If you are a beginner to pet guppy fish, you may find it difficult to properly care for them. The guppy fish is a popular pet and is known for its calm behavior, interactivity and low maintenance cost. On average, guppies can live up to 2 years however, many fishes struggle when they are born because their mother tends to eat them.
Do guppies eat their babies? Yes, they can eat their babies. However, guppies won’t eat all of their babies, but they can eat some of their babies to fulfil their hunger, if they require energy, if they mistake their baby for food, stress or to eliminate weak and sick babies.
Do guppies eat their babies?
Do Guppies Eat Their Babies?
Do guppies eat their babies? Yes, guppies are seen eating their babies. People who own guppies know how calm guppies are but this behavior of guppies often shocks the owners because this kind of behavior is very unexpected from the guppies. This activity of eating their babies is called filial cannibalism.
Why do guppies eat their babies? There isn’t enough study to explain why guppies eat their babies. However there are many assumptions, however, there is no one solid answer to why do female guppies eat their babies. Many observers have concluded various reasons that involve guppies eating their offspring. Some of the valid reasons include the following list:
Guppy Babies Look Similar To The Fish Food
It is the most common reason to question why do guppy eat their babies, that is considered for adult guppies to eat their babies. Baby guppies are very tiny which may confuse the adult guppies to differentiate between the food and babies and they may end up eating their babies. However many don’t believe this assumption.
Stress
Another reason that is considered as a reason for guppies to eat is that after giving birth to babies, sometimes guppy fishes often go through a stressful phase, in which they often end up eating their babies. Sometimes stress can make adult guppies deny that they gave birth to their babies and often eat them.
Eating Week Babies
Guppies will give birth to more than 100 guppies at a time. And they can do that every month. However, not all guppies are born healthy. Some may struggle to survive, some may be born dead. So, to keep healthy fish in a healthy environment, adult guppies often eat weak guppies. Another reason why adult guppies eat weakfish is to conserve more energy.
Furthermore, guppies also eat their weak babies so that the genetic disorder that the weak babies may have wouldn’t be passed to the next generation of guppies, or adult guppies eat their weak babies. This step also ensures that only healthy guppies live and extend their families.
Adult guppies are often observed to eat baby guppies that
Are unable to defend themselves
Doesn’t have a survival character
Don’t swim, eat or grow efficiently
Obtaining Energy
Obtaining energy is another reason why do guppies eat their babies. After giving birth to guppies, adult guppies often lack a lot of energy. To fulfil their demand, they may eat their babies. This way they retain enough energy and fat.
To understand more accurately, the owner should ask why do female guppies eat their own babies in the wild? In the wild, when guppies don’t have access to required food, this practice is very common.
When Adult Guppies Are Hungry
Another reason why do mom guppies eat their babies? When adult guppies are hungry, they might eat some of their babies. Again this is a wild Instinct that makes them do this. In the wild, it isn’t certain if they will get enough food to survive or not. To maintain their bodies and keep themselves fit to take care of the rest of the babies, adult Guppies are often seen eating their babies.
In captivity, guppies don’t know that they don’t have to worry about the food because they get it regularly, still limited by their instinct to eat their offspring. Furthermore, if the guppy fish is eating their babies due to lack of food, it may be possible that the owner isn’t feeding their pets enough food, so owners should make sure they feed enough to their pets.
Even though above mentioned all reasons may seem valid but sometimes adult guppies are also seen eating their guppies even when they are efficiently fed and even if all baby guppies are healthy. The owner should always try to never leave adult guppies with baby guppies to save them.
When Do Guppies Eat Their Babies?
When do guppies eat their babies? When an adult guppy is hungry, they might eat guppies that they can fit in their mouths. So a guppy, when it is small enough to fit in the mouth of an adult guppy, is at risk to get eaten by adults.
Do guppies eat their babies?
How to Stop Guppies Eating Their Babies?
Why do guppy fish eat their babies and how to avoid it? There can be many reasons why do all guppies eat their babies including hunger, to obtain energy, stress etc. If the owner observes that their adult guppies are eating their babies, they can do a few things to prevent them from doing that.
How do you stop guppies from eating their babies? Some of the steps that an owner can follow, to ensure that their guppies don’t eat babies are as follows:-
During the pregnancy period, the owner should add the pregnant guppy fish to a separate tank or breeding box. A guppy will give birth within 3-4 weeks, so owners should always be alert when a guppy gives birth. Once they give birth to guppies, baby guppies should be immediately separated from their mother and any other fish they might be.
