Tragedy

3064 Views 13 Replies 6 Participants Last post by CiChLiD LoVeR128, May 6, 2008

LJ

Discussion Starter · Apr 7, 2008

My beautiful JD pair had just finished their second spawn when the male starting becoming extremely aggressive toward the female. She was getting beaten badly and cornered, and I was certain she would be killed. So I set up a 10-gallon bucket with filter and heater as a temporary solution for her. I covered the bucket with a large book, and left the house. When I came back there she was dead on the floor. She managed to find the small amount of space not covered by the book. I'm so pissed. I think this was the most beautiful pair I've seen, and I doubt I can find a female to match her.

Now I don't know whether to try to find another female, or to just leave the male in there alone. Any suggestions?

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cage623

· #2 · Apr 7, 2008

First off, I am sorry to hear this. It is too bad.

Next, are you talking about the JD that is in the 55 in your tanks listing? If so how big is it now? I think you could set up another pair with your male. But the larger and older the male is, the harder it might be. It will work better if you can get a female that will come close to match your male's size. Also I think that it would work best if you do it sooner rather than later. The longer you wait the more the male will see it as his tank. Good luck.

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CiChLiD LoVeR128

· #3 · Apr 7, 2008

Sorry for the loss!! Its truely up to you and what you want to do! If you are really set on breeding JD's then I would find 2-3 Females and let him pair up again! I to have lost BEAUTIFUL Female Salvini's with my Males and I am still not giving up! I love them and still and always will be set on breeding them! I am still looking for more Females.

Also not trying to be harsh or anything but using a bucket as a tank wasn't and isn't a smart way to go! You have to always figure they are going to jump and try every little thing to prevent this! Even if they dont have a history of jumping still it runs in the fish way of nature! Why not sure but it does! I had a BEAUTIFUL Female Salvini jump out in the 40 gal and there isn't a whole lot of room to jump through. I have had TONS of fish jump out of buckets and containers when I place them in there to adjust to the aquarium water before netting them and placing them in the aquarium. Thats why I always check just to make sure! But when you are gone away that isn't a smart move! I am not trying to be mean but in away it was your fault.

You are always going to have the misfortune of losing beautiful Males and Females during spawning just because of the small confines of the tank and aggression issues but when it does happen and you really want to spawn you just have to press on and try again and again and again if it comes up! Yes, the replacement Male or Female may not be as impressive as the one you lost but hey at least they are the same fish and you are trying again and you will still get the same awesome spawning colors, action, and raising of the fry as the first time.

What you should do is find a divider for the 55 gal and seperate the next pair that forms if aggression pops up and hang on to a few Females if anything should ever happen to the other Female. Also setting up another tank in case you need it would also be another good idea. Again I am sorry I am not trying to be mean I am just merely stating the facts. I again am VERY sorry for the loss!

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LJ

Discussion Starter · #4 · Apr 7, 2008

Thanks for the comments. The male is about 4 inches long now, so yes, I do need to act quickly if I decide to try to find a replacement female.

Cichlid Lover 128, your comments are not harsh, they are true. This was a plain out stupid mistake, and when I saw her lying on the floor the first thing I thought of was how dumb I am. I was thinking the bucket would suffice until the next day when I could go buy a divider. I also made the mistake of giving her too much credit for not jumping. I really did not think she would try. All in all, this was completely avoidable and is something for me to learn from.

As for finding the male a mate, I think I'm going to have some difficulty finding a 4 inch female Dempsey, or 3 of them. I'll look around, but I might just end up putting 1 or 2 mid size companions in with him, like a firemouth or convict.

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CiChLiD LoVeR128

· #5 · Apr 7, 2008

Cichlid Lover 128, your comments are not harsh, they are true. This was a plain out stupid mistake, and when I saw her lying on the floor the first thing I thought of was how dumb I am. I was thinking the bucket would suffice until the next day when I could go buy a divider. I also made the mistake of giving her too much credit for not jumping. I really did not think she would try. All in all, this was completely avoidable and is something for me to learn from.

As for finding the male a mate, I think I'm going to have some difficulty finding a 4 inch female Dempsey, or 3 of them. I'll look around, but I might just end up putting 1 or 2 mid size companions in with him, like a firemouth or convict.

Hey we all make mistakes it happens! Trust me! I have made TONS of stupid mistakes! And I again wasn't trying to ridicule you or anything just merely pointing out a few things. Its all apart of the learning experience with keeping fish! If there weren't any mistakes we wouldn't learn anything would we! In a wierd way stupid mistakes are good! We see what we have done and avoid them and keep our future fish happier and live long healthy lives! And also our fish keeping is even more enjoyable!

