Hey all, well, this is a wierd situation...i have a 10 gallon tank....occupants...1 trofeus duboisi...2 clown loaches...3 rams... 2 of the rams were bothering my clown loaches so i put them in a little containment unit. it's the little plastic square things that you use to put in preganant guppies and it hangs on the side of the tank. i felt bad because it's a little small area to contain them in, but until i could make arrangements to get a bigger tank and/or give away fish that couldn't get along w/ everyone, that's what i had to do. i put a little clay pot in the containment unit so at least the 2 rams wouldn't feel so stressed being in the open for all to see. Well today, i looked in that little clay pot and there are what i believe to be eggs there!!! They look sort of like the sesame seeds you'd see on a bun. What do i do now???? i've never had any fish of mine spawn before!!!!!
my rams spawned? what the heck?
- Thread starter roninmagik1
- Start date
We,, first of all, get rid of the clown loaches... They will grow to one foot long each and would prefer a 55 gallon tank at the least.
Since the tropheus duboisi is a African Cichlid from Lake Tanganyika, I would get rid of that fish, too.
Now you're left with the three rams, I would just leave the clay pot in the 10 gallon tank WITH the fish, the rams will either EAT the eggs, or protect them. They may eat them because they haven't parented before, etc...
Also, I would get rid of the last ram, that way you have 2 solid mating pairs.
Since the tropheus duboisi is a African Cichlid from Lake Tanganyika, I would get rid of that fish, too.
Now you're left with the three rams, I would just leave the clay pot in the 10 gallon tank WITH the fish, the rams will either EAT the eggs, or protect them. They may eat them because they haven't parented before, etc...
Also, I would get rid of the last ram, that way you have 2 solid mating pairs.
I agree with oddball.
If you want to try and raise the babies, you may want to think about setting up a fry tank for them, as the parents MAY eat them at some point if you don't.
You will need some appropriate food for fish fry...starting with brine shrimp and moving up to some of the powdered food for small fry. I get mine from PetSmart. They will need to be fed about 3 times a day with the brine shrimp after about 3 days old..(after hatching)..they feed off an egg yolk like sack for the first few days. You will have to keep the water very clean...doing water changes at least every other day...and you would definitly want this fry tank cycled before you put them in....
OR....you could leave them in with the parents.....put LOTS of plants in there for them to hide in..java moss is good for this.....and just wait and see if any survive. You will still have to do the 3 times a day feeding with the special fry food....oh, they will eat the infusoria found on live plants while they are very small....so if you have LOTS of plants in there you may not have to worry too much about the feedings for a week or two, until they grow large enough for the brine shrimp and fry powder.
Still want to raise them ?? v
If you want to try and raise the babies, you may want to think about setting up a fry tank for them, as the parents MAY eat them at some point if you don't.
You will need some appropriate food for fish fry...starting with brine shrimp and moving up to some of the powdered food for small fry. I get mine from PetSmart. They will need to be fed about 3 times a day with the brine shrimp after about 3 days old..(after hatching)..they feed off an egg yolk like sack for the first few days. You will have to keep the water very clean...doing water changes at least every other day...and you would definitly want this fry tank cycled before you put them in....
OR....you could leave them in with the parents.....put LOTS of plants in there for them to hide in..java moss is good for this.....and just wait and see if any survive. You will still have to do the 3 times a day feeding with the special fry food....oh, they will eat the infusoria found on live plants while they are very small....so if you have LOTS of plants in there you may not have to worry too much about the feedings for a week or two, until they grow large enough for the brine shrimp and fry powder.
Still want to raise them ?? v
geez...i'm not ready to be a daddy!!! :sad hehe...went to the fish store yesterday, and bought a divider for my ten gallon. So the mommy is by herself w/ the eggs now. The tank is overcrowded, so i'm buying a 20 gallon long, i just gotta figure out where i'm gonna have space for it. Thanks for the advice everyone!
Keep the parents TOGETHER. They will keep on mating together and will grow the babies up TOGETHER. I cannot stress how much you should keep them together.
The 20 Gallon long wouldn't house the clown loaches safely, either. The 1 tropheus duboisi should be ok in the 20 gallon, but def. not the clown loach.
Also, return the other ram... Just keep the two mating rams in the 10 gallon by themselves with the fish fry.
The 20 Gallon long wouldn't house the clown loaches safely, either. The 1 tropheus duboisi should be ok in the 20 gallon, but def. not the clown loach.
Also, return the other ram... Just keep the two mating rams in the 10 gallon by themselves with the fish fry.
wow, I cant believe they spawned in a little containment thing like that....are you talking about one of those breeder trap things they use for live bearers??? AMAZING!!