Breeding Livebearers.

[Yazan]

Breeding Livebearers.
The Easy and Successful Way

Information about 'livebearer' fish says they are easy to breed and yes I do agree with that, but if the tank and fish are not
Prepared for breeding it can cause trouble and will not be easy to breed.



Things You Will Need.


These are some things you will need to get every thing prepared.

2 / 10 GALLON TANKS
SPONGE FILTER
HEATER
ALGEA SCRUBBER
SAND (INSTEAD OF GRAVEL)
AIR PUMP, AIRSTONE AND HOSE
PLANTS
DICORATIONS WITH HOLES
LIGHTS
GRAVEL VACUM
FISH NET
TEST KIT (NITRITE, AMMONIA, NITRATE, PH)
NET
FRY FOOD
FISH FOOD
What to Do

The reason why I chose sand instead of gravel is that fry tend to hide in the gapes of the gravel which means you have to take all the gravel out and look for the fry but with sand the fry have no where to hide in it, I know that’s bad but that's why I mentioned to have plants and decorations with holes.

Setup the tank in the order that will be the best for the fry to hide in and make the tank(s) look good.
Rap the filter with the net so that the fry can't get stuck.
Then cycle the tank(s) which ever way you want.
Make sure that the tank(s) are heated to 25'C.
Place only 2 'livebearer' fish (male and female) into the first 10 Gallon tank. As for 'Platies' place 2 females for every 1 male.
Then its normal maintaining (gravel clean, water change, feeding etc.)
Until you see that you fish is pregnant, below is how to know if the fish is pregnant.

Platies = Females will have inflated stomachs behind there swim bladders.

Guppies = Females will have a black dot in front of there anal fin.

When you know that your fish is pregnant remove the male and put him in your normal tank with your other fish (not in the other 10 Gallon Tank).
Your female 'livebearer' will give birth to fry every 2 weeks. The way to know when your female has given up all her fry is to see if the stomach is still inflated.

When Your Female Has
Given Birth

Now you know that your female is pregnant and you have removed the male.
Grab the fish net and search your way through the plants, decorations etc. Once you have caught the fry you found put them in the other 10 Gallon.

Feeding the Fry


Congrats on making it here. When fry is in the female's stomuch it will be feeding on it's yolk sack when the fry is born you will have to feed him fry food from you LFS.

That’s All

That’s it all you have to do now is wait for the fry to grow and keep them or even sell them. Hope it works.



HAVE A GRAET TIME BREEDING…

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Now your female has given of her first set. What to do: Put your female in the other 10 Gallon Tank.
Then wait about an hour then get a bucket fill it up with conditioned water and mix some water from both tanks, heat the water up to 25'C, grab the fish net and search your way through the plants, decorations etc. Once you have caught the fry you found and put them in the bucket move the female back into the first 10 Gallon. Then put the fry into the second 10 Gallon tank. Now with the second 10 Gallon tank full and in progress you will need to use your Quarantine tank that you actually use for your normal tank.

can i ask why you would bother swapping them around, surely if the fry are in 1 ten gallon and the mother in another it doesn't really matter which tank they're in?!

 

[Yazan]

Now your female has given of her first set. What to do: Put your female in the other 10 Gallon Tank.
Then wait about an hour then get a bucket fill it up with conditioned water and mix some water from both tanks, heat the water up to 25'C, grab the fish net and search your way through the plants, decorations etc. Once you have caught the fry you found and put them in the bucket move the female back into the first 10 Gallon. Then put the fry into the second 10 Gallon tank. Now with the second 10 Gallon tank full and in progress you will need to use your Quarantine tank that you actually use for your normal tank.

can i ask why you would bother swapping them around, surely if the fry are in 1 ten gallon and the mother in another it doesn't really matter which tank they're in?!

It's just to be pefect and clear...

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i'm sorry, i'm not trying to be argumentative, this is a good helpful post, but i really don't understand what you mean by this

It's just to be pefect and clear...

surely netting the fry and the mother repetedly to swap them between tanks is likely to cause undue stress which could lead to deaths/illness's

if you prepare the tank the fry are going to be born in appropriately before the birth there's no reason they can't stay there.

 

[Yazan]

i'm sorry, i'm not trying to be argumentative, this is a good helpful post, but i really don't understand what you mean by this

It's just to be pefect and clear...

surely netting the fry and the mother repetedly to swap them between tanks is likely to cause undue stress which could lead to deaths/illness's

if you prepare the tank the fry are going to be born in appropriately before the birth there's no reason they can't stay there.

I didn't post this topic for everybody to follow it. Its just a guide. So if you don't won't to follow it thats fine...

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i hope your not offended i'm not trying to pick your thread apart or anything, i'm just trying to understand why you have said to change them around between the tanks which you haven't really explained.

you've obviously taken it personally though so i won't continue this thread any longer, i've no desire to fall out with anyone.

 

[dwarfgourami]

IME livebearers do not tend to feed off any yolk sac when born, they go through that stage while still inside. Most livebearer fry I have reared (platies, guppies, portholes, ticos etc) have been ready to start eating from the word go. And they can usually eat crushed flake, though baby brineshrimps is obviously good if you want to speed up growth.

A gestation period of only 14 days seems too short for the common livebearers I assume you are speaking of (platies, guppies, swordtails and mollies presumably) and too long for some of the more unusual ones like heterandrias.

The method with shifting fry and female around between different tanks sounds unnecessarily complicated and likely to lead to added stress (particularly if you envisage doing this every 2 weeks...).

I also do not understand why you recommend a ratio of 2:1 for platies, but pairs for the other types. Surely, swordtail males tend to drive the females harder than platies do? And is there any difference between guppies and platies in this respect? Maybe you should also mention that some of the less common livebearers need to be group bred?

To be perfectly honest, I find the already existing pinned topic on fry-rearing more helpful.

What I would have liked to see in this breeding topic would have been more emphasis on feeding the parents well to promote healthy breeding, and the need to cull inferior fry or otherwise making sure that they are not sold and allowed to breed (being an old softie I tend to keep them separated by sex in my own community tanks).

 

[Yazan]

Ohh, now I know what you are talking about. Sorry about that yesterday I was confused.

 

[mommyof2bettas]

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