# My breeding



## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

So it is official. I will be doing my first spawn next month. I am getting my final supplies in order in the meantime.

Supplies:
Tanks - two 10 gallon, two 2 gallon
I am going to be getting a tub for grow out as well. Complete with filter and heater.
Foods for conditioning (I have NLS pellets, mosquito larva, and frozen blood worms).
I am getting sponge filter(s) and fry foods. I am open to suggestions on which ones to get and good places to get them from. I would be looking to order the fry foods on the 1st or after.

I plan on having java moss in my spawning tank.
If you can think of anything I am forgetting, feel free to mention it! I wont take offense. I know it is likely that I'm forgetting something.



Planned Spawns:

Spawn 1 - HM dragons
For this spawn, I plan on using my HM female Eva (bred by DarkMoon). She is a black marble dragon HM that carries the PK gene. I will be breeding her to one of her brothers. I am open to suggestions on which one. All three have sharp edges and a nice 180 spread with good balance. Egil is a red dragon and a tail biter. Leonidas is a superb bubble nest maker and a black dragon with red wash. Odin is a black dragon with complete dragon scaling. His dragon scaling partially covers his eyes.

Spawn 2 - Giant HMPK x HMPK
For this spawn, I plan on trying my Uther and an unnamed female. Uther is a giant HMPK. He is black with yellow on his face/head. The female is bright orange with a her head and fins being a darker and yet brighter orange. She has excellent form with nice sharp edges to her tail and perfect 180 spread.

I have a couple of other pairs I'm working on as well, but haven't finalized them yet. They are HMPKs. Again, I'm open to any input or opinions. That's why I'm here. I'll be sharing pictures of the pairs soon. Going to try to take better pictures of them now that they've settled into their new homes.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

hmm I would say the black with red wash  Really, condition them all. If the first two don't work, grab another male... If you wanted to however, because I am unsure if Odin would have the sclaes completely cover his eyes soon... If you wanted to breed him, do it before that possibilty.

The giant HMPK x HMPK you probably will get only HMPK regulars, if she is not a giant.

Your spawns sound awesome =D


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^

I was thinking about Odin. I had to cup them when we bombed the house. During that time, they could see Eva and their two other sisters. Of the three boys, Egil is the only one that didn't start blowing a bubble nest. I really do like Odin's form Right now he can still see, so I think I'll give him a chance.
I do plan on conditioning all three to be safe.

The orange HMPK female isn't a giant, but she is large. I'm going to try to get pictures of them here in just a moment.

Another pair I have been considering is my Gwynfor and my new orange dragon female. Have also been thinking about my Sholto (male HMDbT) with one of my blue females (dark blue HMPK). I'll try to get pictures of them as well.

So long as the spawns go well, I will be selling the fry. I will give people here on the forums first pick before then selling them on AB and locally.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

That's awesome  looks like you got a good plan haha


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

*Pictures!*

Just took some pictures. They really didn't want to cooperate with me, but I managed a few. The dragon HM boys were not having any part of picture taking.

Pic 1: Orange HMPK female. Yet to be named.
Pic 2: Orange HMPK female.
Pic 3: Sholto last Sunday. HMDbT male
Pic 4: Orange dragon female. She moves so much it's hard to get a picture.
Pic 5: Eva.
Pic 6: Uther, Giant HMPK
Pic 7: Sholto today.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

They look really nice. Too bad you can't get a shot of them flaring. IMO those are the most impressive pictures.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Eva flared immediately after I took that pic of her. XD
Since coming to me, Uther has only flared when I had him floating in Leonidas's section of a 10 gal tank while I got his tank set up. He is absolutely gorgeous when he flares. Even his beard is marbled black and yellow. I'll continue to try to get better pictures of them. I fear that getting one of Gwynfor is a lost cause. He wont hold still for anything. lol

I tried to get a picture of the girl I want to try with Sholto. She is very uncooperative though. Any time I get an opportunity to get a good pic of her, Fflur swims between her and the camera. XD


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Fflur is a camera hog xDDD

they are all so pretty!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you! I'm so glad I managed to get them.
Fflur is definitely a camera hog. She is also being a typical CT female: eggy. I don't have any CT boys though. Have the two females. Thinking about keeping an eye out for a nice male. I certainly have the room and means. XD


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

:lol: for me it's mainly my VTs who are super eggy.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

For me, My CT girls are eggy along with Lolth. Lolth seems to get eggy fairly easily. Unfortunately, her anal fin is a bit long. Not too much so though.

