Breeding Nets

[diet]

Hi all

Ive bought a small plastic isolation/ birthing thingy mer jiggy..............the name escapes me.

Ive put one preg swordtail in there and the lil bugger just keeps jumping out and into the main tank. Is there anythign on the market that is covered or is goes deeper so that i will have more chance of the fry surviving?

Any advice welcome

Dan

 

[mlawson]

I would not recommend breeding traps/nets, they are stressful for the Female and
you could end up with a premature brood. Your best option is to provide a seperate
breeding tank or provide lots of hiding places to give the fry a chance to hide.

 

[theotheragentm]

There is too much stress caused by the breeding traps. For almost the same price you can pick up a small tank and let her birth in there. Although that would require an additiona heater/filter if she is in there for an extended period of time. Breeding traps tend to cause stress and cause the mothers to abort to the fry.

 

[fishboy619]

its peoples opions if they want to use breeding nets/traps or not, honestly i prefer breeding nets as they are bigger and provide more room for the female, but saying that breeding traps(the one you sound to have bought) works too, i have read stories that breeding traps arent the best for swaordtails as they are bigger than guppies/platies but im sure nets would work, with my platy and guppy fry (never bred swordtails) i left the female in the main tank though out the day and checked often and at night placed her in the net, if no fry in the morning then back into the main tank, any fry caught outside the net were just netted up and carefully placed into the breeding net.only place the female in the net at night when she is due to give birth,not sire about swordtails but platies are about 4-6 weeks gestation

 

[theotheragentm]

It's the confined space that can cause stress. It's definitely not a 100% bad thing, but I've seen whole batches of fry lost in breeding traps. There are oversized breeding traps, but I don't know where to pick one of those up easily. I've only seen them on eBay. If you have the equipment, larger is better, which is why I recommend the birthing tank. If anyone knows where to pick up those large breeding traps, I'd be interested.

 

[dwarfgourami]

If the swordtail keeps jumping out of the trap she is clearly subject to more stress than is good for her. I would let her birth in the tank if you haven't got a spare. Another way of giving her some privacy is using a tank divider, so she can have her own corner.

 

[diet]

I think i will let nature take its course and when i have done my daughters room i may place a small tank in there ty for the replys

 

[ICEEGRL]

If you want a cheap easy way to get a bigger net here it is...
Simply get 2 or more nets. Put them together in the shape/size you would like it to end up. Then everywhere they touch sew them together around the edges of the net. Then just cut out the centers so the fish can swim through.
I put two side by side and attached them. I cut out the center and now they have twice the room. It also stays in place better because it has double the hangers. No more falling. By using this method you can really make it as large as you need. Just remember if you go more than 1 net deep to turn the hangers to the side so that it will help support it. You don't want it to sink and let the fish out.
Also if you hang it very close to the top and lower the water by about 1/2 to 1 inch that will keep them from being able to jump out.

 

[Lynswtgurl2]

I just bought a net tonight. I put my preg. molly in it and she is upset! All the other fish are swimming underneath her. So I put one of the plants underneath the net and tried to make it were she felt better. But she is still pokeing at the sides and the bottom of the net. Would it work like one of you said....putting her in the net just at night? When the fry are born will i be able to see them, or will they be too small?

 

[theotheragentm]

I don't believe that works, because my fish give birth during the day too. It's not just at night time, although it does seem there are a higher percentage of night births. Unfortunately most of us can't watch our fish 24/7, but I still recommend letting fish birth in the main tank and then separating the fry later. At first it might sound like not a great idea, but after the fish give birth four or five more times, it doesn't seem so bad.

 

[dwarfgourami]

I just bought a net tonight. I put my preg. molly in it and she is upset! All the other fish are swimming underneath her. So I put one of the plants underneath the net and tried to make it were she felt better. But she is still pokeing at the sides and the bottom of the net. Would it work like one of you said....putting her in the net just at night? When the fry are born will i be able to see them, or will they be too small?

I would let her out straightaway, being upset is bad for her, particularly at this time. You could easily lose both her and the fry. I don't think putting her in the net at night would work, either, that means she is subjected to the stress of being caught (one of the most stressful things we do to our fish) once a day.

I would do as theotheragent says and let her give birth in the tank. You will see the fry, they're not that titchy. And once she has given birth she will probably carry on doing so once a month, so even if a few do get eaten, you will get enough eventually. Besides- if she gives birth in the net, that means the fry have nowhere to escape if Mummy should be feeling hungry after her ordeal. I have lost quite a few platy fry to this situation.

 

[ICEEGRL]

I have put together several nets to give more space to swim in the net so mine don't get as stressed. That does help, but it don't eliminate it. I let mine drop in the tank and catch the fry to put in the net when possible. I only put the mom in the net when the others are harassing her too much. My fish get really mean sometimes when one goes into labour. At that point the net is the better of the options.

 

[dwarfgourami]

I have put together several nets to give more space to swim in the net so mine don't get as stressed. That does help, but it don't eliminate it. I let mine drop in the tank and catch the fry to put in the net when possible. I only put the mom in the net when the others are harassing her too much. My fish get really mean sometimes when one goes into labour. At that point the net is the better of the options.

As long as Mum is not the chief aggressor, as has happened to me on occasion. Imo a tank divider can be a good option, don't know why they never get mentioned.

 

[fishboy619]

i only put my livebearers in the net at night as the fry will have to go a full 12 hours (or about that) on their own, in the day, i pop in to look at the tank ever few hours or so. i never though of the mother eating the fry when they are in the net, i always feed her before lights outs(give her time to eat of corse)and in the morning, they seems to be enought fry left.i might steal your idea if you dont mind of sewing two nets together as its a good idea.i dont catch her ever day, i scoop her up using the net then attach it to the glass side, the same when releasing, just tilt it and let her swim out. i have never had problems doing it this way, but i guess somethings go unnoticed.my mother usally seems OK,swimming around and probally enjoting the piece from her mates. i also use the net to give the female a break sometimes by isolating the male. i add a few big leaves for the fry to feel safe and a small silk plant to swim around,
just a little question, can you use a turkey baster to suck up fry the transfer them, ive always used a net and its taken a while with award fry, i suck up snails in that way to move them to different tanks and they live, would this be a good idea?

 

[theotheragentm]

A turkey baster should be okay as long as the fry fit without a problem. I could see a problem if they scrape themselves on an edge though.