Breeding
The first step is getting the proper equipment. What is necessary is three tanks. One for the male (1.5 to 3 gallons) and one for the female. Then the third will be the breeding tank (10 gallons+). Some breeders would prefer to have a tank for breeding and another tank for the fry to grow in, but it works just the same if you have one big tank that can be used to the breeding and rearing the fry. Killing two birds with one stone. The breeding/fry tank should not have gravel in it. Now, you need a piece of glass or flexiglass to use as a divider in the big tank, so that it becomes two sections instead of one. You can get the measurements and go Ace Hardware and get your glass cut for $6.00 or so, so it really isn't expensive. The divider glass must be clear so that the fish can see through it. There should be a small submersible heater and USB filter. These are the priciest, being roughly $15.00 each. Find a plastic or foam cup and cut it in have vertically and place it floating in one of the sections. This is so that the male has a place to build his bubble nest. Make sure the two addition 1-3 gallon tanks that are for the male and female when they are not breeding are ready. Put big, bushy plastic plants in both sides. They are perfect jsut floating. The plants cost aroud $3.00 each depending on where you buy them. You must be prepared. When you breed these fish, you are going to 200 fry to feed. Have food ready three weeks ahead of time. You can read about what to feed the fry in the Raising Fry section.
Secondly, you will want to find a good, compatible breeding pair. Avoid pet store bettas. Most of them are unhealthy, mixed bred, and far too old. When finding good stock, you are not looking for the prettiest fins or the flashiest colors. You want two nice young fish that are preferably brother and sister. Inbreeding? Nah, with fish genetics, brother and sister are an ideal pair. Their genetics are different than mammals. You want a female that is slightly smaller than the male, or else she will beat up on him. You also want a breed of betta that fits your experience. For instance, if you are a newbie, like me, you might consider a pastel pair. Don't be afraid to spend a little extra money for a good pair. If you sell the fry for the right price, they will pay themselves off. My first breeding pair costed $45.00, but with 150 fry selling them at even $2.00 each, right there you have $300.00!
The next step is, put the female in one compartment of the divided tank and the male in the side with the cut-in-half cup. They will probably flare their fins at eachother for a while, hopefully just the male though. The female may flare back, or she may seem aloof and uncaring. Keep the two fish in this arrangement for at least 4 days. You will notice the female start to get rounder. If she is a dark bodied female, her scales will start to lighten and darken in places, giving the appearance of her body become striped with vertical bars. I had trouble with my light bodied female because I wasn't sure when she was ready to breed. When a light bodied female is ready, she will start swimming with her head down and curling her fins. The male will franticly start blowing bubbles into the cup, forming a bubble nest. They are ready.
After this happens, use a soft net and scoop the female into the male's compartment. Remove the partition. Now, the male will chase the female around for a few days, occaisionally nipping at her fins. This is perfectly normal. If he rips her fins, don't panic . It will grow back in no time.
In the course of a few days, the female will suddenly calm down. She will start to inspect the bubble nest. This means the spawning process will start soon. The male will wrap his fins around her. This is called the "embrace". He is actually squeezing the eggs out of her body. They will embrace many times, trying to get the right angle. Several eggs will drop from the female after a good embrace. The better the embrace, the more eggs will fall. The female goes into temporary paralysis and the male will quickly gather the eggs in his mouth and spit them in the bubble nest. He covers them up with more bubbles to protect them. This repeats for about 3 to 6 hours until the female has no more eggs to lay.
When the female is through, it is very obvious. The male will start chasing her like mad, and she will hide. The male can kill her if you don't get her out. Put her in her bowl. I like to add a few drops of Stress Coat, just to help any ripped fins to regrow without becomming infected and to calm her down. This can be purched for $3.00. Do not remove the male from the tank. You might want to keep some Maroxy just in case the eggs get infected with fungus. The male will eat the eggs if they become infected.
In a matter of 24 hours, you will notice that the eggs look sort of fuzzy. Congratulations! Your fry have hatched. Do not remove the male. He will stay under the nest and make sure that the fry don't swim too far. At first the fry will just stick to things and eat their egg shells that provide them nutrients to develop their swimming organs. In three days, the fry will venture far from the nest and really start swimming. Now is the time to remove the male and put him in his bowl.
Well, now you have your fry. The worst is yet to come however. Keeping the alive is a major task. Many will die, that is perfectly normal. These next few days and weeks are critical. They need food, and you have to provide it. Don't even think about crushed flakes or pellets. Not gonna happen. They are too young and will not even look at it. If you weren't prepared or had a mishap like I did my first time, then check out the fry page for answers. Good luck with your little fish!