Have a couple of errands to run today and then I will be scrubbing some equipment. Need to clean the two 10 gallon tanks. Then I need to see about scrubbing my gravel vac and 5 gallon bucket.. They were both used with the water my two sick fish were in.... I may just buy new ones. If I can salvage them, I'd like to though.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

My spade tail (mustard gas I think?) gets super eggy... But she does not like to cooperate :roll: she bullies the poor males.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Oh my.

Eva is super sweet and isn't very aggressive. Not sure how that will match up to my males. Leonidas is very macho. Odin isn't too bad. I'm going to try him first and see how he handles things. He actually built a nice bubble nest when we were bombing the house. As did Leo. Of the three brothers, only Egil has not yet made one.

Working on getting things clean and set up. Going to scrub the two 2 gallon hospital tanks very thoroughly with very hot water. Same with my 5 gallon bucket. Do you think I can soak my gravel vac in super hot/boiling water and be able to safely use it again? I really don't want to scrap it, but will if I have to.

Thinking about aging water in the two 10 gallon tanks and using the hospital tanks to QT some live plants before setting up one of the 10 gallons for spawning. I will still be waiting to attempt the spawn until the 1st. This is when I will have extra money so I'll feel better about doing it then.

Does anyone have any recommendations on where to get fry food and some nice live plants? I know I want java moss for sure. Not sure what else would do well in my tanks.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Do you have some live foods? I like fairy shrimp (similar to bbs), microworms, and daphnia - sometimes if you get new live plants you end up with daphnia :lol: I order mine online... check around in your area, or close to, for someone who could have a culture already set up, and could give you some (daphnia or microworms).

I dismantle my gravel siphon, and put it in hot water. There's been times I needed to, and it still works...


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

At the moment I have pellets and frozen. I was waiting to get cultures until the first.

I'll have to do that with mine then. It's going to get a super long soak. The hospital tanks and bucket will be getting a thorough scrubbing as will the two 10 gallons. No soap and no bleach. I'm a bit wary of bleach.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Agreed! I've only used vinegar and hot water mix, super rinsed like...3 or more times. Never had a problem =D


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I'll use that method then. Want to sanitize anything that came into contact with the two sick fish I had. I am very protective of my fish and want to do what I can to keep them healthy.

I am also considering getting another tank to try to cultivate my own plants. I've been doing very well with some and they grow in my tanks already, but I want a tank where I can focus on just the plants.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Good idea!!!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Update

Tanks are clean. I was aging water but no longer trust my bucket. I will only be using the bucket for dirty water. I will get a new one for clean water. My gravel vac and several containers are also being trashed. This is due to the loss of my favorite male, Gwynfor. He died this morning and I do not know why. I am thinking about taking bleach to his tank. The decor, gravel, and filter will be tossed. Unsure how to clean the heater. This means a spawn I had planned will no longer take place. I had planned to cross him with my orange dragon female.

I am keeping a VERY close on on the rest of my fish. Making sure I do everything right that can be done.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Oh no!!! That happened to my HM.... he just...died. His divided tank buddy was fine.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Yeah. So instead. here is what I have planned for right now. Keep in mind, anything but the first two is really tentative right now.

Spawn 1:
Eva x Odin. Dragon HMs. Both carry the PK gene. Odin is a black dragon with complete dragon scaling. Eva is a black marble dragon with "racing stripe". If Odin does not work out, I will be trying their brother Leonidas (black dragon HM with red wash).

Spawn 2:
Uther x Unnamed. Uther is a giant HMPK. Black with a yellow and black marbled face. She is a bright orange HMPK. Not a giant, but she is quite large.

