egg eating

[aquaholic]

hi all
i have a pair that has been spawning nearly every week for about three months now. i finally got them into there own tank and now the last three times after a couple of days the eggs go missing :( .when they where in the community tank they had them to free swimmers a couple of times.they have started squabbling the last couple of weeks as well,so any advice on what i can do about this would be great as it is so frustrating to be so close yet so far away from a decent go at breeding these great fish.

cheers andrew

[Nathan]

you could try caging the eggs, like put some wire mesh over the breeding cone or whatever they are spawning on

[Mulisha]

I'm not expert by a long shot but after reading a fair few posts i think your best option is to just to play the waitting game. Also if there a young pair this maybe becuase there in experenced maybe...

Good Luck mate some photos would be great love to see what they look like :wink: :wink:

Rick.

[DR.V]

Yep, just give them some time to practice. Maybe after 10 spawn they will get it right.

If they keep doing it, then maybe you should cage the eggs.

HTH

[aquaholic]

thanks guys for your input .i think i might try the caging of the eggs next time.theywhere quite good parents in the community tank protecting and taking it turns to fan there eggs they seem to have got worse since they have there own tank:(

[DR.V]

Yep, just let them practice.

Especially when you just move them to different tank. It takes some time for them to adapt with the new environement.

All you do now sit back and wait ! Hmm wait sounds too boring.

Sit back and enjoy the fish ^^

Good luck with the breeding.

[DR.V]

In case you need to cage the eggs, Ben made a great cage :

http://www.discusforums.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5423&highlight=cage

http://www.discusforums.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2436&highlight=cage

HTH

[aquaholic]

thanks dr
hopefully they'l get it right soon:)
cheers andrew

[k9outfit]

Just a thought/question....

If the adults are on an egg eating rampage since being moved - but were successfully raising fry to free swimming in a community tank - wouldn't throwing in 1 dither fish along with them trigger their parenting instinct? Also, they could then harrass the dither instead of each other. :roll:

[Merrilyn]

It's certainly worth a try k9.

Using a dither fish is commonly used with other cichlids, but not very often with discus. The trouble is finding something that is large enough to pose a "threat" but something that won't eat eggs or free swimming fry.

Bristlenose catfish are good, and won't eat fry, but they will eat eggs at every opportunity. Small tetras will probably leave the fry alone, but they may not be large enough for the parents to see tham as a threat.

Maybe try caging the eggs till they free swim, then add a couple of bristlenose catfish. That might work.

[samir]

or if you could divide the tank and put a mean ugly male on the other side. :D on egg eating i like mine sunny side up :lol: :lol:

[nicholas76]

Id be more inclined the let them go a few more times then use the cage if it fails

[aquaholic]

once again thanks for the input all.
i'm thinking of making a cone style cage so it sits about 15mm off the cone hopefully then they can still fan and look after there eggs but not eat them.

cheers andrew

[k9outfit]

on egg eating i like mine sunny side up
:shock:
Oh no, no, no! You've got it all wrong!
...scrambled; that's the only way!

[jfan]

Hi,

So when should the mesh be removed from the tank? And can filter be used when breeding? thanks!

John

[aquaholic]

hi john
i ended up caging the eggs with good results as i now have two week old babies.i removed the cage once they started to free swim ond the cone not long after that.as far as the filter goes you'l need one for sure just make sure the fry can't get sucked into it. most people use a simple sponge filter. best thing is to check ladyreds post under breeding basics.

cheers andrew

[jfan]

Guys,

Just after I posted the last message, I notices my pair of pigion blood started breeding. I couldn't believe it. only the 4th day after i got them. But the wired thing is they breeded on the tank glass instead of the cone i placed in the tank for them. Ihave lowered the Ph, but what else should I do? I cant out mesh over it since the eggs are on the glass. but i have put a mesh at the end of tube so that the fry wont be sucked into the filter.

Want to know what else I need to do? Many Thanks.

John