All Was Going Well!

[Jdubz]

well I had a go at letting the female out of her side and all was going well,nice banding on her body,HUGE nest from the male... the male saw her went right up to her, flared then ranaway to his nest, went to the other side of the tank while the female inspected it and came back and went mental!! chased her round the tank banging into the sides,gravel,filter. so i got the net and caught the female who is now in a breeding trap while the silicone is drying on the divider....

Bad times!

What do you think went wrong?

Jake

 

[Colin_T]

well I had a go at letting the female out of her side and all was going well,nice banding on her body,HUGE nest from the male... the male saw her went right up to her, flared then ranaway to his nest,

lol, the big wuss running away to his nest

either she wasn't ready to breed or he doesn't like her. Keep them separate for a couple more days and make sure she is well fed during that time. Then try putting them together again. Eventually she will be full of eggs and he will be happy to have her there. Then they will breed.

 

[Jdubz]

cool thanks... i tried again a min a go and he was alot more gental with her and both got under the nest looking at it, she must of said somthing to him and he went after her again lol going to feed her up on brineshrimps and some new food i got.

Heres the male Bluey:

And his bit of stuff lol :

 

[Netty]

All quite normal. It may seem brutal to us but that is their spawning ritual as long as she doesn't get too beaten up. I noticed looking at your pics but it looks like you have the water quite deep, although it could be the angle the pic is taken at. It shouldn't be any more than 6". Also you mentioned gravel. You'll need to take that out as the male wont be able to get the eggs as easily when they fall inbetween.

 

[Jdubz]

ok ill give the tank a revamp tomoz.

should i let them get on with it a bit longer?

 

[Netty]

I would take them both out and redo the tank first. If you let them spawn now alot of eggs will get stuck in the gravel and go mouldy. Then you'll have to recondition them for another 2 weeks before you can try again.

 

[Jdubz]

oops i ment next time i let them together, my bad.

 

[Netty]

We tend to chimney the female for 2 day then release in the evening for a couple of hours. Re chimney her overnight and release again the next day. Usually by the 2nd release they tend to get together alot quicker.

 

[Jdubz]

what do you use for a chimney?

Where can i get one?

 

[Netty]

We just use a 2ltr plastic coke bottle with the top and bottom cut off. You should have the top at least 3 inches or more above the surface of the water so the female can't jump out or the male jump in.

 

[Jdubz]

Thats a great idea....

The only ones ive seen on the web look like glass.

 

[Netty]

Some people use those glass top bits from hurricane lamps. They have no top or bottom but the coke ones are cheaper and you get to drink the coke

 

[Jdubz]

Lol should i use diet coke or normal... got to keep the fish in shape haha...

 

[Netty]

Good point all that sugar will do them no good at all lol

 

[Jdubz]

should i get caffine free? They wouldn't blink and be up alnight chatting

lol enough now. could go on for ages.