Dojo loach gravid? When will she spawn?

[Kaleb]

I have two dojo loaches ( one male one female ) and I am looking to breed them. I am assuming that the female is gravid, her belly is bulging and lumpy. I have done as much research as I could with the resources available and I came to the conclusion that she just might be near spawning.
I have an 18 gallon tank set up with tank water and established filter media (sponge filter),, is there anything i need to know?
When should I remove them from the main tank and put them in the breeding tank? I want this to be as stress free for them as possible, however I do want to try my best to get some fry.
Does anyone have tips on how to have a more successful hatch rate? Any and all advice/criticism is welcome, as well as tips. They help so much, thank you for your time

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

How do you know the loaches are male and female?
How big are the loaches?
How old are the loaches?

An 18 gallon tank is unlikely to be big enough for them to breed. These fish can reach 10-12 inches long and don't reach sexual maturity until they are at least 6 inches long.

They normally breed in spring after spending 3 months in cold water during winter. Most people that breed them have them in unheated tanks for several months and then let the water temperature increase in spring. When the conditions are right, the fish breed. They aren't a fish you can just put into a nice tank and expect them to breed straight away. they need several months of cold water before it warms up.

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Kaleb

I have two dojo loaches ( one male one female ) and I am looking to breed them. I am assuming that the female is gravid, her belly is bulging and lumpy. I have done as much research as I could with the resources available and I came to the conclusion that she just might be near spawning.
I have an 18 gallon tank set up with tank water and established filter media (sponge filter),, is there anything i need to know?
When should I remove them from the main tank and put them in the breeding tank? I want this to be as stress free for them as possible, however I do want to try my best to get some fry.
Does anyone have tips on how to have a more successful hatch rate? Any and all advice/criticism is welcome, as well as tips. They help so much, thank you for your time

What do you have in the 18 gal tank for the fish to spawn in/on?
What is your water temp in both tanks?
What are your water parameters?
What do you plan on feeding the fry?
Are you sure you have a male and female?

[Kaleb]

Originally Posted by Colin_T

Hi and welcome to the forum

How do you know the loaches are male and female?
How big are the loaches?
How old are the loaches?

An 18 gallon tank is unlikely to be big enough for them to breed. These fish can reach 10-12 inches long and don't reach sexual maturity until they are at least 6 inches long.

They normally breed in spring after spending 3 months in cold water during winter. Most people that breed them have them in unheated tanks for several months and then let the water temperature increase in spring. When the conditions are right, the fish breed. They aren't a fish you can just put into a nice tank and expect them to breed straight away. they need several months of cold water before it warms up.

Thank you so much for your thorough response ! The tank does not have a heater, stays around 72* and they are at least over seven inches each. I am almost positive I have one male and one female from seeing their body shapes and pectoral fins. The male has a smaller body, and triangular fins while the female’s are round. They are at least 11 months old, if not more. They are in a 55 gallon currently, that is my main tank. I have the 18 gallon set up specifically for breeding them, or at least with the hopes to! Does the temperature of the water need to be lower than 70* for over three months? I’m not too sure and my reading doesn’t give me a definitive answer.. thank you again for your help!

[Kaleb]

Originally Posted by Andy Sager

What do you have in the 18 gal tank for the fish to spawn in/on?

What is your water temp in both tanks?

What are your water parameters?

What do you plan on feeding the fry?

Are you sure you have a male and female?

It has tank water with established filter media, and I plan on getting some black sand or keeping the container bare on the bottom, what do you think would be best for them and allow me to see them well?
Temp for main tank is 72* last time I checked, the water in the 18 gallon is a little bit colder. I would say 67-69* Fahrenheit
Water parameters are around 7.4 for the ph, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, very low nitrate. Around 1-2 ppm.
If I were to successfully hatch any fry I have the means to feed them fresh hatched baby brine shrimp, or a combination of that and some food specifically for fish fry, I can attach a link.
https://a.co/d/cUrTBE7
Would that be a good food for them along with the brine shrimp? Should I do the brine shrimp alone? Or something different?
I am nearly certain I have both a male and a female, but then again I have been wrong before!
I appreciate your response. Have a lovely night

[Colin_T]

The water temperature needs to be a lot colder during winter. We have them outdoors here and some nights it drops to 2-3C (35-37F) overnight and gets up to 15-18C (59-64F) when it's warm during the day. Normally the water temperature is around 10-12C (50-54F) during the day (and less at night) in winter.

In summer the water temperature goes up to 30C+ (86F+) and the loaches start breeding when it gets to 18-20C (64-68F). Then they breed through spring and stop in summer.


---------------------

Use grey or white sand. You can use black but it needs to be smooth and most black sands are rough and scratch bottom dwelling fishes like catfish and loaches. They do need something on the bottom though so make sure it's not a bare glass bottom. They use the sand to dig pits and hide in if there's no plants or caves.

Have a number of plants in with them. Most aquatic plants with small or fine leaves are good to use. Things like Ambulia, Java Moss, Hygrophila polysperma, etc, are good.


