Betta fish come in a variety of colors, and are much more beautiful to look at. Not only that, keeping and caring for betta fish at home is very easy.
The demand for Betta fish is increasing day by day, so many times it comes to our mind that how to breed betta fish? Betta fish are not only bred for financial gain, but often to produce betta fish of different colors.
How to breed betta fish by adopting the right method?
Breeding any fish is a bit complicated, but if we can follow some rules then it is possible to breed betta fish. Let’s discuss some of the things to keep in mind for Betta fish breeding like,
Choosing the right male and female betta fish:
A healthy and mature male and female betta fish are required for proper breeding.
Five to six months old male or female betta fish is considered ideal, not only that we can also determine the age of betta fish by looking at its size and color, brightness.
An adult betta fish will be slightly larger in size and have a much better and brighter coloration.
Before selecting male and female betta fish we should be aware of the physical condition of the fish, because a healthy strong male and female fish can give us good results.
Not only this, Betta fish should be fed live food, frozen food and a 30% protein diet from 15 days before breeding.
Tank setup for breeding betta fish:
The most important factor for breeding betta fish is a large tank. Betta fish breeding requires a tank that can hold at least 15 to 20 gallons of water.
Not only that, a divider glass is very necessary, with the help of which we can keep male and female fish separately in the same aquarium.
The ideal temperature for breeding betta fish is 75° to 80° F. So a proper heater is very necessary for our betta fish aquarium.
If ammonia builds up in our tank, the chances of physical damage to our fish increases. So we should use a very good filter system in our fish tank, which will greatly reduce the chance of ammonia in our fish tank.
The most important factor for betta fish breeding is the right surface. So we should keep some plants, pebbles and aquarium ornaments in the betta fish tank. Aquarium ornaments help our female betta fish to hide easily so that the male betta fish cannot attack. Plants and pebbles help to increase the reproductive tendency of betta fish.
Equipment needed for Betta fish breeding:
Breeding Betta fish requires some tools like,
Aquarium nets are required for catching betta fish.
A siphon vacuum pipe is required with the help of which we can easily change the aquarium water.
Aquarium Algae Cleaning Magnets are needed to keep aquarium glass clean. As a result, our aquarium will be very clean and breeding results will be very good.
Note: We must wash our hands thoroughly before feeding our betta fish or handling the betta fish aquarium. That’s because if any harmful bacteria or fungus reaches the betta fish tank through our hands during breeding, the results can be very bad.
Betta fish breeding process:
Before breeding, the tank should be prepared for the betta fish. At least three to four days before the water in the betta fish tank should be prepared. Our fish tank should be placed in a place where a small amount of sunlight can reach.
Bonding between male and female betta fish:
First, keep the male betta fish on one side and the female betta fish on the other side using a glass divider in the designated aquarium for 4 to 5 days.
This will increase familiarity or communication between male and female betta fish, and the possibility of showing aggression towards each other will be greatly reduced.
This time we saw the male betta fish trying to build a bubble nest within his own territory.
After four to five days, the aquarium divider glass should be removed so that the male and female betta fish can interact directly with each other.
At first there is a possibility of fighting between male and female fish for some time and this is completely normal. However, if male and female betta fish fight too much with each other, they should be separated again using a divider glass.
Not only that, many times we have seen that if the bubble nest made by male betta fish is small in size or not liked by female betta fish, then the female betta fish destroys the nest or increases the distance from the male betta fish.
In such a situation we have to change either male or female betta fish. If female and male betta fish have a good relationship then they are ready to breed very soon.
Mating method between male and female betta fish:
If the relationship between male and female betta fish is good, they mate within one to two days, then within 10 to 12 hours the female betta fish starts spawning.
When our female betta fish is pregnant we can tell by looking at her because pregnant betta fish have a slightly swollen belly.
Whenever the female betta fish lays eggs, the male betta fish places the eggs in its mouth into the bubble nest.
One thing we need to keep in mind is when we see that our female betta fish has completed spawning, should we catch the fish through the aquarium net and release it into another tank.
That’s because we have seen many times the female betta fish eats or destroys her own eggs.
Hatching of Betta Fish:
Betta fish eggs usually take two to three days to hatch, during which the male takes care of them carefully.
Within two to three days after hatching, they begin to swim fully. Then we should catch the male betta fish from the aquarium and transfer it to another aquarium.
But one thing we should always keep in mind whenever we separate the male and female betta from the breeding aquarium is to feed them a high protein diet for a few days. That is because they will be very weak at that time and their body will need a lot of vitamins, minerals and protein rich food.
How to take care of betta fish fry?
Betta fish take two to three days to hatch. After hatching, Betta fish first feed from yolk sacs attached to their bodies. During this time, the betta fish fry did not learn to swim properly.
But within two days they learn to swim completely and their yolk sacs are completely reduced. From this time, our Betta fish fry can be fed with Micro-worms, and Baby brain shrimp.
So we should feed our betta fish fry every three to four hours.
A lot of ammonia is produced in our betta fish tank water during this time so we should change at least 10 percent of the water daily. That will greatly reduce the chance of ammonia build up in our fish tank.
Many times we have seen a small amount of betta fish fry die each day. Although this is very normal, those dead betta fish fry should be removed from our fish tank as soon as possible.
We can grow Betta fish fry very quickly with proper care, like feeding at the right time, controlling water temperature, changing small amounts of water from time to time etc.
Note: The information we have discussed in this article on Betta fish breeding is entirely based on our experience. We can easily breed our betta fish by following the above mentioned methods. There are also many other methods for breeding Betta fish. There are also many other problems that betta fish can have during breeding. So we always feel that breeding betta fish is a proper practice, which may take some time to fully master.
Welcome to our website Aquarium Fish Zone. My name is Sagar Ghosh and I live in Kolkata. I am a science graduate.
I have kept fish in aquariums since I was very young. I loved seeing the colorful fish in the aquarium.
I have always tried to maintain and care for the fish properly. So me and my team members have created this website.As a result, we can provide you with accurate information about how aquarium fish are kept.