Betta Fish Forum banner

1st time breeder questions

3K views 67 replies 12 participants last post by  Xaltd1 
#1 ·
Hi everyone! My plan is to start breeding in April.I have done loads of research on this forum but still have some questions. Here are some:
1.how do you cull?
2.are mason jars those jars that you can buy at the grocery store in packs of 24?
3. My petstore does not sell live plants. Are silk okay for both the spawn and grow out tank?
4. Where do you find cultures and bbs eggs?
That's all for now. If anyone else has any questions,you can post them here.
 
#31 ·
no another 20 gallon grow out haha

While 20 gallon is the minimum, a lot of breeders on here kept recommending me to get another one because of the fry count. they said 40 gallons is more reasonable since there will be so many fry.
 
#34 ·
yea, sorry I just edited my last post. I'm just using a 22.5 gallon plastic tub for my other one. I didn't have another glass tank in the budget. Though I'm not sure was to what I should use for a hood, though.
 
#36 ·
That actually makes lots of sense imo. Maybe surran wrap?
 
#38 ·
Yea, but I feel like saran wrap would be a lot of work. I'd have to keep reapplying it every time. Such a pain! I'm going to look into glass covers. I'm about to go to the pet store with my grandma to buy a new tank for her betta that's coming in the mail (she's actually excited! YAY!). I'll get measurements and post about it when I get back.
 
#39 ·
Some males don't like to build nests. I've read about transferring an already built nest from another male's tank to the breeding tank to see if he'd use that. I've also read about using cups to have a place to put the nest under (or floating leaves, though leaves sometimes sink). I've also read that some people just let eggs sit and hope for the best, though I'm not so sure how much that would help.
 
#40 ·
i've got two betta-cup lids, a stem of pothos and a betta cup cut in half floating in the tank to give him plenty of options for nest building. i already tried to transfer a bit of bubblenest from Leonidas's tank to see if he's pick up the work from there, but he's ignored it as well.
 
#44 ·
Alright. So my tub was a little odd. It was 34" long. PetSmart sells tank lights to fit either 30" or 48", and then they have adjustable sliders to make them smaller. Sooo I got the 48" one and 'made it smaller'. Then my grandpa saw that we had some of those extra plexiglass things that go infront of fluorescent lights in ceilings. So he cut that to size and drilled holes in it (I'm not any good with a drill or saw or anything like that). Also, we unbent wire clothes hangers for support. It looks REALLY homely and make shift. Oh well. It works!
 
#48 · (Edited)
Walmart is great for cheap little heaters for the bins.
It makes so much more sense to have plastic bins! You can buy the size to fit the spaces in your home. I could easily fit several 20-gal plastic containers around my apartment, but I have NO IDEA what I'd do with one 40-gallon! (I could and may, surrender my kitchen table.. who has money to eat after spending $$$ on this hobby!
I love the plexi grid solution!
I have heard of breeders forgoing heaters and raising fry OUTDOORS in temps at 55 degrees! Yikes.
I wonder- could you raise fry outdoors in 40 degree weather with a heater?
I want to try this in summer here in the Northeast. The breeding I'm planning now is "getting my feet wet". I can work on a larger scale in June-July-August, b/c of steady temps 70-80+ degrees (plus lots of rainwater & live bugs).
 
#50 ·
I can't remember who wrote that article, but the author said if they are acclimated to the temp, they become used to it. I don't knoe what to think, but some cull candidates may be good test subjects :0(
Clamp-on work lights are cheap cheap cheap (like $2!) All you need is a CFL bulb & clamp it on the side.
 
#51 ·
Nice set up, but one thing to be warned about - the metal wire hanger? Will rust very quickly as you will have warm water rising up (you want the humidity) and it will rust on the wires.. which then will drip into the tub and cause harm/death.

You can use wood or anything plastic that is long like that to hold it up.. but metal, not a good idea.
 
#54 ·
Our bettas are breeding as I type this... The female is eating a lot of the eggs as they drop. The male isn't picking them up very quickly, and they are scattered on the bottom. I keep shooing her away with a net because I don't know what else to do and I can't just let her devour our spawn. This is our first attempt at breeding and my fiancee is at work for several more hours. (This is homegrown terror's fiancee Crystal writing this.) I am wondering if any of you can help me out and let me know a couple of things.

How long will they actually be breeding for? What is a normal amount of time for it to take for her to release all of her eggs so I can take her out? Since she is eating so many of the eggs I can't leave them alone because I have to keep her away from them! I've been sitting here for about half an hour so far, and there were already a decent amount of eggs around when I noticed they had finally started.

Can someone please help me out ASAP????
 
#55 ·
They will breed untill they are done, simple. it depends on how many eggs the femalle has. it could take hours for them to finish, i had one spawn last for 3 hours. when the bettas are stressed or think there is danger it will cause them to eat the eggs, make sure there is no vibration or anything like that going on in the tank. also they might just bee young and not very experienced and it may take a few spawns for them to catch on. sadly some bettas never catch on and just arent fit to be good parents.

i wish you luck, the first spawn i tried, the same thing happened, the second one went better
 
#58 ·
Homegrown - they will eat their eggs if they aren't fertilized properly.. sometimes they wrap and eggs will drop, but if they aren't aligned just right, then the eggs won't be any good. You may just be seeing them eat the unfertilized eggs.

On a small chance, it could be because it's their first time and unsure what to do, but instinct should of kicked in. If you disrupt them too much, any that they do get fertilized they won't care for as they will feel their nest is threatened. Best to just let them do what they need to do and see what they have at the end. My last spawn there were a lot of eggs all over the ground, but still ended up with a couple hundred fry. They take hours to spawn, it's an off and on process.. so don't know what will come of it until the very end.
 
#59 ·
This is really exciting!!!! I'm going to start my attempts at a spawn Wednesday!
My goal is to create some yellow bettas. I suppose it's rare color for a reason, though.
I have my sorority tank 12" from the potential Dad's tank. He spends a lot of time looking at thos 9 pretty girls!!! Luckily, his mate is looking back! I let them meet for a few hours a week ago. It was his 1st day in his tank (he was in a QT tank before; I've only had him 2 weeks), so I couldn't resist. They both postured and chased; no fighting. I've been feeding both he & the girls live blackworms for dinner for a week-yummy!!!
How long do you leave the pair in the spawning tank if there's no "action"?
 
#60 ·
Did you float her, and let him show off and build the nest? :)
 
#61 ·
Ugh, I've had bad experiences with yellow lol.. I have a female now in time out (for good) as she is waaaay too aggressive. Such a pretty innocent looking yellow too.
I wish you luck on the yellows!

I've left pairs in the tank for 1-2 weeks before with no issues.. but generally after a few days with nothing you can pull them and seclude them for a couple days to "rest" them and try again. Virgins sometimes will take a bit longer, sometimes a week or so. Just don't disturb them if possible.. the more they see you and you do things to the tank, the longer it may take.
 
#62 ·
What was the trouble with yellows?
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top