Maylandia callainos

[JDogg]

one of my cobalts apears to be holding!!!

i have a couple options....

i could move her to my empty 10 gal at home (she is in my 45 in my classroom) and grow out the fry there when she spits them out...

i would also slap the divider back into my 20 long ACF tank and let her spit them into there (ACF tank is only 3 inches from her current tank) if i do this would the divider be enough to keep the fry safe from the frogs...

which options do you think would be the best? i kind of want the fish at school so my students can see them grow, but not sure if ACF tank is good option...

or i could pick up a breeder net and put her in there....

once she spits the eggs should i remove her? is there any benifit (other then protection, which i hope will not be needed, to keeping her with the eggs/fry?

[O ALX O]

Any chance of taking your MT 10 gallon to school? I have had fry sucked through a breeder net so they are pretty much useless. Don't have frogs so couldn't tell you if a divider would work. She will not spit until the fry are free swimming not when they are eggs.

[JDogg]

Originally Posted by O ALX O

Any chance of taking your MT 10 gallon to school? I have had fry sucked through a breeder net so they are pretty much useless. Don't have frogs so couldn't tell you if a divider would work. She will not spit until the fry are free swimming not when they are eggs.

not so much it isnot really "empty" just no fish, it is fully planted...

[maxwell1295]

Another option: For about $25-30 you can set up a seperate Holding/Fry/QT tank. 10G tanks are pretty cheap (~$10), you can always pick one up and drop a sponge filter in there. All you need to do to cycle it is squeeze some gunk from your other filters into that tank. Just rinse those filter cartridges/sponges into the new tank. That should be enough to seed the new tank. I use that method as does Tom Barr (Plantbrain) to 'instant' cycle new tanks. You would just need to add a small 50W heater. You don't really need much in the way of lighting or substrate. A bare bottom tank would be best and daylight/room lighting would be sufficient.

I use breeding nets to hold fry. Not in the main tank where they probably wouldn't last a day, but in the holding tank. The females are somewhat weakened and not as eager to chase fry for the first 24-48 hours. At that point she can be returned to the main tank and the fry can stay in the net. I keep them in the net for a week or so (it's easier to watch and feed them when they are confined). After a week, just removed the net and let them have the 10G to themselves.

[JDogg]

Originally Posted by maxwell1295

Another option: For about $25-30 you can set up a seperate Holding/Fry/QT tank. 10G tanks are pretty cheap (~$10), you can always pick one up and drop a sponge filter in there. All you need to do to cycle it is squeeze some gunk from your other filters into that tank. Just rinse those filter cartridges/sponges into the new tank. That should be enough to seed the new tank. I use that method as does Tom Barr (Plantbrain) to 'instant' cycle new tanks.

after my first tank, which i cycled WITH fish (sorry i did not know any6 better at the time ) this is how i have "cycled" every tank i own, with GREAT results

You would just need to add a small 50W heater. You don't really need much in the way of lighting or substrate. A bare bottom tank would be best and daylight/room lighting would be sufficient.

I use breeding nets to hold fry. Not in the main tank where they probably wouldn't last a day, but in the holding tank. The females are somewhat weakened and not as eager to chase fry for the first 24-48 hours. At that point she can be returned to the main tank and the fry can stay in the net. I keep them in the net for a week or so (it's easier to watch and feed them when they are confined). After a week, just removed the net and let them have the 10G to themselves.

i could pic up a 10 gal...

yesterday after noon i did take all the rocks out and net her and put her in a breeder net... in the stress she must have either spit out the eggs or swallowed them...cause they are gone this morning

thanks anyway... in the future any suggestions on catching a holding fish as stress free as possible?

[maxwell1295]

I've read that some people catch them in the middle of the night while they are sleeping. When I did it the first time, I just took out the rocks and cornered her with the Two-Net method. The second time I was able to quickly snatch the female out with the net. In both cases, they held onto the brood.