FAQs

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I'm sure everyone has seen fancy guppies in the local fish stores, well consider these the ugly stepchildren of true show quality guppies. The American Show Guppy has been intensively breed for over half a century to perfect its color and finnage. Most pet shop guppies are imported and as pretty as their colors may be, most do not breed true or carry the size and finnage of a well bred American guppy. The imports are a hodge podge of genetics and are bred for quantity not quality. True show guppy strains have been carefully selected for high quality generation after generation. They are bred to the strict standards of the International Fancy Guppy Association for color and form and will reproduce true to their strain.

Why reinvent the wheel? It would also take you years to bring the quality up to the level of established show lines. The genetics are so diverse in guppies that without knowing that a line has been selectively bred for many generations there is no way to know what it will reproduce. Selective breeding (inbreeding and line breeding) slowly reduces the gene pool so that you can more consistently predict the outcome of you matings. If you want to create something of your own, develop a new line using two show strains. The possibilities are endless ... you could create new patterns or new colors.

There is the slight chance that you may be able to find show guppies at the LFS. Some show guppy breeders sell their extra fish to the local stores, but these aren't their best fish and most likely are the worst of the bunch. Even if they are far more beautiful then the average LFS fancy guppy, if you are serious about breeding true show guppies you should purchase you initial brood stock directly from a breeder. From some one who is regularly competitive on the IFGA show circuit. Check out the IFGA link, or breeder's links on this site.

Well that can be a tough one. It will take years to develop an eye for the finer qualities of a IFGA quality show guppy, so you will have to rely on the honesty of the breeder you choose to purchase stock from. With a little research this can be done without a worry. First look for a local guppy club, one that is IFGA sanctioned. The members of the clubs can be your most valuable resource. Once again I refer you to the IFGA web site. Check out the club section. Also check out the show section. It will have all of the current show seasons results, plus the previous and current years IFGA Annual Award standings. Check out numerous show reports and look for consistent placing in the color of your choice. If the person you pick shows a lot, they will not want to tarnish their name by selling inferior fish.

Ask the breeder about their show record with the IFGA. Ask when the last wins were. Guppies reproduce so quickly that results from two or three years back my not mean anything, the winning line could have been lost. Look for consistency. Ask if the strains breed true. Ask when and if the lines were crossed last.

It is recommended that a beginner start out with just one color strain, possibly two compatible color strains, i.e. reds and hb reds or blues and hb blues etc. It would also be wise to buy two trios of any strain, so that you may have two lines right away. Even if these fish were to be siblings, if you kept the two trios separate for several generations and then crossed them it would help to keep the inbreeding to a minimum.