( ) Betta care

Question
Hello I am new at breeding betta's and was would like to know what is the best way to help my 2 betta's ( 1 male, 1 female) live their fullest breeding years? and How do you raise the young to insure most of them survive and live healthy,what kind of waters do ya use?

All I know is putting them in room temp bottled water and what type of foods the adult betta's eat. I am doing all my homework i can to keep them as healthy as i can. but I can only look so far. please help with all the advice u can give.

thanks
jeannie
Sidney,Nebraska

Answer
Dear Jeannie,
Breeding bettas is a exciting little adventure but not without problems. I will do my best to help!

Perhaps the first thing you should know is conditioning your potential betta pair for spawning. The best way to do this is- give them the best care possible. Using bottled water is great. But not really neccesary. Most likely your plain tapwater is just fine. Remember to ALWAYS use a good dechlorinator like Amquelplus and be sure the temperature is equal to what your bettas are use to when doing water changes ect...
*Setting up the spawning aquarium. This could be a 2gal to a 10gal. A 10gal is probably your best bet. What you will need for the spawning aquarium are-
*small quiet sponge filter. Restrict the airflow of the airline by pinching it down to one or two bubbles a second. You don't want a lot of water movement that would disturb the male's bubblenest.
*heater (if neccesary) this is to maintain a consistant warm temperature of your house is kept rather cool. A good spawning temperature for bettas is 80-82.
*Large amount of either live or plastic bushy plants. You can tie these together with a flexible plant weight and place them in the corners of the aquarium as refuges for the female betta.
*Styrofoam cup for bubblenest. Take a styrofoam cup and slice it in half. Then use one half for the betta's bubblenest anchor. Use a piece of tape if you can to anchor the styrofoam cup in place.. You could also try floating some live or fake plants in the corner as an achorage for the male bubblenest as well.
*A glass hurricane latern or glass chimney (for the female)
~*Please let he aquarium run for 24 hours or longer. To allow your heater to work and the water to age some. Once everything is working well and set you can introduce the pair.

Keep the aquarium 1/2 empty as well.

Next.. You may place the male and female in a seperate small cup or bag to float in the aquarium and adjust to the temperature for at least 30 minutes. Then let a little big of the tank water into each of their cups/bags to further help adjust them to their new aquarium. While doing this notice to see how the pair react to each-other. If the male flares and the female shows vertical bars on her side then there is great promise that this spawn will be sucessful!

Now set the female free in the Glass chimney and let the male loose in the main aquarium. The glass Chimney protects the female from the males aggressive tendancies. They aren't ready to spawn yet and males will almost always kill females who aren't ready to breed.  

Now you will need to watch your pair closely. Always remember to check water quality and temperature as well. Make sure the filter is still slowly bubbling. Check for a bubblenest under the cup or elsewhere in the aquarium. Is the male flaring at the female and displaying? And how is the female. Does she show vertical bars and swimming with her head down. Or does she just flare back at the male!

If your lovely male is showing great interest in the female and she is not flaring back at him then you can try releasing the female into the aquarium. ~*~You must be certain to keep a close eye on them at very regular intervals for the next day. If the male seems far too aggresive and is stressing out the female. Or vice versa. Then remove the female back into her safe little Chimney for now. You can try again later. They may just not be ready yet.

When bettas actually do spawn the pair go up under the bubblenest and eventually the male wraps his body around the female in what's called an "Embrace" This is when the female expels the eggs and the male fertilizes them. After an embrace the male releases the female and goes off to find the eggs that fall to carry them back up and blow into his bubblenest.

For a pictorial guide to betta's spawning, go here-
"www.bettatalk.com/how_bettas_spawn.htm"

After spawning the male will take care of the eggs until they hatch from 36-72 hours. It's important to leave the light on the aquarium so the male can always moniter his eggs and nest. He must be able to see any eggs that might fall out of he nest. In a few days the fry will be at the free-swimming stage and also by that time will need to be fed as they have now absorbed all their yolk reserves. Now it is best if the betta is to be removed by a soft little net into a clean and warm large bowl or tank. Remember to acclimate the male to his new place.

For feeding the fry. Microworms are by far the best first foods for your new betta fry. Microworm cultures can be ordered online. Like with all fish fry, betta fry do best with small but frequent meals thorought the day.

It is always best to plan very thoroughly ahead of time to make your spawning sucessful. First spawnings are often unsucessful but with proper knowleadge about fry care and maintenance.  You will enjoy the wonders of betta spawning.

For much more info. I recommend going to "Bettatalk.com"

I really hope this helps!
Only my very best wishes with your betta spawning!
Karen~