---------------------

The babies need green water and or infusoria for the first few weeks and can have newly hatched brineshrimp after that. The following link has information about culturing green water and infusoria (and other things) and might be of interest to you.
https://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...ml#post3578561

[Kaleb]

Originally Posted by Colin_T

The water temperature needs to be a lot colder during winter. We have them outdoors here and some nights it drops to 2-3C (35-37F) overnight and gets up to 15-18C (59-64F) when it's warm during the day. Normally the water temperature is around 10-12C (50-54F) during the day (and less at night) in winter.

In summer the water temperature goes up to 30C+ (86F+) and the loaches start breeding when it gets to 18-20C (64-68F). Then they breed through spring and stop in summer.


---------------------

Use grey or white sand. You can use black but it needs to be smooth and most black sands are rough and scratch bottom dwelling fishes like catfish and loaches. They do need something on the bottom though so make sure it's not a bare glass bottom. They use the sand to dig pits and hide in if there's no plants or caves.

Have a number of plants in with them. Most aquatic plants with small or fine leaves are good to use. Things like Ambulia, Java Moss, Hygrophila polysperma, etc, are good.


---------------------

The babies need green water and or infusoria for the first few weeks and can have newly hatched brineshrimp after that. The following link has information about culturing green water and infusoria (and other things) and might be of interest to you.
https://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...ml#post3578561

Thank you so much! Is there a way to simulate a cold winter gradually by adding slightly cooler water? I agree on you with the sand, I didn’t even know that! But thank you for sharing, I will make sure to look into all of that once I get home. have an amazing day!

[Colin_T]

I knew of a breeder in Indonesia that used a cool room to keep goldfish and other cold water fishes in for several months before breeding them. That's ok if you have a large block of land and are breeding cold water fishes commercially in a tropical country but a bit much for the average person. You could use an air-conditioner in the room and cool it down to 10-15C for a month or so and then let it come back up. The other option is an aquarium chiller unit that will let you cool the tank down for as long as you like. When you want to breed them, you simply raise the temperature and increase the lighting times to 10-16 hours a day. You have 4-8 hours of light a day when keeping them cool to simulate the shorter days of winter. If you live in a climate where it gets cold in winter, put them outdoors for winter.

[Kaleb]

Originally Posted by Colin_T

I knew of a breeder in Indonesia that used a cool room to keep goldfish and other cold water fishes in for several months before breeding them. That's ok if you have a large block of land and are breeding cold water fishes commercially in a tropical country but a bit much for the average person. You could use an air-conditioner in the room and cool it down to 10-15C for a month or so and then let it come back up. The other option is an aquarium chiller unit that will let you cool the tank down for as long as you like. When you want to breed them, you simply raise the temperature and increase the lighting times to 10-16 hours a day. You have 4-8 hours of light a day when keeping them cool to simulate the shorter days of winter. If you live in a climate where it gets cold in winter, put them outdoors for winter.

Thank you so much for your help! That sounds very interesting and good to know I will make sure to do some research on what the best method would be for cooling the water. Thank you again! Your help is extremely appreciated

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Kaleb

It has tank water with established filter media, and I plan on getting some black sand or keeping the container bare on the bottom, what do you think would be best for them and allow me to see them well?
Temp for main tank is 72* last time I checked, the water in the 18 gallon is a little bit colder. I would say 67-69* Fahrenheit
Water parameters are around 7.4 for the ph, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, very low nitrate. Around 1-2 ppm.
If I were to successfully hatch any fry I have the means to feed them fresh hatched baby brine shrimp, or a combination of that and some food specifically for fish fry, I can attach a link.
https://a.co/d/cUrTBE7
Would that be a good food for them along with the brine shrimp? Should I do the brine shrimp alone? Or something different?
I am nearly certain I have both a male and a female, but then again I have been wrong before!
I appreciate your response. Have a lovely night

Colin seems to have given you all the answers I would have so no need to duplicate them is there? Dojos are not one of the fish you really can do in a bare bottom tank ( unfortunately).
I CAN add that there are some interesting DIY aquarium chillers on Youtube and aquarium sites. If you have access to used minifridges, you might want to look into making one of these because it can be done cheaply. I've not seen or heard of any dojo breeders that didn't give them cooler/cold water for a period of time before they spawned.

[Kaleb]

Originally Posted by Andy Sager

Colin seems to have given you all the answers I would have so no need to duplicate them is there? Dojos are not one of the fish you really can do in a bare bottom tank ( unfortunately).

I CAN add that there are some interesting DIY aquarium chillers on Youtube and aquarium sites. If you have access to used minifridges, you might want to look into making one of these because it can be done cheaply. I've not seen or heard of any dojo breeders that didn't give them cooler/cold water for a period of time before they spawned.

What a great idea, thank you !!!
I will do my best to work something out, your help is greatly appreciated ! Have an amazing day, if I have any questions I will make sure to reach out to you both

[m.j.gomez]

Hello, may I suggest that you use a spawning mop or guppy grass on bottom of tank. Dojos are voracious feeders & will eat their eggs. This may help hide some before you have a chance to remove parents. Hopefully this helps!!!!!