# a few questions



## sharkettelaw (Aug 30, 2011)

after a couple of hectic bad months my siamese fighting fish are doing a lot better all males in their own tank and females too and all are happy. im now in the wonderful position of choosing a breeding pair but before i even let them spawn i have a question about the fry..i've only ever raised the fry once as every other male ate the eggs and i put an airstone in their tank and they didnt seem to mind much, but will these siamese fighting fish fry get deformed from the current? i want to give them the best possible environment


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## henningc (Apr 17, 2013)

First, make sure to place your breeding set up / tank in an area of very little traffic to help the males focus. Secondly, you don't say exactly how you plan to set up this spawn. Here is how I do it: I place the male in a deep rubber made sweater box with a floating plastic lid, lip seal down as if it was still on the containr, half a styrofoam cup of something else like duckwwed. I leave him there 3-4 days and stop feeding after day 2. I heavy feed the female with live bbs, livebearer fry and frozen blood worms and adult bs. I place her in a mason jar filled to a level that equals 1 1/2 " higher than the water level in the sweater box. I place her jar in the tank opposite end from floatation. Leave her in there two days to wear down the male and give him time to make the nest. When I release the female, I put the jar back in the sweater box away from the floatation positioned so she can run behind it. I also typically use 2" flower pots turned upside down so it is hard for the male to attack and easy for her to hide. 

Once the eggs are laid in the nest, or 2 days have passed I remove the female. I typically condition a spare female just in case. Once the fry hatch I wait 4 days remove the male and run very little air slowly. It is important to keep the lid on the sweater box at this point. At 10-12 days depending on development, I float the box in a 10gal and start adding water from the tank. Once it is deep enough, I tip the box and out go the fry into the tank.

To feed fry use green water from the 5th day--12th. At the 8th day add some bbs or micro worms-bbs works better. After 12-15 days all bbs for a month.


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

It can effect them, yes. Your best bet is a sponge filter as I have mentioned before with a valve to lower the flow. You want one or two bubbles per every few seconds at first and as the fry grow you can slowly increase. 

I always use a ten gallon with a heater. You want them warm. A friend breeds his in 90 degree water for a boost in growth. But you have to also increase temp slowly or the fish will be effected in bad ways. 

May I ask your goal for the spawn? Show/ sell/ pets? I ask because like I have pointed out before it is very rough on both the male and the female and it can have negative effects on the fish. Shortening their lifespan, ect. Make sure you have your fry foods ready before. I suggest the microworms for the first few days, then BBS, moving up to grindals and finally pelleted.


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## sharkettelaw (Aug 30, 2011)

to answer both of you, i have a 30L tank with curved sides set aside for breeding siamese fighting fish..there's lot of plants and hiding places, temp is about 29/30 deg celsius. out of all the tanks its the most stable and cleanest..majerah im breeding these siamese fighting fish firstly just as hobby and because i think the spawning process is beautiful when the right colours are matched together and then secondly to keep one or two as pets and the rest to sell..the third reason is i want to experiment with the genetics of different subspecies of siamese fighters mostly with the finnage then colouration..sponge filter is a good idea i wouldnt have thought of that as my airstone made current and damaged the spines of my siamese fighter fry


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

Assuming the fry survive, do you have plenty of jars to separate them when the time comes as each one will have to have its own.


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## sharkettelaw (Aug 30, 2011)

not yet no, for now im focused on getting the right food for them but when they become two months of age i shall separate them


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## majerah1 (Oct 29, 2010)

You may need to pull them before then. Some will start sparring in as little as a month. Splendens grow fast at first then slow about three months old.


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