My Male apisto keeps attacking my female apisto, help :(

[MrEllis]

I have a 20g long with a pair of apistos cockatoos (double red), 6 glo-light tetras, two fancy guppies, and a very small pleco. My male apisto will not bother any other fish in the tank except for the female. What can I do about this because I want to breed my female in the near future and I would hate for her to die.

 

[Walshy]

Give her plenty of hiding spots. I had a pair of agasizzis do the same thing. I kept separating them again and again. Same thing happened everytime I put them back together. If u give her enough places to hide she will get in the mood and lay eggs. Table will turn. Lol. She's probably gonna kill ur guppies though. The male is basically trying to breed and ur female is not ready. I gave my female plenty of spots to hide. Stoped separating them and a few weeks later the female was protecting eggs.

 

[Walshy]

Quite often a mirror is an important tool with an unbonded pair. Put it against one side of the tank and the male will get so into flaring at himself he gives the female time to calm down. All in all though. If she looks really stressed. Seperate them. Try again another time. This is all just my opinion. I'm still a novice but I've had this problem so I'll share my findings.

 

[Mike Wise]

I would get another female. You 20L should accommodate a trio if properly decorated. This will spread the male's 'ardor' and give each female some peace. If you do this, you will need to re-arrange the decor so each female has an equal chance to establish a territory.