Feeding Manny live guppies

[JodiLeigh]

I have wanted to get a little tank of tiny fish for my room for a while now and then I thought well why don't I get some fish that Manny can eat! So now I'm thinking of buying a pair of breeding guppies so I have a nice little supply of guppies to feed Manny. I will also put some in my big fish tank downstairs and give some to my little nephew which he will love!
Anyone have any advice on this?

I have been reading about it and it seems pretty simple the only thing I have to watch out for is TOO MANY little guppies as they breed excessively apparently.

But the thing I wanted to ask is if anybody knows if I supplement the guppies water with this liquid calcium+D3 stuff will the guppies then hold an amount of this goodness and pass it on to Manny when he eats them?
It kinda makes sense that they would but I don't know about the metabolism of a guppy so don't know if enough calcium would be kept in the body to make it worth while.

I am supplementing Manny's water anyways but just thought it would help especially if he ends up eating more fish then pinkies and even pinkies as their bones aren't fully formed don't have a massive amount of calcium in them anyways.

[guidofatherof5]

I wouldn't count on the modified guppies to do the job.
In theory it sounds good but I don't think a guppy will be able to carry the amount of calcium needed by a garter.

[chris-uk]

Supplementing the guppies won't avoid the need to supplement when you feed them to the snake. I agree with Steve, the guppies just won't have enough calcium stored in their bodies, they'll only take in as much as they need so supplementing their water will be pointless, and may actually alter the water chemistry in a bad way.
Good luck breeding the guppies.

[JodiLeigh]

I wouldn't count on the modified guppies to do the job.
In theory it sounds good but I don't think a guppy will be able to carry the amount of calcium needed by a garter.

You wouldn't count on modified guppies to do the job of holding enough calcium or for feeding in general?

I would still like to breed them just wanted to know if the idea of supplementing the fish would be worth buying extra liquid calcium.

I would have carried on putting it in his water dish but just thought if it was safe and it worked then a little extra calcium would be something to look into.

But never mind, it will still be nice to have a little tank in my room.

Oh and is there anything I can do to reduce the risk of parasites in the guppies?

[guidofatherof5]

Good for feeding in general.

[JodiLeigh]

Supplementing the guppies won't avoid the need to supplement when you feed them to the snake. I agree with Steve, the guppies just won't have enough calcium stored in their bodies, they'll only take in as much as they need so supplementing their water will be pointless, and may actually alter the water chemistry in a bad way.
Good luck breeding the guppies.

My idea was just to help calcium intake not to replace having to supplement his water or food, just wanted to see if it was worth buying extra but as I suspected it obviously would be pointless.

Thank you =] I like having fish and never bred them so this should be interesting.

[JodiLeigh]

Good for feeding in general.

Oh good!

Do you feed guppies or any other live fish to yours?
And how do you feed the fish to your snakes? (if you do)

Also what about parasites? What are the risks and how can I reduce them?

[EasternGirl]

I don't believe that he feeds live fish to his snakes. I don't either...I think usually, when people feed live fish...they put them into the snake's water dish and then the snake eats them. I don't know anything about live fish...so sorry...can't advise you on the parasites.

[guidofatherof5]

I do feed live fish very rarely.

[JodiLeigh]

I do feed live fish very rarely.

And how do you feed them to your snakes?

[guidofatherof5]

Small round container + baby snake + lid = happy fish eating baby snake.

1O36FMumumg&list=UUlSb4BuFJog_usp_z21kPOQ&index=5&feature=plcp

[JodiLeigh]

Small round container + baby snake + lid = happy fish eating baby snake.

1O36FMumumg&list=UUlSb4BuFJog_usp_z21kPOQ&index=5&feature=plcp


Arrr thank you! =]

What would I do if I hadn't joined this site and had you guys to tell me what to do!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

[guidofatherof5]

Arrr thank you! =]

What would I do if I hadn't joined this site and had you guys to tell me what to do!

THANK YOU SO MUCH!

Not tell. Help and or teach, that's what this forum is all about.
We are glad you are here.;)

[aquamentus_11]

This site is always a lot friendlier and less pushy than others though.

I've also seen the fish put into the water dish and left for the snake to hunt while free in the tank itself. There are a lot of videos of this on youtube. We had a short thread on this a few days ago in which I was badmouthing garters for their sloppy fishy technique. Steve bears witness otherwise and I hope to see proof of this when I get try it again. Have fun with the fish; sounds like a good project.

[EasternGirl]

Or maybe he does feed live fish! Nice video! Very good point about how fish in water dishes can flop out and end up in the substrate and the snake can then eat the substrate. I would try Steve's method, Jodileigh.

[Mommy2many]

I love happy fish eating baby snakes :)

[GarterGuy17]

Well when I feed live fish I am going to make sure I put paper towels down so I can see her go HUNT ! :)

[guidofatherof5]

I love happy fish eating baby snakes :)

How about happy baby snakes eating fish :D

[aquamentus_11]

haha i thought the same thing...but i'm new

[EasternGirl]

Lol...I didn't even catch that until just now! Yeah...I don't want to see any happy fish eating baby snakes :eek:.

[chris-uk]

I have half a plan that at some point in the future I may have a "feeding aquarium", the idea being that the fish would live and breed in it, then occassionally I'd drop a snake in to hunt in a sort of natural way. I'm still tossing up the ethical and practical aspects of this idea. Has anyone done similar?
The reason I was thinking about this is that our Cuitzeos are supposed to have an interesting hunting method in the wild, it must be instinctive rather than learned, so I'd like to see if they use it in captivity.

[kibakiba]

I think doing it once or twice to see how they react wouldnt be too bad, but if they don't seem to like it, don't do it? I'd be worried about the snakes pooping in the tank.