Feeding guppy fry is a balancing act: fry need frequent tiny meals to grow fast, but overfeeding quickly pollutes small tanks. Many people lose fry not because fry starve, but because water quality collapses from excess food and waste. The best fry programs focus on tiny meals, clean water, and predictable routines.
Why fry need different feeding than adults
Fry have small stomachs and high metabolic demand. They do better with multiple micro-meals than one big feed. The trick is portion size: each feeding should be tiny enough that almost nothing hits the bottom.
Best fry foods (simple and realistic)
- Powdered fry food: easy and consistent, but easy to overdo.
- Crushed quality flakes: workable if crushed very fine.
- Baby brine shrimp: excellent growth food, cleaner than many powders when used properly.
A routine that grows fry without crashing water
A practical schedule: 3–4 micro-feeds per day for the first few weeks, then reduce as fry grow. If you can’t feed that often, don’t compensate with larger feeds — fry do better with less food than with dirty water.
Water quality is the real “growth secret”
Fry tanks benefit from extra water changes. Small, frequent changes keep growth strong and reduce disease risk. If you see fry hanging at the surface or growth slowing, test water and increase oxygen and maintenance.
Common mistakes
- dump feeding: large food dumps that rot and foul the tank
- no bottom cleaning: waste builds fast in fry systems
- too little aeration: fry tanks often need strong oxygen
Fast, healthy fry growth is mostly about stability. Feed small, keep water clean, and fry will outpace problems.