Spawn 3:
Sholto x Unnamed. He is a black marble HMDbT with his fins having some cellophane coloring. She is a true blue HMPK. She has no iridescence. He has been shifting his color. Now he has more black and has developed some blue iridescence.

Spawn 4:
Frost x Unnamed. He is a HMPK and good father. She is an orange dragon HMPK. He is a marble.


Just so you can kind of see how he has changed, I am including a picture of Sholto that I took today. Frost has also changed his looks a bit. I will try to get a new picture of him tomorrow. Will attach one of him from just the other day.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Eva is not looking so well. She doesn't seem to be taking conditioning well. :/ She looks eggy. Is now not as active and doesn't want to eat as much. The only thing I don't have on hand is fry food. So, I am thinking about ordering that this Friday. In the meantime, I do have Eva cupped and floating just incase she is sick and not just reacting badly to being conditioned. I am keeping an eye on her.

In other news, all my other females look eggy and happy. They are loving the high protein foods. Especially mosquito larva. My CTs are full of eggs. Been keeping an eye out for a nice male. My orange HMPK female seems very ready.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

I'm sorry Eva isn't feeling well, however everything else sounds like it's going really well.  Best of luck.


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## indjo (Jun 6, 2010)

If Eva is refusing mosquito larva, she is definitely sick..... careful.
Good luck with the others.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Eva is still with me, but doesn't look well. Not sure she will last much longer. I have been trying everything.

Revisions to my plans:

Spawn 1: Dragon HMs
One of the sisters (Lolth, Freydis, or Eva) with one of the brothers (Leonidas, Egil, or Odin). They are all from DarkMoon and have lovely form. They also carry the PK gene. Lolth is a copper marble dragon, Freydis a black dragon, and Eva a black marble dragon. Leo is a black dragon with red wash, Egil is a red dragon, and Odin is a black dragon with complete dragon scaling.

Spawn 2: Uther x Unnamed
Both are HMPK with Uther being a giant and the unnamed female being large. Uther is black with his face being a marble of black and yellow. The female is a bright orange. She has nice sharp edges and a perfect 180 degree span. I will try to get better pictures of both. Uther does not really flare.

Spawn 3: HMPKs
I got this pair today. I am waiting for them to settle in before getting good pictures of them. They are marbles.

Spawn 4: Frost x Unnamed
HMPKs. Frost is said to be a good father. He builds large, well constructed bubble nests. The female is an orange dragon.

Spawn 5: Sholto x Unnamed
Sholto is a double tail HM male. When I got him, he appeared to be a dalmatian. He has transformed quite a bit since then! He is now mostly black with blue iridescence and cellophane marbled into his fins. The female is a true blue, no iridesence, HMPK. I may then breed one of the the females back to Sholto.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Any idea what is wrong with Eva?


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

None at all. I wish I knew. I have isolated her, of course. None of my other females are ill. The only thing that I can think of is that she may have had an altercation with one of the larger females and gotten internal injuries. I keep a very close eye on my sorority, but we all have to sleep. It is the only thing that I can think of really. The rest look great and eat like piggies. I am doing all that I can for little Eva and am hoping she pulls through this. She has held on so far.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Poor thing!!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

She isn't as listless as she was yesterday. She is keeping herself upright today. Yesterday she was mostly on her side. She is also zipping for air again. This is part of her natural personality. She has always acted like a torpedo going to the surface.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

I hope she pulls through! *sends healing thoughts to Eva*


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Eva is still with me. She's a tough little thing.

We're coming up on the first! That is when I will be getting my sponge filter as well as buying fry food cultures and some more plants! I have everything else ready to go. So, the question becomes: Which spawn to do first? Which one would you guys like to see happen first?
It is more than likely that I will be selling all of the resulting fry once they are old enough (may keep one or two here and there). So if there is a spawn you might be interested in, let me know!

The Spawns:
Spawn 1: Dragon HMs
One of the sisters (Lolth, Freydis, or Eva) with one of the brothers (Leonidas, Egil, or Odin). They are all from DarkMoon and have lovely form. They also carry the PK gene. Lolth is a copper marble dragon, Freydis a black dragon, and Eva a black marble dragon. Leo is a black dragon with red wash, Egil is a red dragon, and Odin is a black dragon with complete dragon scaling.