To avoid having too many tanks, the owner can simply take the mother guppy out of the tank and put her back in the old tank with other fish.
Baby guppies should be kept in a tank with full care. The owner should be sure that they provide all requirements for the babies including fresh and clean water and good and nutritional food. The owner should also add a light or keep the tank in a room that has good sunlight coming in.
The survival of baby guppies needs to have a good diet that fulfils all their nutritional requirements. Furthermore, the owner should not add them to the tank, until they are fully grown and become large enough that they don’t fit in the mouth of other fishes.
Once baby guppies are grown enough, the owner can add them to the tank with mother guppies and other fishes. Once added, the owner should keep their eye for some time to observe that adult guppies aren’t bullying young guppies. To prevent that, owners should add plenty of food for all guppies and add plants and structures to keep all of them busy.
Symptoms Of A Pregnant Guppy Fish
To save baby guppies from being eaten by their mother, it is very important to start preparing from the start of the pregnancy period of the mother guppy. However, many owners find it difficult to observe a pregnant guppy. To clear the confusion, below are some of the symptoms that can tell if a guppy is pregnant:-
When a female guppy looks faded or discolored and dark discoloration around the back of the fish.
If the female guppy is hiding in dark places or heated places in the tank.
If the guppy is getting fat and bloated.
Do Fancy Guppies Eat Their Babies?
Do mother guppies eat their babies? Yes, it is often seen in fancy guppies eating their babies. There can be many reasons why they do that. Sometimes, even without a reason, guppies are seen eating their offspring.
Some of the reasons why a guppy will eat their offspring are unhealthy babies, hungry adult guppies, stress, baby guppies looking similar to food, and preservation of energy.
Do Breeder Guppy Eat Their Babies?
Do guppy parents eat their babies? Yes, breeder guppies are seen eating their babies. Why do guppy fish eat their babies? Many reasons are considered to be the reason why guppies do that.
Some of the reasons why a guppy will eat their offspring are hungry adult guppies, unhealthy babies, baby guppies looking similar to food, preservation of energy, and stress.
Do Cobra Guppies Eat Their Babies?
Do guppies eat their babies? Yes, it is often seen in cobra guppies to eat their babies because cobra guppies may find their babies unhealthy if they are hungry, stressed among adults, to preserve their energy, and baby guppies look similar to food.
Do Endler Guppies Eat Their Babies?
Do guppies eat the babies? Endler guppies do eat their babies sometimes. There can be many reasons why they do that. Sometimes, even without a reason, guppies are seen eating their offspring.
Some of the reasons why a guppy will eat their offspring are unhealthy babies, hungry adult guppies, stress, baby guppies looking similar to food, and preservation of energy.
Do Male Guppies Eat The Male Babies?
Do guppies eat their babies? Yes, they do but the question arises, do male guppies eat their babies? Adult male guppies are also seen eating babies. It is best to separate the baby guppies from the rest of the guppies to save them. Male guppies will eat, and bully other guppies.
What Do Baby Guppies Eat In The Wild?
Baby guppies can eat a variety of food including algae, normal fish food, bloodworms, daphnia, tubifex, baby brine shrimps, micro worms, egg yolk paste, freeze-dried food, flakes are some of the food items that an owner can feed to their baby guppies.
Do Fish Eat Their Babies?
Do mum guppies eat their babies? Yes, many owners observe that their guppy fish will eat its baby. There can be many reasons for it. However, guppies don’t always eat their babies. It can be due to mistakes, hunger, stress or to kill only poor babies.
How Do Guppies Eat Their Own Babies?
How do female guppies eat their babies? Female guppies will eat their babies by eating them. It can be a mistake for food but most of the time they do it to fulfil their hunger or when they are stressed.
Final verdict – Do Guppies Eat Their Babies
Do guppies eat their babies? Yes, adult guppies are often seen eating baby fishes. There are different reasons why a guppy may eat their baby. Sometimes guppies confuse their babies with food and eat.
Sometimes, they will intentionally eat their babies. Sometimes hunger, stress and preservation of energy are reasons why guppies eat their babies.
Do guppies eat their babies?
To avoid baby fishes being eaten by adults, the owner should separate baby fishes from their mother and other guppy fishes and take the required measures to safeguard the guppies.
Welcome to Learn About Pet. My name is Rajkumar Ravichandran and I love all pets, travel, and amazing food. I write about my passion and personal experience caring for multiple pets in this blog! ❤️
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