Thoughts on breeding petsmart bettas?

[Vizja13]

I have a stunning blue/white CT marble girl (avatar) and a red/white/blue VT male...male is from petco and female is from petsmart. What are people's thoughts on breeding them this summer? I think they'd have adorable babies, and it would be good experience for the Marine Ecology class I'm taking next semester.

Would either of them be too old by then? The male would be about a year old, I got him last June. Female I got in early December.

[registereduser]

I don't see why not, I might even buy some off ya! I love that little girl!

[Vizja13]

Heheehe really? Awww <3 where do you live?

[Vizja13]

Ignore this my internet derped and double posted.

[Myates]

Keep in mind you won't know what you will be getting - color wise - as you don't know the background of the fish. And you will end up mostly with VTs and messy fins.. but that doesn't matter since a local fish store would still probably take them for about 10 cents or store credit.

Just remember it will cost a pretty penny to breed and raise the fry appropriately (a few hundred at the minimum to get some set up for one spawn), and the two mixes of fins you won't be getting any that majority of the people would want to purchase for more than a couple dollars (sadly, as I love VTs).

The colors sound pretty, so I do hope you get a bunch of those in the mix :) Good luck!

The age will be fine, as they can breed for years, and being pet store bettas are fine too - nothing wrong with breeding them as long as you know there will be uncertainties when using them is all :)

[Oldfishlady]

IMO-it depends on your goals and as Myates pointed out, understanding that you never know what you will get.

A Betta either meets standards or it doesn't and it may take several generations to reach your goal. With that said, IMO that is half the fun-especially when starting out with mystery genetics.

When starting out with mystery genetics-IMO, you should plan to cull hard-really hard-down to about 20 fry or less. This is a good manageable number to work with and less to find homes for. Every area can vary regarding the demand for the unique Betta-Some Ma&Pa pet shops will take them to either sell or to use for feeders-you may or may not get any real money-some will give you store credit-but that won't be much if anything.
But as far as using pet shop Betta for breeding-I personally don't have a problem with it and the age factor-IMO/E I have never had any issue with spawning my older breeders.

[MattsBettas]

If they are really ice, go ahead! Just remember that vts will be hard to find homes for. Most, if not all betta breeders started with pet store fish.

[Basement Bettas]

It takes as much time to raise pet shop fish as it does to raise fish more in line with a standard. You are crossing 2 tail types and colors. Will get a lot of multis that have odd form. And that little female has a very bumpy top line. Is it bumpy because of water conditions, nutrition or because she carries mycos bacteria??

Are you prepared to deal with raising 300 fish [my fist spawn was this big as was my second]. That is a lot of water changes and how about separating males? Are you prepared to properly take care of the offspring and raise them to adulthood? You have no business breeding anything.. even show fish if you are not prepared. I take responsibility for every life I bring into this world. My first betta spawns were pet shop bettas 30 years ago. But I took the time to raise them well and was able to trade them to a local shop for food to keep doing it. I also bred for color even then. I was very excited about the entire thing. SO.. if you can meet the time and care requirements, and that female's top line improves with good care and the male is also a good and healthy then do it. Enjoy the process, find homes for the fish and if you want to breed some more, consider getting better quality and breeding with a purpose.

[billysurf]

bettas while older is better, because reproduction is larger egg, the birth of the fry at that age is better, are stronger and can withstand more

[Vizja13]

At least for now, I only want to do the one spawn, for the experience of raising young fish (and I hate guppies). So yes, I WILL be doing a lot of culling, because I definitely want them all to find homes, possibly with my Marine Ecology classmates next fall.

Does the female have a deformed spine? If she does I will definitely not use her, I don't mind odd fins so much, they'd just be pets, but spines can cause a whole lot of discomfort, and I won't put any of the babies through that.