Spawn 2: Uther x Unnamed
Both are HMPK with Uther being a giant and the unnamed female being large. Uther is black with his face being a marble of black and yellow. The female is a bright orange. She has nice sharp edges and a perfect 180 degree span. I will try to get better pictures of both. Uther does not really flare.

Spawn 3: HMPKs
I got this pair today. I am waiting for them to settle in before getting good pictures of them. They are marbles.

Spawn 4: Frost x Unnamed
HMPKs. Frost is said to be a good father. He builds large, well constructed bubble nests. The female is an orange dragon.

Spawn 5: Sholto x Unnamed
Sholto is a double tail HM male. When I got him, he appeared to be a dalmatian. He has transformed quite a bit since then! He is now mostly black with cellophane marbled in. His fins are royal blue with some cellophane marbled in and one patch of baby blue. The female is a true blue, no iridescence, HMPK. I may then breed one of the the females back to Sholto.

Spawn 6: Sholto x Unnamed
Sholto is a HMDbt (described in Spawn 5). She is a marble HMPK with wide dorsal. The wide dorsal leads me to believe she is carrying the DbT gene. Both are marbles.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Eva passed and then my sorority crashed. I have 1 female left: marble HMPK carrying DbT gene.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

OHHH!! I'm so sorry, what a horrible thing to happen!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you.
I'm very angry about how it happened. Not going to go into it until I can calm down. Needless to say, I shall still be using my marble HMPK female carrying the DbT gene for breeding and am now (even though I am angry) looking for new stock.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

Awww!!! D: That sucks!! I'm sorry to hear about that...


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. I just got lucky that I had separated her because of her aggression. If not for that, I would have lost her as well.
So far, I have inquired after 2 HM dragon females. Waiting to hear back. I am now looking for HMPKs, a giant female, CTs (bothe female and a male), and possible one or two DbT females.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thought I would share some pictures of my spawning tank. Have it set up. Unsure of how to work with the heater with the reduced water level. The temp is about 80 right now. Keeping an eye on it to see if it holds.

In the tank:
Thermometer
10 gal fully submersible adjustable heater
2 hiding decorations
1 silk plant
5 floating stems of water wisteria
1 anubias plant
a nice size portion of java moss

Who will be going into the tank:
Sholto - marble HMDbT
Unnamed - marble HMPK carrying DbT gene.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I also have IAL but have a question. How long should I leave that in?
I will be taking pictures of both Sholto and the female here in just a few minutes.


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## jeffegg2 (Apr 5, 2012)

Enkil said:


> I also have IAL but have a question. How long should I leave that in?
> I will be taking pictures of both Sholto and the female here in just a few minutes.


I usually remove the IAL when I do a 100% water change, or when that much has been changed, and then I add new.

Jeff.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

If the heater is submersible, it's easier to heat. If not you have to set it an an angle just right lol


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^ I just didn't want to leave it in there for too long and have something go wrong. 
Going to attempt getting Sholto's pic now. He's such a chameleon. He's changed on me again. Still very lovely though. He's a mix of blues, black, and cellophane.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Heater is submersible. Just wasn't sure how well it was going to work since there is less than 10 gal in the tank. Don't want to overdo it.


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## jeffegg2 (Apr 5, 2012)

Enkil said:


> Heater is submersible. Just wasn't sure how well it was going to work since there is less than 10 gal in the tank. Don't want to overdo it.


The adjustable heaters are pretty good at any level so long as you keep them under water. It is the nonadjustable ones that sometimes over heat if you are too low with the water.

Jeff.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Oh! Well, that's good to know. Thank you. Glad I bought the adjustable ones. I just liked the idea of being able to change the temps in case of illness or injury.

I'm going to either need to get a new lid or figure something else out for humidity. The hood I have doesn't fit the tank snugly.


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## jeffegg2 (Apr 5, 2012)

My hoods were not that snug either, and I had no problems.

Jeff.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

If you use the lid basically as a light, cover most of the larger open spots with syran wrap. That is what I do, considering the HUGE gap where a filter should be let's the humidity escape...