About finding new Females you really dont need your Females exactly the same size and actually it might even be better if Females are smaller and younger because you have to remember Males are ALWAYS ready to spawn where Females aren't so..........you will have longer times of spawns because the Female is younger. Dont look for the same size Female just buy a few Juvies and buy the divider and divide the 55 gal and give the Male one side and the Females the other! Let them grow and let the Male see them and when a Female is ready you will know it! The Male will not be picky by the size but by which Female is ready! Then I would advise to get maybe a 29 gal or maybe even a 40 gal breeder and keep the extra Females in there just incase they are needed! Just a thought! :wink: Good luck! And again I am sorry for the loss! I really am! I wish I never lost my 2 Females I still think about them a lot! The one Female in the 55 gal left behind a TON of fry! And she was AMAZING!! I had 3 spawns out of her before she went! :thumb:

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Big Vine

· #6 · Apr 7, 2008

Sorry for the crummy luck, LJ.
BV

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marge618

· #7 · Apr 7, 2008

Big Vine said:
Sorry for the crummy luck, LJ.
BV

Yes, this is difficult. Sorry you lost such a nice JD.
Marge

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LJ

Discussion Starter · #8 · May 4, 2008

So, just to update on this situation, I went out and purchased another female after this happened. Thanks CiChLiD LoVeR128 for the encouragement not to give up.

The male was initially very violent towards the new female, and I separated them with a divider. After sometime I removed the divider, and they are now getting along very well. They don't really show strong signs that they will breed, but they pal around the tank quite peacefully.

So now I have a new question. I'll be leaving for Asia next Friday, and I'll be there for 2 months. I'm getting my neighbor to look after my tanks while I'm gone, but she knows nothing about fish. So, should I put the divider back up before I leave since I won't be around to monitor things, or should I leave the tank as is?

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CiChLiD LoVeR128

· #9 · May 5, 2008

So, just to update on this situation, I went out and purchased another female after this happened. Thanks CiChLiD LoVeR128 for the encouragement not to give up.

There you go! Good job! Not a problem! :thumb:

So now I have a new question. I'll be leaving for Asia next Friday, and I'll be there for 2 months. I'm getting my neighbor to look after my tanks while I'm gone, but she knows nothing about fish. So, should I put the divider back up before I leave since I won't be around to monitor things, or should I leave the tank as is?

Definately divide the tank! Whenever you are going to be gone (and especially if you are going to be gone 1 week or longer. Which in this case 2 months) ALWAYS expect that they wont get along and expect the worst! Even though they get a long and everything 1 day the next day may be a WHOLE different story! Whenever I go somewhere even if its just over the night I ALWAYS divide them! You just never know what could happen! Especially since you are going to be gone for 2 months! Thats a long time from now and things pop up fast! They could spawn while you are gone and things could get choppy if they spawn or not! Definately divide the tank!

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LJ

Discussion Starter · #10 · May 5, 2008

Okay will do. I pretty much thought that's what I should do. I guess I was just thinking that if I split them up now, after they had finally been getting along, that I might not be able to reintegrate them when I get back. But you are right; that is just to long to leave things up to chance. Thanks for the advice.

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CiChLiD LoVeR128

· #11 · May 5, 2008

I guess I was just thinking that if I split them up now, after they had finally been getting along, that I might not be able to reintegrate them when I get back. But you are right; that is just to long to leave things up to chance. Thanks for the advice.

It will not interupt anything as far as them getting along and pairing whenever the Female is ready to spawn he will gladly spawn with her. Also they will be able to see each other. But just think of this if it does interupt it (which it wont) at least you know they are safe and no one is in threat. And when you get back you can spend all the time in the world to get them to spawn. Just make sure the divider is tight against the tank and place rocks on the gravel right next to the bottom of the divider on both sides so that it will keep them from digging and going over to the other side.

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mommasangelbaby

· #12 · May 6, 2008

I've also heard that it's a good idea to divide out exactally how much food they should be fed each day, and hide the rest of their food. Over zealous fish-sitters often feel the need to overfeed, thinking they're doing the fish a favor. This is especially dangerous, of course, if the fish-sitter isn't willing/able/ready to do water changes, or test the water for elevated ammonia/nitrate/nitrite levels. I would feel more at ease while out of town if I knew my fish were as safe as possible.

HTH,
Cheryl

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LJ

Discussion Starter · #13 · May 6, 2008

Thanks that sounds like a good idea.

I don't know how I'd portion out flake food for the angel though, and unfortunately flake food is probably the most likely to be overfed. I was thinking of telling her just to feed each tank 1 time per day every other day. I hope this won't stunt their growth. They won't like it, but I have got to take some measures to keep the water clean.

Either way I'm gonna feel uneasy about leaving them.

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CiChLiD LoVeR128

· #14 · May 6, 2008

I don't know how I'd portion out flake food for the angel though, and unfortunately flake food is probably the most likely to be overfed. I was thinking of telling her just to feed each tank 1 time per day every other day. I hope this won't stunt their growth. They won't like it, but I have got to take some measures to keep the water clean.

Yep you got it! Just have her feed them once every other day to keep the waste, Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrates down. Also the day before you go syphon the tank. That will help keep it all down and minimize problems. I would say do anywhere from a 25-50% syphon water change. Just have her add water when it comes down to a certain level and show her the dechlorinator and how to do it all. The tank will be fine without syphons for the 2 months you will be gone as long as you do a big syphon before you leave and right away when you get home.

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