I know, I know, another breeding question...but please help

[Alisha]

Okay, so I have started to persue breeding my bettas. I have researched it to the limit, including all of the resources that were listed on this site. Everything was fine until today. I conditioned the pair for breeding, and I introduced the female into the tank on Saturday. She is displaying verticle bars, she has swollen up with eggs, and she is also displaying her breeding "tube". My male built his bubble nest, and he seemed all ready to go today, he was swimming, or "dancing" in an "S" formation in front of my female and then dashing back to the nest, trying to have her follow him so they could spawn. Well I guess she wasn't ready then or something, but she is now and she keeps swimming up to the bubble nest, with her head down, at the 45 degree angle, but now he chases her away, like he is gaurding the nest. I read on another website that this means he is not ready, but why is he suddenly not ready, when he was ready to spawn earlier this morning and late last night? He is continuing to build at the bubble nest, almost frantically now...do think he will get back into the "mood" of things, or should I just terminate the whole thing? This would be my first attempt at breeding, and I would greatly appreciate any and all help.

[Christine]

I know some folks have fast spawns... but at my house once the female is released I've been averaging 2-3 days until spawn and spawning seems to occur almost always here in late morning/early afternoon. If they aren't drastically damaging one another, I would leave them a while longer but of course keeping a watchful eye on them. Good luck!

[Mobydock]

I always added the female about one hour before lights out and just a few hours after lights on, in the morning, they would start spawning. In addition to that, I attempted breeding when a low pressure system was moving in(thunderstorm). Whether or not it works, it is supposed to simulate the rainy season, which they would get in their natural environment.

[Alisha]

Christine- Okay thank you for your help. I had another question, I'm at school all day, so how do I know if they have spawned? Is there any kind of special behavior? I heard you can shine a flash light at the nest, and look for tiny white specks? Any other ways? The male isn't acting as though he wants to kill her, like I was told he would.., and one more thing, when I got home today the female was not as swollen with eggs but her "breeding tube" and verticle bars are still showing, does this mean she had already had her eggs, or what? Sorry, I'm just confused.... Thanks so much, your great.

MobyDock-Thank you for your help, I have been leaving the tank light on all day except durring the night, so I will cut back on that, but If they dont spawn by tomarrow afternoon I will have to terminate the spawn, today is the 4th day...just one more question...I'm at school all day, so how do I know if they have spawned? Is there any kind of special behavior? I heard you can shine a flash light at the nest, and look for tiny white specks? Any other ways? The male isn't acting as though he wants to kill her, like I was told he would.., and one more thing, when I got home today the female was not as swollen with eggs but her "breeding tube" and verticle bars are still showing, does this mean she had already had her eggs, or what? Sorry, I'm just confused.... Thanks so much, your great.

[Christine]

What is your water temperature? I usually set mine at 80-82 for breeding. You might want to crank up the heat a touch if you don't have it this high.

Yes, if they spawned you would likely be able to see the eggs in the nest with a flash light (I use a magnifying glass sometimes), unless they ate the eggs. The eggs have kind of a creamy color compared to the white of the bubble nest.

Usually the male will guard the nest from the female. How much so seems to depend on the male really. Some are very viscious about it and will chase the girlie down, while others are fine as long as she stays away.

Sometimes the girl will drop her eggs in the tank without spawning. Usually they get eaten. So it is possible that she did this, however, if she did... she will still have more eggs just maybe not quite so many. Sometimes, they seem to get excited and drop a few eggs here and there also.

How are they behaving towards each other now? Is she checking out the nest? Is he leading her to the nest at all? Still building? Showing off? Indifferent? I did have one male that was so worried about building a mansion that he kept forgetting about the girlie. She finally put a whooping on him for being inattentive to her and I had to take them out. I kept them isolated for about 2 weeks and put them back in and left her chimneyed for 2 days. They spawned within 30 minutes of her release.

Good luck!

[Alisha]

Christine- Thanks again for all your help. The temperature is at 80 degrees. My flashlight was dead so I used a lamp, haha. The first time I looked it seemd like I saw the white dots, the second time I didn't, so I will use your suggestion and use a magnifying glass to get a better look. So, if she DID drop some eggs, and they ate them, does she have enough to spawn? She still seems some-what full of eggs, but not nearly as much as she was. As for their behavior toward eachother...the male is still showing off for her, adding on to the nest, and chasing the female around the tank. The female, seems a tad less interested, but other than that, relatively the same as she has been throughout this whole spawning process. She changes her mind all the time, sometimes she'll be throwing herself at him, and the next she could care less. But maybe she will be impressed with a larger nest, which seems to be the male's thoughts because he is rapidly away at the nest, but at the beginning, he barely had one made...so I can hope. Does it sound good to you?, and once again thanks so much, you are so experianced and I would be lost if it wasn't for your advice, so thanks again!

[Christine]

Yes, even if she did drop some eggs she will still be able to spawn if shes interested. She just wont have as many as she could have had.

How much (if any) damage have they taken? From your description as long as there is not too much damage, if it were me, I would leave them in longer and consider bumping the temp to 82 maybe. I've heard of folks leaving them in as much as 2-3 weeks. I don't have that much patience LOL. By the end of 1-1.5 weeks Im at the end of my rope and will remove, isolate and recondition.

I'm definitely not "the" betta expert, I can only say what experiences I've had Hope this helps!

[Alisha]

Okay thanks, I will keep them in the spawning tank for awhile longer. I dont have much patience either, I was expecting them to have spawned by the first-second day already, especially the way I hear how many people succesfully breed their betta's in hours rather than days! As for damage, my female has a couple tears in her fin, and the male is in great shape, no damage whatsoever. I will keep you updated, and if you have any other tips feel free to share. And once again, thank you.

[Mobydock]

Once you know what the nest looks like with eggs in it, they're fairly easy to spot. If there are eggs in the nest, you should be able to sit for a few minutes, and see a few eggs fall from the nest and the male spitting them back up.

[Alisha]

okay MobyDock, thanks for the information. I will observe them carefully..thanks.