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I'll definitely do that.
Sholto is exploring the spawning tank now. Female is in a large breeding trap in there as well. He seems very taken with her. Both have been conditioned.

IAL is in the water. Took some pictures and video of the two. Getting them set up now. Sorry about the pic quality. Sholto was not being camera friendly.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gra9PYA1Uek&feature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHysKbO2Sz8&feature=youtu.be

Sorry about the quality. This was my first time taking video with the camera.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Sholto has decided that she is not the least bit interesting. He also has not started a nest. Debating on if I should have tried one of my nesting males. Like Frost or my yellow dragon HMPK.


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## Sena Hansler (Aug 24, 2011)

I have found that not all males make nests... I had a successful spawn with a male who did not make a nest... After that I just did the shock method with 4/5 success rate.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I tried releasing her. Still no interest and she has no interest in him at all. They stay on opposite sides of the tank.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

She went after his body. o_o He is ow missing a few scales. I have pulled him and put him into a hospital tank. Poor guy.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

Aww I'm sorry things aren't going too well for ya  So sorry about Eva, she was beautiful.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you.

I have other males I can try with this girl. I have two in mind. Both have been conditioned as well:
Frost - HMPK. Silvery-white with metallic green marbling
Unnamed - yellow HMPK dragon with some green on edges of fins.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I have my yellow dragon HMPK male in there now. He has built a nest and is doing all he can to try to entice her. He has tried for the embrace 3 time now. Everytime he starts, she takes off.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Woke up and see no eggs. However, they are both hanging out under the nest. He seems to be adding to it though it is already pretty large.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I have now witnessed 3 embraces! But... she didn't release any eggs.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I just removed the female. He chased her off and wasn't let her go back near the nest. He is now guarding the nest.

I saw 11 embraces that produced eggs. I can not tell if the eggs were put into the nest or not. I believe at least some of them did but are in the nest under and anubias leaf. I will just have to wait and find out.

No nips, tears, or scales missing! They both came out without a scratch. She is now in a 5 gal heated tank and has been fed.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Video of one of their embraces: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3WcxIpstmeo&feature=youtu.be


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

He is still tending the nest. I am waiting patiently to see the results. Hoping that I get some babies.

Also, just so everyone knows, I do not plan on showing. I will keep at most 1 pair from this spawn. It is more likely that I'll keep a female or two though. I will be selling all the rest.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Still no wrigglers that I can see. Still waiting and hoping though. We shall see. I'll keep you all updated as things continue.


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## Sincerely (Apr 22, 2012)

Hehe, I know how it is to wait.

Give it a little while, it took the eggs from my first spawn to hatch about a day and a half.

Hope to see you have wrigglers soon! :-D

-Sincerely


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^

Checked a few minutes ago. Still nothing. The male is still guarding the nest, however. I am both hopeful and beginning to worry.

If this pair does not work, I will recondition the female and condition my HMPK Frost. I have been told that Frost is a great father. I will of course give this male another chance at a later time.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Still no wrigglers.

I will be moving the female to the 10 gal I had my sorority in today and changing the water in the 5 gal. If still nothing by tomorrow morning, I will remove the male from the spawning tank and put him back in his 5 gal.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

He has moved the nest. >_< I now can't check it. He moved it to the back of the tank amid the java moss. Very sneaky.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Fry! I have fry!
Removed the male this morning, thinking my attempt had failed. As I went to gently scoop him out, my eye caught itty bitty things move about. I wasn't at all prepared for how tiny they are or how many I have!
After getting my male out, I sat down and started counting these little pin pricks. All of them are free swimming like champs. I stopped counting at 100! Most are hanging about the java moss and anubias plants.


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## indjo (Jun 6, 2010)

Congrats..... now the fun of raising them begins.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you.

