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Mickslack

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Hi my males are wanting to spawn as they are making bubble nests in there tank could anyone give me the steps i need to take to breed them as i currently do not know how
 
just beacuse a male makes a nest does not mean he wants t spawn :p
my males are always makeing nest its a sign ur bettas are happy and well looked after, i would say read the pined topics here about breeding and read up abiout it on google, you will need a far bit of room if you end up with a big spawn
 
clover said:
just beacuse a male makes a nest does not mean he wants t spawn :p
my males are always makeing nest its a sign ur bettas are happy and well looked after, i would say read the pined topics here about breeding and read up abiout it on google, you will need a far bit of room if you end up with a big spawn
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cheers will do thanks for your help :D
 
Congrads on keeping your betas healthy and happy! :cool:
 
Hey I have a list of everything you will need. WARNING it can get pricey

So you want to breed bettas. But first, you have to learn the Heimlich maneuver. If you don’t know the Heimlich maneuver, don’t worry, you are going to become a top expert within the next few months. But in a few words, this is how it works:

Your local fish store salesman stands behind you, gets you in a death grip by wrapping both his greedy arms around your submissive, frail body and *HUH* squeezes all the dough right out of you. You will come out of this experience a little light headed and light walleted too ;). Cleansed.

I guess what I am trying to say is that if you want to breed bettas or keep tropical fish for that matter, you must be prepared to spend some serious dough. Hence, if you don’t have any money, you should reconsider. OK. Last call for the poor and the stingy. Bettas have no time for you :). They are royal creatures that will not condescend to be offered anything less than the very best.

Still with us? OK, here is the shopping list. On your marks? Set? GOOOOOOOOO!

The following shopping list and “must have” list is the BARE minimum you will need to spawn one pair of bettas. I have put some approximate prices just to give you a rough idea of what you are getting into :). These prices will vary greatly depending on where you live and who you buy the stuff from.




The breeding pair:
1)- One pair of younger bettas from a good breeder. Pick a strain easy to work with and not too expensive to start with. $20 to $30 for the bettas and $20 for Express mail shipping costs. Please do not try to save a few bucks by having your pair priority mailed. Priority mail is not guarantied to not go in the unpressurized cargo area of the planes. Many bettas shipped priority mail have EXPLODED while on the planes!!! Please don’t jeopardize your bettas lives and spend the extra $10 to get them there safely.

2)- Two one gallon glass jars to house each of your bettas. $15

3)- Water conditioners and additives as follow: Amquel ($9) Novaqua ($9) Aquarisol ($3) PH down—in most cases—($4) aquarium salt ($5)

4)- First aid must have medications: Maroxy ($3), Methylene Blue ($5), Tetracycline and a few other antibiotics ($5 each)

5)- Food to feed the little critters: freeze dried brine shrimp ($10), or frozen foods or live brown worms ($1 a portion—you will need many portions over the next months)

6)- Two fish nets ($2 each)

Subtotal = $130

The spawning tank:
1)- 10 gal or 5 gal spawning tank (same price $20 with cover and light)

2)- Mini penplax corner filter ($5)

3)- Small airpump to run the above filter ($10)

4)- Tubing and valve for above ($4)

5)- SUBMERSIBLE (and submersible only) heater 25W to 50W no more or you will cook you fish! ($15)

6)- One stirofoam cup (free… Woaw that’s a new concept!)

7)- One piece of scotch tape

8)- One chimney glass (from your local hardware store) ($4)

9)- One or two very thick bushy plastic plants ($6 each)

10)- a pack of small plant weights ($3)

11)- a mini tank cleaner (vacuum) ($7)

Subtotal = $74

The fry related purchases:
1)- One microworm cultureto be purchased about 3 weeks before attempting the spawning. ($10)

2)- Brine shrimp eggs ($6) extra valve and T connector to send some of your air pump’s air to the brine shrimp’s hatchery. ($1). Also a 1/2 gal jar with lid to hatch the shrimp in ($1.50)

3)- About 50 to 100 jars for the males to be jarred when they grow and start fighting ($1 each)

4)- preferably another larger tank (40 gal) to move them to when they grow, with cover, light, filter, plants and heater (used $100)

Subtotal = $171.00






GRAND TOTAL you will be coughing up after the Heimlich maneuver :):

About $380.00

Aoutch.

This initial investment is the bare minimum to spawn one pair of bettas, that is of course if you want the pair and their fry to live. If you don’t care if they live or not, then you could cut the cost down. (Boooooooo!).

In all honesty, trying to skip any of the above items will probably cause you to fail in your endeavor. If you try to keep 200 fry in a 5 gal or a 10 gal, they will die of bacterial disease or nitrite poisoning. You must provide them with ROOM to grow and survive. Remember: Bettas may lay as many as 500 eggs! Hence the need for a grow out tank and many jars.

Hmmmm… You look pale. Are you OK? :))))

Ah, what the heck, it is only money, and believe me, the enjoyment you will get out of breeding bettas is well worth it.

Have fun shopping, and don’t let that fish store salesman anywhere behind your back!!! Face him at all time! (hehehe I can already picture you walking backwards out of the store!! LOL)

Edit: Author: Faith from www.bettatalk.com
 
Durb that's the second time you've used that. Weren't you asked not to? Or atleast post the name of the author with it....
 
Durbkat, that article was written by Faith of Bettatalk. While I'm sure she'd be pleased you find it so helpful, I'm not sure she - or any author - would appreciate you posting her work without giving her proper credit.

Mickslack, congratulations on your healthy boys! Don't worry about upsetting them by not giving them "wives", lol- I've had many nesting males before without humouring them, and they managed to survive just fine ;) Breeders will be the first to tell you how rewarding breeding is, but they'll also be the first to tell you that it's a pretty cost- and labour-intensive process - as I am learning right now, lol - so you want to be absolutely sure you really know what you're getting into first, if only for the sake of your own sanity :lol:
 
tank212 said:
Durb that's the second time you've used that. Weren't you asked not to? Or atleast post the name of the author with it....
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Oh it's more than just the second time, lol :p

As has been said, it's just natural instinct for males to bubblenest. They won't be upset at all if you decide breeding just isn't for you :)
 
Oh I'm sorry everyone I'll go and edit my post and put author:Fatih from www.betttalk.com. Sorry about that. And tank212 no I was never asked to not do that without putting an authors name.
 
And don't forget the added electric costs, espcially with the cost of oil spiraling upward, up, up, and away
 
So IF you decide to spawn bettas (I just got a BEAUTIFUL dark purple pair crowntail male that has just the tinsy bit of red on his tail and a female to match at a fish auction), how long do you let the male keep the babies? After that you just put one baby per jar? No filtration or anything just weekly water changes right?
 
My electric bill has skyrocketed since I started fishkeeping. The high energy lights for planted aquariums, the multiple heaters and filters, & the lights. Even my airconditioning bill in order to combat the extra heat from the tanks is much higher this summer. We're not talking about a couple of betta vases here. :lol: Just like Faith isn't talking about a few 2.5 usg containers w/o heat, light, or filtration. Hidden costs add up too.
 
Oh yeah I noticed that to. Because ever since I have had 5 tanks our electric bill has gone up alittle.
 

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