First time parent

[SomeGuy88]

Okay...

So my Female Acara just laid eggs on a rock. She is Guarding them very well. How do I know exactly if the Male has fertalized them? There is White stuff growing on some of them So i assume that is just Fungus, Right? The BIG problem is that I am going away in 2 days for a week (figures they had to choose now to do it). I a getting my grandma to look after my fish, so what should I tell her to feed them? I was thinking crushing flakes so they are super tiny for them to eat. Should I expect them to guard well enough that I wont have to worry about my Oscar and Firemouth eating them? And last question, How long will I have to wait until they are big enough to take them out to the petstore.

THANKS!

 

[Seaman]

It sounds like the eggs have fungus so get rid of them....yes I bet she would do a pretty good job of keeping the other fish at bay, the way you will know if the eggs are going to be good is they will get a little amberish color to them and if you look close enough you will actually see the babies inside. If they stay white then its a no-go. FWIW

 

[SomeGuy88]

thanks. The fungus has gone away and the eggs are amberish in colour. The only food i could find was freeze-dried brine shrimp. will this be okay?

 

[Aquatick]

They probably won't hatch until after you have returned from your trip. You don't have to worry about feeding them until after they have hatched and the yolk sack has been absorbed so you have plenty of time. I hatch my own baby brine shrimp to feed my fry....I suppose you could use what you have, but ground down into smaller particles.

YES your Firemouth and Oscar WILL eat them so do what you can to keep them away. If they don't eat them while they're still eggs, they'll make dinner out of them when they hatch. I suggest you move the eggs into another tank with a bubble stone semi close by to keep a good flow of water over them. The parents should not be moved with them as their is a chance they might eat the eggs/fry as well.

It will be several months before you can take them to a pet store. I warn you though, don't count your Acara before they hatch! Sometimes it takes a few trys to get it right and to have a successful batch. Good luck, and keep us posted.

 

[SomeGuy88]

Thanks everyone

The first batch didnt turn out, but they just laid eggs again, and so far everything looks good. I am in the process of setting of a 5 gallon fry tank right now. The parents have everybody in the tank (even the oscar) too scared to even go anywhere close to the eggs. soooooo.... how many days after they hatch will i probally be expecting to take them out?


Thanks again