some Q's

[BettaDude]

ok, so first of all, i am new here .. the last time i had bettas was 2.5 years ago..
I totally failed :(, i had 6 bettas - they all died within 6 months.. (i dont know why)

so now , after 2 and a half years , i want to start it all again.

i have many questions after reading all the sticky threads..

1.I will probably feed the fry with BBS, when can i start hatching the BBS (before the pair spawns? after?)i am asking this because it takes 24-30 hours for them to hatch..
2.after the BBS have hatched , how many times can they be harvested?
cause i heard that after you hatch them, they "last"(the proteins?) only 8 hours.
3.do i have to "run" 2 bottles of BBS simultaneously?

if you have any info(links,ideas,everything!) to give me about breeding
i will be thankful!

p.s
forgive me for my bad grammer, im not from the US


Thanks!!

[Oldfishlady]

Welcome to the forum....since you have had issue in keeping Betta-I would recommend that you wait awhile before you start breeding them-Once you are successful keeping adults it will be much easier and increase your odds of success with fry-Betta fry can be tricky sometimes.....

Good that you have already started reading all the stickies in the breeding sections-you should also read some of the spawn logs to help give you a better idea of what you are getting yourself into.

In short-
It is better to feed newly hatched BBS with their yolk sac intact for best nutrition especially if BBS will be the only live food.
The first few weeks from free swimming stage are the most important in regards to nutrition with Betta fry.
I like to have 2 hatcheries going 24h apart-I usually start the first hatchery the day or 2 after the fry start free swimming, however, I use a natural spawning method and my spawning tanks are full of natural food for the fry to feed on for several days to weeks depending on the number of fry.......... so if you plan to use the standard spawning method you may want to start the first BBS hatchery the day before the fry start free swimming in order to have newly hatched BBS with yolk sac intact to offer-once the BBS absorb the yolk sac and molt you have limited nutrition, larger BBS and a lot more shells to deal with.

You should also get a microworm culture going to vary the diet more-if anything its good to have a backup plan for fry food-I was glad I did-had it not been for the MW culture I wouldn't have had any food since my BBS eggs ended up being too old to hatch and it was my last vial never opened and kept in the fridge-but over 2 years old......teach me to buy so many vials at one time....lol......

Lots of different ways to successfully spawn and rear/feed fry.....its finding what works best for you, your breeders and what you have on hand....It can be a lot of fun and rewarding-but a lot of work too....IMO its worth it....laffs......

Good luck and look forward to following your spawn logs.....

[BettaDude]

thanks for the (very!) long post..

i think that for the first 2 weeks im going to use infusoria ,
and after 2 weeks , i will mix between BBS and infusoria..

is that good?

da*n, raising fry is alot of work! :)

[Oldfishlady]

I wouldn't rely on just infusoria for the first 2 weeks-they are great in addition to newly hatch BBS or for the first few days-it also depends on if you are culturing them so that you have more control on amounts added or relying on what the tank creates...as well as fry numbers.....

[BettaDude]

another question: do i have to use only live/frozen food?
what about dry food- only for betta fry..
it's an ocean nutrition food..
they say that you can give it from day 3 (free swimming) until the end of the first month.

update: i dont know if they sell it anymore..
atison's betta starter

[MrVampire181]

I use Starter for newly swimming fry but I like to mix in micro worms and BBS with it. They'll eat it but not all of them.

[Fabian]

p.s
forgive me for my bad grammer, im not from the US

You can learn it here with us.