2 Questions About Rams....

[botiaboy]

So, I got 2 beautiful looking german rams yesterday, which seem to be agreeing with each other quit nicely and I'm hoping I have a pair.... Just out of curiosity, how big/old do rams have to be to breed?

Also, to condition these little guys for breeding I fed them bloodworms, and one of them seems like they have one stuck in their mouth/throat (these are small little rams). Can fish choke and die like that?

 

[KittyKat]

Blue rams (there really isn't anything German about them ) will start spawning at 1", sometimes even smaller. They will grow up to 2-3".

Food stuck in throat can cause death. How long has it been like that?

 

[botiaboy]

Not too long; in fact at the moment the fish seems ok but they both look pretty stuffed xD It looked before like she might be trying to spit it up cuz half of it would go out and then go right back in, but now she seems to manage to have swallowed it. Any way to tell if they are pairing off? Im not sure I have a pair but they arent fighting so im guessing I at least didnt end up with 2 males.

 

[KittyKat]

When they defend a spot in the tank together..

 

[Better-German-Blues]

When they pair up they won't head butt or chase each other out of certain areas of the tank.

In regards to the ram choking, any fish can do that. I have heard of people who had gold fish that would sift through the gravel in the tank and get it stuck in their throats and end up starting to die by sitting at the top of the tank while having a struggle opening their mouths. Their goldfish were big enough that they took it out of the water to get the piece of gravel out of their mouth. Their goldfish lived years later to do it again. Just watch the ram's behavior to see if she is getting stressed out -aka- losing their deep black markings by them turning a gray color if she still has the worm sticking out.