[The old man]

I've had a nice Crown Betta for about 9 months now and figure I would try my hand at breeding him.
I have a small 3 gallon tank with a few RCS, a couple very small Corys and 3 ottos in it. I removed the baby mollies and swordtails. Before I put the male betta in the tank should I remove anyother fish that might bother the fry if I can get him to breed? I figure he might clean out the shrimp, but that is ok as I got plenty in other tanks. Any other suggestions welcome.
Thanks

 

[joycould]

There is a lot to breeding bettas here is couple of many sites http://joshday.com/howtobreedbettafish.htm and http://www.bettatalk.com/breeding_bettas.htm here is a good forum http://www.ultimatebettas.com/
My advice is to study and read then decide if it is worth the hassle. I do know they nests holds up better if you can use IAL and you need to have cultured worms or brine shrimp to feed the fry after the infusoria.

 

[brownietrout]

I raised Betta's for a few years and it was very rewarding. Although it is great if you can have brine shrimp to feed them but i was able to raise them on powdered fry food.
3 gallon is sort of small if you want to be able to leave the female in with him as he will try to kill the female if she can't get away. Lots of plants help her with hiding places. It is easiest if you can remove the female without disturbing the nest.
You also have to have very little movement of the surface water or they will have a tough time building their nest.
Give them good food and conditions and let nature take it's course.
Once the babies are not being taken care of by dad he will need to be removed also or he will eat his babies but he is good with them for quite a while.
I raised one baby that I had for several years that was so tame that when I wanted to do a thorough cleaning if the tank he would swim into my hand and let me lift him out of the water to move him to the bucket, he was that tame! He was also beautiful, bright blue fins and perfect snow white body, just gorgeous!
Good luck, have fun. I miss it... hmm... may have to do it again

 

[Fishtory]

Hi,

I raise them in 2 gallon tanks all the time, but I toss in java moss or hornwort so the female can hide if needed. This is just my method. I take out all other fish, including otos and catfish. I raise the temp to 80 degrees, and give him a sturdy plant, almond leave, or piece of styrofoam to attach the nest to. A small water change generally gets him building.

I take quite a bit of time introducing them (this might be why I am able to use very small tanks). I cut a piece of acrylic that fits exactly across the tank, and put them on opposite sides. Every so often I swish the water under the acrylic, mixing the hormones. When they both seem ready I put them together.

As soon as they are done, I remove the female. I take the male out when the babies are swimming horizontally (they start out vertical).

Bettas are a lot of fun, and I have tons of crowntail females if you need some.

Good luck!

 

[The old man]

Thanks for the suggestions. I do have a lot of moss, anubias and java fern in the tank. I'll take out the remaining fish and leave the shrimp. I will need to cut back on the water movement a bit and find something to separate them. Since it is an eclipse tank I'll try for the cylinder idea. Any suggestions on finding one? Sure hope my male has not turned into a monk in the past nine months.

 

[Six]

be prepared, betta fry are tiny. you'll need some food cultures.

 

[lildark185]

I've breed bettas in a 2.5 gallon. The tank is designed to have a glass separator to divide the tank into thirds. The male would get 2/3 and the female would be separated by the glass divider while the male can see her to entice him to blow bubbles. Cut half a styrofoam cup and place it on his side. It'll help keep his bubbles in a single place. Feed lots of worms to get them in the mood and change the water frequently. The female will be ready when you see white bars on the side of her belly. When both are ready, remove the divider and just wait. If they don't mate in 2 days max or if either of them is too beat up, remove/separate. Good luck.

 

[Sunstar]

I spawned mine in a 2.5 gallon. I didn't get many fry due to the gravel substrate. Feed various live food. Vinegar eels, Microworms, baby brine shrimp hatched daily, and add soaked pellets and whatnot as soon as their mouths are big enough to take it.

other than that, lildark185 has it nailed down.

I would take out all fish, and keep only a few apple snails, trumpet snails and shirmp in as cleanup crew.