I'm so excited. I had honestly thought that there would be none. I didn't spot them until removing the male. He did a fantastic job with both eggs and fry. I have now fed him a meal of mosquito larvae which he gobbled right up. He seems upset at my removing him though.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

Aww congratulations!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^
I'm going to go to the store later to get a nice magnifying glass.
Depending on how well the spawn does: I may keep one or two and sell the rest.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Don't have a magnifying glass at the moment (going to go buy one later) but managed to get a pretty rough pic of one of the fry.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

:O

I think I'm gonna cry. xD Aww sooo little


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

Awwwww


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^
Very proud of my pair and doing all I can to make sure these tiny little things grow and stay healthy.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

Well, I hope they all survive


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. I have found no dead ones so far and my male had a very empty tummy when I removed him.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

I love watching fry grow up.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I'm loving watching these tiny specks zip about. XD
So far, have found none dead. All the ones I have seen appear to be healthy. Swimming as they should be.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

I can't wait to see them when they get bigger. Platy fry are so adorable and from pictures of older betta fry, they are too. ^.^


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I can't wait either. It was so cute earlier. One of the fry was between the tank and my glass thermometer.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

Enkil said:


> I can't wait either. It was so cute earlier. One of the fry was between the tank and my glass thermometer.


Wow it must be an amazing experience!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I'm really enjoying it. I know that culling and loosing fry will be hard. Especially once they get older... But I'm hoping to have a good amount survive.

Depending on what I have, I would like to keep at least 1 female. I may or may not keep a male. Other than that, any that I have will be sold.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

After being away from my spawn tank for several hours (which were full of anxiety on my part) I have checked on my little ones. They have already grown some and have become easier to see! Very active. I have one that likes to hang out at the very front with the floating water wisteria. This one is a very bright white.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

They are growing! And coming to the front of the tank more. I have had only 1 fry die so far. *knock on wood*


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Pic of a group of the 3 day old fry.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

They are so small


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

OMG Thoss little dots? :-D:shock:


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Yes, those little dots. XD They are on the other side of the 10 gal tank.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

So cute. :3


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. ^_^

I have ordered 2 mature MW cultures. They should be here Monday. The one I have simply isn't cutting it. I had thought I would have a small spawn if it was successful at all. I was very wrong. Next time, I will plan as though I will get a spawn this size or bigger. Better to have too much food on hand than not enough.

Day 4
They are growing. It is getting easier and easier to see them. Thank goodness. Squinting at them was horrid on my migraine. Still have had just the one fry death. I am surprised, but do expect to loose more since this is my first spawn.
I have fry that have decided they like different levels for swimming. Some stick to the bottom for the most part. Others in the middle. Others prefer nea the surface. It's kind of fascinating.
I'm really enjoying this experience.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I went to feed them MW, but they all have chubby little tummies! They are so cute. Loving them really.

Depending on how many I have when they get big enough to move, I may end up splitting them between 2 or 3 10 gallon tanks. Have them cleaned and there is water aging in them. Also have a 5 gallon bucket I have water aging in. Not taking any chances with my fry.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Just checked on my little ones. Was going to feed them some MW but they all have fully tummies again. Not sure this should be happening. They are 5 days old today.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Sadly, I believe that I have lost my fry. I have been in bed the past 48 hours very ill. The spawn tank got really hot yesterday in the heat of the day. I don't think I got to it in time. Going to clean it later and see if I have any survivors. If not, I will re-condition my pair. They are both quite happy and healthy since neither took any damage during spawning.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

I am crossing my fingers.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

I hope you find lots of survivors! Best of luck with your spawn.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you both.

Kicking myself for not getting to the tank to cool it off faster than I did. Poor little things. Going to clean it in a moment since I have a bit of energy. First need to go to the store for more chicken noodle soup and some hard candy. Hoping the candy helps my throat at least a little.

Will then come back and do my cleaning as scheduled. I have started to keep all my adults in spawning condition. I have found that this also makes Uther a bit more lively.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

That's what I do! It makes it easier when choosing who next to breed. The hard part is when they don't agree with your choice.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

Aww.  Let us know how many are still okay


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I had found one but after feeding MW, he has gone MIA.

I have realized a mistake I made. I really should have had a snail.
Can anyone recommend a snail that would eat any dead fry and possibly algae but leave my plants alone?


