KittenFishMom Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 I talked with the LPS owner, and explained my guppy situation and he said he tells his staff to say a limit of 20 guppies, but in my case he would take more. It started off with the owner asking how many guppies I had. I told him "more than you want". I said I would bring an insulated minnow bucket with a bubbler containing a batch of guppies, and he could take what he wanted and I would take the rest back home. He said most folks just put them in a bag. I said it was a 30 minute drive and it was a hot day and I didn't want to stress the guppies more than I had to. Then he asked how I ended up with so many, and I explained, and he said he would not send any back home. I took him about 40 of my largest adult females that were heavy with eggs. He was very happy with their size and condition and put about a third with his female guppies and the other two thirds in a tank he opened up for them. The lighting was brighter than what I had at home. Their bodies looked like polished silver, and the colors in their fins really showed up nicely. I had picked out some items to buy and he said I didn't need to pay for them and my guppies were welcome anytime. When I got back to the cottage, I split out another tank full of females to fatten up. I hope to take him more in 2 weeks or so. I'm still not very good a splitting them up. My female tank have some males swimming after all the females. And the male tank has a few females with too many males swimming after them, but that makes them easy to spot and catch. They have too much on their mind to worry about a little net. I figure if I rehome the females first, Then I can take my time with the males, and keep some for myself. When last guppies are down to a manageable population, I will start my build on my 55 gallon tank. No guppies in there, that is for sure ! 6 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockfisher Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 Do you are not going in the guppy business? I do well with mine. I sell some but try to get credit on fish. At my favorite LFS I have a running tan. I can cash out any time. I’m waiting for a few special order fish. No he is buying the guppy’s he wants to sell so I’m breed some just for him. I think they look better in the store light every time. I’m gald you found them a good place and didn’t take any home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 @rockfisher I backed into the hobby by getting a 120 tank for the garage to hold my fishing catches until I was going to visit Mom. I would take her live fish and clean them and have then in the pan within a few minutes. She was on chemo and most things didn't taste good, but she loved fresh fish. That 120 was my first tank. I had a blast filling it with bullheads and mudpuppies and pan fish and crayfish and all sorts of stuff from the lake. In the fall, I had to empty the tank because the garage gets well below freezing. A lot of the fish went to a nature center, I got a 55 gallon for some of the smaller native fish. In Feb, the last of the native fish went to someone with a big tank in the Fish and Wildlife department. Around November, I got some tropical fish to put in a 10 gallon tank. The guppies where a craigslist purchase. Feb 28th Mom's dr said she could not be alone and needed 24*7 care. until the new chemo started working. She died June 30th. in the mean time, the guppy population exploded after I added plants to help with the nitrogen because we could not get to the tanks often enough to keep up with the water changes. I lost most of my fish, besides the guppies, which I divided among my 5 tanks to try to balance the bio-load. I am retired and never planned on breeding or selling fish, I just wanted to enjoy them. We are very busy dealing with picking up the pieces and trying to put our lives back on track, and take care of Mom's home and estate and our home and cottage. Driving an hour to sell fish just doesn't fit in the plans right now. I'm in a centrally isolated area of central NY. Not a lot of option right here right now. Around here they say the only reason to grow zucchini is to keep your friends from giving it to you. I think guppies are sort of the zucchinis of the fish hobby world. I need to get some sleep. I count guppies instead of sheep. it work faster. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flumpweesel Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 So glad the shop has stepped up to help you. You must have been close to tears when he said he'd take them all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbit Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 What a beautiful and heart wrenching story. It sounds like there’s going to be a happy ending for the guppies at least. I’m so sorry you lost your mom, but how awesome that you found a way to cook her fresh fish. 💖 On 8/30/2022 at 12:37 AM, KittenFishMom said: Around here they say the only reason to grow zucchini is to keep your friends from giving it to you. I think guppies are sort of the zucchinis of the fish hobby world. Bwahaha I love this. You’re a great writer! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted August 30, 2022 Author Share Posted August 30, 2022 On 8/30/2022 at 3:10 AM, Flumpweesel said: You must have been close to tears when he said he'd take them all. @Flumpweesel It wasn't close, I was in tears. I really care about the fish, but I had to get the population under control. We left the minnow bucket with him and got lunch so he could deal with the guppies between customers. I was a little worried that he would just flush the fish down the toilet when I left the store. But when we came back and he showed me the tank he had opened up for them, I know he would keep them and sell them. He said customers like to buy the bigger guppies. Most of the guppies he gets are very small and often weak. I had been feeding these high quality food and freshly hatched baby brine shrimp. I've added crushed coral and wonder shells to the water. I just couldn't lower the temp and the amount of food to stress them into not giving birth. I took the plants out of the aquarium, but added IAL and driftwood to give them places to poke around. There is lucky bamboo in the HOB filter. It was such a relief to see those big females settled in their new tanks. 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockfisher Posted August 30, 2022 Share Posted August 30, 2022 On 8/30/2022 at 12:37 AM, KittenFishMom said: @rockfisher I backed into the hobby by getting a 120 tank for the garage to hold my fishing catches until I was going to visit Mom. I would take her live fish and clean them and have then in the pan within a few minutes. She was on chemo and most things didn't taste good, but she loved fresh fish. That 120 was my first tank. I had a blast filling it with bullheads and mudpuppies and pan fish and crayfish and all sorts of stuff from the lake. In the fall, I had to empty the tank because the garage gets well below freezing. A lot of the fish went to a nature center, I got a 55 gallon for some of the smaller native fish. In Feb, the last of the native fish went to someone with a big tank in the Fish and Wildlife department. Around November, I got some tropical fish to put in a 10 gallon tank. The guppies where a craigslist purchase. Feb 28th Mom's dr said she could not be alone and needed 24*7 care. until the new chemo started working. She died June 30th. in the mean time, the guppy population exploded after I added plants to help with the nitrogen because we could not get to the tanks often enough to keep up with the water changes. I lost most of my fish, besides the guppies, which I divided among my 5 tanks to try to balance the bio-load. I am retired and never planned on breeding or selling fish, I just wanted to enjoy them. We are very busy dealing with picking up the pieces and trying to put our lives back on track, and take care of Mom's home and estate and our home and cottage. Driving an hour to sell fish just doesn't fit in the plans right now. I'm in a centrally isolated area of central NY. Not a lot of option right here right now. Around here they say the only reason to grow zucchini is to keep your friends from giving it to you. I think guppies are sort of the zucchinis of the fish hobby world. I need to get some sleep. I count guppies instead of sheep. it work faster. I’m sorry about your Mom cancer sucks. I have hobby fish and work fish at supplement my in come. Guppies are paying the best for me so I breed a lot of basically one LFS. He wants as many as I can sell him. Angels are so cheap that I sell to several stores but the breed so fast and even though the don’t pay great the numbers make out for it. I have a few tanks that are just to enjoy. I have to say that you may have the most interesting store on entering the hobby I have heard. I how you can have fun with something other than guppies. Guppies can be really nerd fish, no harm intended just at you can really get into genetics and go deep dive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted August 31, 2022 Author Share Posted August 31, 2022 @rockfisher I started in plant sci and studied plant genetic, branching out to animal sci, a bunch of pre-med, pre-vet courses chemistry, comp sci and stats along with one off courses like ocean navigation and piloting with the Navy ROTC, and metal sci. I love to learn new things. I always picked the "for majors" classes over the "for non-majors". I use to moonlight in research support and statistical analysis for PhDs candidates in a very wide range of fields. Look in my early posts to learn where the word "nerd" comes from. I really enjoy "knirding". No harm done at all. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 15, 2022 Author Share Posted September 15, 2022 The nice LFS keeps saying I need to wait another week or 2, so I posted the guppies for free, local pick. Will be adding photos shortly. Wish the fish luck ! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineSong Posted September 17, 2022 Share Posted September 17, 2022 Glad you are feeling some relief. There are people out there who will be happy to have your guppies. I know I was happy to see my giant "whale" guppies in the store when I did. I figured any guppy that large would add some flair to my mutt line, and they did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 @PineSong These are really strong guppies, they have "been there done that" and lived to tell about it. They made it through some tough times while Mom was ill. They had dirty water and low food when we couldn't get to the cottage often. They are also very mellow. the cats chase each other across the tops of the tanks, and the fish don't flinch. The cats like to sit on top and drink from the HOB. They should add strength to any line. No one has contacted me about them. I know nothing about shipping fish. Unfortunately these mutts probably are worth the postage to anyone but me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 (edited) I just read the ACO article about shipping fish by mail. https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/aquarium/how-to-ship-live-fish?_pos=1&_sid=7995ebb7f&_ss=r It doesn't sound like This would be a good way to rehome a lot of fish, only small numbers. If anyone has advice on shipping say about 40 or 50 fish safely, let me know. I have read that younger fish deal with shipping better than adults. I probably have 40 or more younger fish to rehome too. I ask the LFS if I could rent a tank to avoid euthanizing the fish, but he said he didn't have any way to open up more tanks, and all his tanks were full. Edited September 17, 2022 by KittenFishMom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 No one has replied to my forum swap post. I wrote to CNYAS to see if I can bring guppies to give away at their swap meet 9/25. I may call the SPCA and see if they will take fish. It would cost a lot to fill the 55 gallon tank with bottled spring water, and I still need to clean it with peroxide before adding the water. I am running out of options. Now that the males are getting aggressive, I feel like I am running out of time too. Anyone have any ideas on home to rehome guppies that doesn't involve craigslist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 17, 2022 Author Share Posted September 17, 2022 I called the SPCA, but they haven't returned my call. I would be surprised if the did call me back. There is a creepy person on craigslist in this area who deals with fish and fish equipment, I don't want to have to deal with him again, so I don't want to use craigslist. I do not think that the CNYAS will let me give fish away at their swap meet when they are trying to make money, but I asked anyway. I have had 24 views on my fish swap post. I have had no inquires. How long do you think I should give the post before giving up on the post? Trying to give them away on a street corner to people who don't have fish tanks seems cruel. Is there anything else I can do to rehome this guppies? . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PineSong Posted September 18, 2022 Share Posted September 18, 2022 (edited) I’m sorry you’re having this distress. If I recall correctly, you live in kind of a rural area without a lot of LFS? I know gas prices are a challenge right now but maybe you could drive them to a larger city that has multiple stores and at each store, ask them to take them? My city has about a dozen stores that sell fish but only 2 from the same chain will take random fish from hobbyists. A city an hour away (counting all its suburbs) has many more stores and if I was desperate I wouldn’t call them and ask— I’d show up with bagged fish and beg. The only other thing I can think of is school science teachers. Every school I’ve worked in has at least one teacher with fish tanks. If you know any teachers or school staff, I’d beg them to put you in touch with the teachers who have them at their schools and beg them to take them. Edited September 18, 2022 by PineSong Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 18, 2022 Author Share Posted September 18, 2022 @PineSong I can give it a shot Monday afternoon. The stores shouldn't be too busy then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minanora Posted September 18, 2022 Share Posted September 18, 2022 I wish I could take your guppies for you. I know that's not helpful but I truly do. They are lovely. But I have my own guppy population problem. I look forward to seeing what you do with the 55g 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittenFishMom Posted September 18, 2022 Author Share Posted September 18, 2022 @PineSong and @Guppysnail and everyone else. I decided I would try shipping some of the guppies for free to people who want them. I need to find out were to get breather bags and would love advice on how to do this successfully. I have one large shipping box with a Styrofoam liner that I received night crawlers in. I figured I would start with that. I will do more research on shipping. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbit Posted September 22, 2022 Share Posted September 22, 2022 @Goosedub helped me ship a pleco recently. I’d never shipped anything before and I was super nervous but it went fine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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