pregnant betta?? help??

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Jan 6, 2005
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I went downtown and got myself a female betta today. I was thinking my male betta was lonely and I'm gonna get him a wife hehehe.... I didnt noticed it when i bought it but I think I bought a pregnant betta. I read somewhere that there should be a white something on her belly. Mine has one.

The problem is my male is aggresive towards the female and chases her around the tank. Is it normal?? could it be because he wasnt the male that knocked her up. (sounds like a soap opera or something) :P I'm thinking of separating the two. what should I do???
 
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You should definitely separate them. Males and females rarely live together peacefully. Breeders only let them stay together long enough to spawn (few hours), then the female is removed to avoid further injury. If you're not careful, you could end up with a dead or seriously injured betta on your hands :(

Bettas don't really get pregnant. When they spawn, the female releases eggs and the male fertilizes them. Then the male keeps all the eggs safe in his bubble nest he built at the waters surface.
 
Really they don't?? In the shop, there was a male betta amongst the females. So I thought it might not be a problem. So how do i get the male to spawn the eggs if he keeps attacking the female?? Not that i plan to raise the fries. I might as well return the female as I dont have the extra tank to keep her. such a shame, she really looked good.
 
I personally have a female in with my male, but my tank is 10 gallons. They get along fin. The reason why your male is chasing the female could be that he is trying to spawn with her. Look on her body, does she have any stripes? If so, are they vertical or horizontal?
 
the stripes are vertical. does that mean anything?? she get close to him but he flares up and sometimes bite her? oh... the male didnt make a bubblenest. should i try to set up another tank or something for them to spawn?? theyre together with 1 swordtail and 14 neon tetras. I have a overhead filter.


thanks.,.
 
She's not pregnant, its very possible she has eggs, but the white dot, called an egg spot, is always on females.

Before you consider spawning, are you ready for the fry?
Meaning are you ready to house up to 300 fry? In individual containers, that is.
Are you ready to feed each fry 2-3 times a day and clean their containers everyday?
Also, are you ready to possibly lose either the male or the female? Or have either one eat all the eggs?
These are just SOME things to consider before breeding bettas. It's not as easy as just sticking a male and a female together. THAT'S the easy part, and sometimes one will kill the other.
 
Here's a really fun article on the cost of a betta spawn. I found it a highly entertaining and informative look at what to expect, to say nothing of the water changes involved. ;)
 
hhmm...sounds costly. hehe, dont think i would want to try raising the fry. besides the cost, I dont have the extra time for this. If i leave them alone, you think the fighting will stop??? or should i just return the female to the lfs?? I do think she has eggs... her belly is way bigger than the male.

Interesting though... I bought my fighting fish for only 35 pesos male / 20 pesos for the female, which is about half a US dollar compared to the cheapest 5usd accdg to the article. I know theyre the more common veil tail bettas, but still.
 
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Vertical stripes and a plump belly usually mean she has eggs and is ready to spawn.
I'm glad you took into consideration the cost and time required.
IMO, I would return her, unless you can put her in a bigger tank.
 
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