to the pet shop

[@CatFish107]

Ooooh, 7gal?!?! Oh, it's all dudes. Carry on then.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤜🏻

[@user-ns6zm4jg8j]

I’m going to get guppy’s but I’m gonna get all males don’t want 100s of babies

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

Good plan. That’s what I do in my smaller tanks 👍🏻

[@user-ns6zm4jg8j]

If I got females and males they r gonna out run me lol

[@NIGEL-MORGZZ1100]

Imma just say it sell them

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

👍🏻

[@Nothingbutskill1]

If you don't want to feed live fish to predatory fish then you should not be Keeping them at all.

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🥺

[@pascal590]

All u need is a betta in there. Male or female. U will never see babies 🤣 my experience

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

😂

[@dro2893]

👎👎👎

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

What does that mean?

[@user-rl4ow4kh1s]

That many male guppies, alone together, would turn some of them homosexual. And if the makes begin to identify as female, would they possibly still be able to get pregnant? Then your problem isn't solved, is it?!

[@FishKeepingAnswers]

🤷🏻‍♂️

[@tappytibbon927]

Are you being funny? Nobody can tell.