First Spawn!

[Mugen]

Well.. here I am gearing up for my first spawn...

Here is a picture of the lucky male (Mugen):

One prospective female (Both are in little tanks that I use for photography) named Stella

The second prospective female named Rosie (once again, tank just used for photography.)

... and Mugen's first developing bubble nest just because I'm so thrilled about how things are going XD

Just as a side note.. even though this is my first spawn, I did spend several weeks researching how to properly do things before I even bought the fish. I've been considering breeding for even longer than that. Most of my time was spent reading books, looking up things online, or talking to the local fish guy who deals directly with breeders. This said, I want to assure you that the safety and happiness of these little guys comes first and that I'm not diving into this with the blind hope that maybe ten or eleven fry will survive. This is something I'm serious about

This is my first run and I am going directly out of the book for it. So please, if you see something crucial that could be done better, (besides new breeding stock x.x I know they're not perfect.) let me know! The breeding tank is a five gallon.. which everyone I've spoken to has said is the accepted minimum.. it has heat, light, a place for the female to hide (that huge bush in the picture) and styrofoam for bubble nests. The water has been cycled and I used a very slow running sponge filter in order to keep some circulation going. I also have a glass chimney for when it is time to introduce the female.

One question I did have is because I have rocks in the tank, should I take them out before breeding time, because of the eggs that fall to the bottom..? Or do you think he will be able to pick them up?

 

[snowyangel]

I dont know in terms of breeding, but as a side note i saw witnessed my female lay a handle of eggs without a male present and she had red gravel in her tank but she was still able to located every egg and eat them. But in breeding it's more common to have a bare bottom tank as it's much easier to keep clean and easier for dad to find the eggs. You don't want any eggs to go unnoticed.
I really like your females, very purdy.

 

[Amerce]

I love your male betta, I'd love one like him where did you get him from if you don't mind me asking ?

 

[Mugen]

I love your male betta, I'd love one like him where did you get him from if you don't mind me asking ?

I got him at a store in Bellingham WA called Clark Feed & Seed.. they get their bettas directly from a breeder.. not sure who, though.

 

[Durbkat]

Yeah your supposed to have a bare bottom tank with no filtration so the tank is calm and it won't destroy the bubble nest. Nice bettas If the spawn is a sucess I'd like to either take some or buy some of the females. If I don't get them some from someone else first.

 

[splashluff]

Aww, your pair is really nice! Mugen is a stud!! Do you know if either of the girls carry DT? I hope so ... even though your Bettas do look good, if you're not too confident in them you should really consider breeding. I currently have 80 juvies (which is a small-medium sized spawn), and my LORD is it a lot of hard work! A lot! I would've never done this if I wasn't in love with the parents (and therefore am now in love with all of their kids), so think long and hard (you've probably done so already) about all of the work involved and if it really is worth it to you.

As for your questions, definitely clean out the bottom. Not only will Mugen need to clean eggs from the bottom, fry are bottom-feeders and lots of food will end up rotting in gravel and/or leave you with starved fry. I would turn on the sponge filter only when Dad is removed and/or the fry are free-swimming.

 

[JoLtNbolt]

Good luck with your first spawn! I just did my first one... the fry are about 7 days old. Hopefully they'll make it!