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## jeffegg2 (Apr 5, 2012)

Enkil said:


> I had found one but after feeding MW, he has gone MIA.
> 
> I have realized a mistake I made. I really should have had a snail.
> Can anyone recommend a snail that would eat any dead fry and possibly algae but leave my plants alone?


You don't need a snail. Take a piece of airline and syphon them with the gunk...

Just don't suck him up!! Ewwwww!!!

Jeff.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

Mystery snails will eat the algea and also dead fry. They come in all kinds of colors, and don't cost much. What more could you ask for?


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

My mystery snails always die.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

xShainax said:


> My mystery snails always die.


Aww. 

Nerites are algae eaters too. But I dont think they will eat dead fry


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

I looked up nerites. It says that they will sometimes eat dead fish/fry.
I really do like black mystery snails though... I'll get one of those if I can find one. If not, I'll get a nerite.

Spawn tank got really hot again yesterday. I got to it really quickly though. Slowly brought the temp down. Saw the fry again for a moment this morning. Pretty sure he's hiding out in the java moss. I am thinking about moving him to a different tank. I have a second 10 gallon that has been set up and has aged water in it. I am thinking about moving him to that tank. He has been the only one I can find left.
If I do move him, I will do a good cleaning of the spawn tank. See if I can find any other fry that may be hiding on me. If there are no more, I will try again.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

I hope he/she survives


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

He/she seems very healthy. Goes all over the spawn tank. Very quick too. Though he/she does not seem too interested in MW...


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Lost the last of my spawn. I have been very ill the last week. So ill that I have been bedridden. I have been making myself get up and take care of my fish. They are very special and important to me. Had another bad temperature spike the other day. It took me too long to get to all of my tanks. I had a few that were looking pretty beat down. Got them cooled down.
My pup has literally kept me in bed the last couple of days unless I am getting up to do something for my daughter. I have fed fish while doing things for Kacey. Any other time I try to get out of bed, my pup makes me lay back down. Sometimes he even lays across me so that I can't get up.

I have cleaned the spawning tank and have water aging in it now. I have an infusoria culture going. I also have 2 MW cultures that are ready to harvest.
Once I am feeling better (I have already started improving), I am going to try again.

I will be doing my yellow dragon HMPK male x yellow marble HMPK female (Conchenn).

After this spawn, I have a friend with a lovely half giant HMPK that I am going to borrow and try with my giant HMPK (Uther). She is a rich royal blue with black head. He is black with yellow marbled onto his face and beard.


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## teeneythebetta (Apr 29, 2012)

So sorry to hear about your last fry! 

I hope you get better soon!


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you.

I wish I knew what had gotten me sick. Starting to feel better though. I can eat again. For a few days, all I could eat was jello and even that hurt. I'm looking at any improvement as a big step up. Stomach is still upset and still having some sinus issues. Getting some energy back and able to do more now.

My yellow dragon male is acting very feisty. I let him and Conchenn see each other for a couple of minutes a day. They are flirting between their tanks. She is looking nice and plump.


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## tpocicat (Aug 8, 2011)

I'm sorry you got sick. Hopefully this next spawn will be much more sucessful.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you.

I'm feeling a lot better than I was.

Conchenn is nice and plump with eggs. Showed her the yellow dragon male a little while ago. She was all flirting and so was he. Very cute.


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Also, I noticed last time that my male didn't eat the few unfertilized eggs there were. He ate no eggs and no fry. Needless to say, he was very hungry when I removed him last time.


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## Fasht (Oct 26, 2011)

I'm sorry to hear about your last spawn =(


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

Thank you. Between my being ill, and Oregon's unpredictable weather... Odds were against me there.

I am feeling much better now though. So the pair will be going back into the tank. They have been conditioned. Conchenn is so plump with eggs that she is simply adorable. Love her cute little flirting ways with my yellow dragon boy.


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## Fasht (Oct 26, 2011)

Yep, those dancers are just adorable to watch xD


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## Enkil (Jan 15, 2012)

It's a little funny because my first attempt was her with my Sholto. She didn't take to him well at all. She acts so docile with my yellow dragon that I had to make sure it was the same fish. XD


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