What to breed?

[DMan99]

Hey,

Im a student living in England and have a few aquariums. I have one upstairs empty room and the other day my mum suggested turning it into a fish breeding room to raise a little bit of money! I couldnt believe it! So i rang up my LFS and they said if the fish were of a good enough quality then something could be arranged.

So whilst i have a few tanks i have never before set out to breed my fish, in the past my livebearers have accidentally bread but now i am hoping to purchase 3 15G tanks for 60 UK pounds inc. filter and heaters and turn them into breading tanks.

Now to my main question what should i breed? I am looking for fish that i can sell on to the LFS and probly keep some lol. So any ideas? The tanks are only 15G so space is limited but please help because i want fish tht will make money yet fit in a 15G and that are relatively easy to breed?

Suggestions please....?

Dman99

 

[Dwarfs]

So whilst i have a few tanks i have never before set out to bread my fish,

No don't bread them, yoiu can't be that hungry! JK, you could try to breed rams in a 15 gallon, they take care of the fry before and for a little while after hatching I've seen good quality blue rams go for $15, whih is a pretty good amount These guys are pretty easy to breed when you have a pair and a properly set up tank, with plenty of plants (real or fake) and hiding places. good luck with what ever you choose

 

[NinjaSmurf]

I'd set up a deal before hand with the store and find out exactly what they mean by quality, so you don't end up tanks full of fish and then have them tell you 'sorry but no thanks'. Apisto's might fit, they seem to sell for a lot more than rams. You could always breed two different types of fish so you'd have something diffferent to offer just in case they don't need anymore of the other type for a little then you'd have something to fall back on. Also, you're going to have to feed a lot of fish, so make sure you aren't spending more on food then you will be getting back, unless you don't mind making even and just having the experience.

 

[Dwarfs]

Doh! I forgot about apistos, they would be worth more, but as ninjasmurf said, just be careful and fnd out what the store is looking for before you get stuck with dozens of fish everywhere

 

[DMan99]

Well the store is a good one, i used to work there and so am still very friendly with them and particularly good friends with the guy who personally deals with what fish they get in and he just told me that he doesnt mind paying me for some fish as long as theyre of a good quality, meaning not disease ridden etc. He's a really nice guy and so i have no worries of them suddenly sayin no thanks.

What are appistos? I read somewhere rams are amppistograma ramirezi, correct me if im wrong so does anyone have a pic of these appistos?

Thanks for ur suggestions.

What about the betta idea or corys?

 

[Dwarfs]

Rams have been relassified as microgeophagus ramerizi

Google apistogramma cactuoides, they are amazing
Bettas or cories could take longer to prepare for breeding and may need some more experience befor you get a successful amount of fry to survive.

Apistogramma are a dwarf cichlid enerally geting to be 2-3 inches long. My dad lucky62's A. cactuoides spawned in a flower pot, after they were well fed.

This is what male cokatoo cichlids (A. cactuoides) look like

 

[DMan99]

Theyre beautiful!

Im really excited about this project!

 

[Flippin'thing bit me eye]

Try some of the more expensive Plecs. Zebra, Goldie, gold nugget

 

[yvez9]

you could also try plecos maybe, but i think they take forever to grow big enough.

livebearers are easy but not worth very much... Though me and my girlfriend have a little factory here which will probably ring in 150$ a month the way things are going. We founbd a store that wants them for 1$ each. Which is quite good. I'm starting to breed bettas too, found a store that said they were interested at 5% a pop. I paid 60$ for my breeding pair though...

Rams are supposed to be easy breeders, but you need a breeding pair and a bit of luck, my rams never bred and then died...

if you breed quality fish, you will get quality fry.

good luck with your project!

 

[DMan99]

Thanks, the plec idea sounds interesting but it would take a while for them to be at the selling onto the LFS stage and for a beginner to breeding probably quite hard! I guess live bearers are guaranteed to breed lol just the profit would be less than perhaps other fish!

Thanks everyone!

 

[yvez9]

you could try breeding cichlids. I wouldn't recommend convicts though as they will most likely breed too much...

Rams or angels, they grow big enough rather quickly and are worth more than livebearers. They also raise their young ones making the job easier for you!

 

[smithrc]

Thanks, the plec idea sounds interesting but it would take a while for them to be at the selling onto the LFS stage and for a beginner to breeding probably quite hard! I guess live bearers are guaranteed to breed lol just the profit would be less than perhaps other fish!

Thanks everyone!

Most plecs are actually quite hard to breed. Zebras can take years to settle down and get to it. Goldies grow to 15" + and will need a HUGE tank to breed them in (and it'll tak ethe 5-10 years to reach a size they will breed at)

However... Bristle noses are great little plecs - they have a VERY good market (with them selling at around £5 for a 1" fish around here)

Once you get a pair that are breeding they will do it every 4-5 weeks, and the fry grow quite quickly, and are at a sellable size after about 2 months.

We have been offered 50p each when they are just under 1"
(AndyJ was offered £1.50p each at the same size)

We breed them in a 24x12x12 tank and grow them out in other tanks (great for algae)

If your interested drop me a PM.
We have a pair that we would sell if you want to give them a try.

 

[DMan99]

Lol how do i pm u?

 

[smithrc]

lol.. its the little PM button under peoples posts

Its a personal message - that only you and the other person has access to (other than the mods for security obviously)