# What should I do!??? Bolivian rams breeding tips!!



## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

My Bolivian ram pair is finally breeding after the longer time. This may not be their first time but this is the first time I've ever watched them breed! They are in a 75 gallon tank with Cory's and 4 bristle nose plecos(2 m 2 f). I do for sure want the babies to hatch and grow up, I'm not sure if I should let the parents raise them or should I put the half coconut shell they laid them on in a breeder net in the tank and I raise them? So far I've seen the mother ram chase away my juli Cory's so I would think they would be safe from them. I'm just wondering as soon as the tank lights go off, will the eggs be unguarded and get gobbled up by te plecos or Cory's. thanks for you opinions!!!


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Corys have eaten eggs of mine, all it takes is for the parents to become overwhelmed with defending the eggs and get over run, in my experience.

My latest batch made it in the tank even with 4 angelfish and 6 other rams... to swimming stage. So your chances are still pretty good of survival.

But after the fry have been free swimming for a week and feeding well on powder food, you should move them to a 10 gal with a sponge filter.

Also, to help the eggs make it, feed in the opposite end of the tank from the eggs.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

Thank you! I removed all 4 plecos and put them in a different tank. I am going to let the parents defend from the rest. Which is 4 juli cory(small and easy to defend from) 4 peppered Cory's( bigger, may be a problem) and 1 juvenile kribensis. Which so far is very easy for them. They are doing a great job. Once the eggs become free swimming, I will put them in a 10 gallon


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

I would fill 80% of the 10g with the main tank water, heat it to the same temp, and add them, bare bottom.

Also, you should put a sponge filter in the main tank, or what ever will be filtering the 10 gal, ASAP.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

Eggs hatched today! Leaving them in the tank with mother to fend for them selves! Will this be a good idea?


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Yes.

Let the parents do their thing and move them around and what not till they are free swimming, if all looks good, and fry numbers are still close to the same. I would let them go on for another week as swimmers, then move them into a 10g.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

Today i noticed that there are zero babies in the half cocoanut shell that the pair spawned in. and the female isnt really satying a certain area, so that leads me to think that all of the babies are gone? would she by a place and still be defending her babies if any were still alive?


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Check roots and under/around the VERY base of everything she is around.

One time I had a female hold them in her mouth for almost a day because they couldn't settle on a place to dump them into.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

how many day are they in the wiggler stage? do the babies follow the mother around once they are able to swim?


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

I want to say several days from wigglers to free swimming...

The parents will keep the kids in a certain area, and swimmers who go out too far will get sucked up by the parents and spit back out in the middle of the cloud of babies.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

i have a feeling that all the babies are gone i think it might have been my fault to. i had a male bn pleco in the tank that i really wanted to get out so it wouldnt eat the babies and i might have stressed her out to much and maybe she abanned the babies. maybe they all got eaten. how long until they breed again?


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## halffrozen (Sep 24, 2011)

Doubt she abandoned them, either momma or dada ate them... MAYBE the pleco as well, depending on how big it is... often they don't mind when getting attacked by a BR.

Could be a few weeks, to a month.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

it couldnt be a pleco. i removed my 2 bristlenose and 2 albino bristlenose plecos and put them in a different tank. when i tried to get the last pleco out, i think i scared the mom to bad cuz when i woke up she wasnt "sleeping" over the nest like she normaly does. and the babies were still in the cocoanut until later that day


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## Narwhal72 (Sep 26, 2006)

It's really difficult to raise fry in a community tank. Predators just have too many opportunities to take the fry which are like cookies to them. I have been breeding Bolivians for a little while now and the best success I have had is to siphon the babies out of the tank once they hatch and put them into a separate 2.5 gallon rearing tank. The parents will clump the wigglers together in a tight little mass and you can siphon them out of the tank with a piece of airline tubing (I use a foot long piece of rigid airline tubing on the end to get better control). I siphon them into a plastic pitcher and then put them in a 2.5 gallon tank. After about 5 days the fry are free swimming and will take microworms and a day or two after that freshly hatched brine shrimp.

Andy


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## Bd79 (Apr 11, 2011)

Narwhal72 said:


> It's really difficult to raise fry in a community tank. Predators just have too many opportunities to take the fry which are like cookies to them. I have been breeding Bolivians for a little while now and the best success I have had is to siphon the babies out of the tank once they hatch and put them into a separate 2.5 gallon rearing tank. The parents will clump the wigglers together in a tight little mass and you can siphon them out of the tank with a piece of airline tubing (I use a foot long piece of rigid airline tubing on the end to get better control). I siphon them into a plastic pitcher and then put them in a 2.5 gallon tank. After about 5 days the fry are free swimming and will take microworms and a day or two after that freshly hatched brine shrimp.
> 
> Andy


Agreed. I recently managed to raise Bolivian ram fry successfully in a 20 long, but only after I removed some neon tetras. I was able to leave male Endlers in the tank. The parents (mostly the dad) did a good job of keeping an eye on the fry, but in general it's really hard to raise fry in a community tank.

I have a pair of Rainbow cichlids that laid eggs on Christmas day in a community tank. Yesterday, I saw a female Guppy snacking on the fry, with no sign of the parents. I used a turkey baster to suck out a clump of fry, and put them in a grow out tank.


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## jsmeesterr (Nov 28, 2011)

im finally getting my 10 gallon back on wednesday that i borrowed a friend and ill be able to use that as a grow out tank the next time my rams breed!


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