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Well so far I have hear a few different opinions on the bullying. I guess breeding is one. The other is that she is staking out her territory (but the whole tank?). For either of these situations, how long do I let it go on? The female has colored up nicely with some pretty blues and greens, so she is obviously relaxed in her new surroundings. The male, however colorful, hasn't seemed too relaxed. I think his rapid breathing is caused by a) his reflection - constantly after it and b ) the female chasing him around. Last night there was a little tear in the male's anal fin (nothing big, just a slight tear) and this morning there was a little peice out of his "hands" (I don't know what those fins are called - the ones right under the gills). My question is, how long do I let her treat him like this before I should remove one of these guys?
Another possibility is that you could possibly be dealing with 2 females. I somehow managed to set up 2 girls for spawning the other day & they did! But totally infertile, obviously. But'cha shoulda seed all them eggs!
Well, the breeder said he was able to raise some of the hatchlings, so they must have been fertile. I think I will wait until Wednesday (have them for a week then) and if she is still bugging the male, I will remove her for a bit and try again. The breeder suggested that a few days ago.
If you have a cycled/mature tank to put her, that might be a good idea. A little time/out might trim her sails...
Make sure you have excellent water quality in the tank with the male - his fins will heal better/faster.
I do one gallon water changes on their tank anyway. But, I was thinking about taking 1 filter pad from their existing tank and putting it in the other to make it better. I will probably do that soon, she just won't leave the poor guy alone and he has another tear on his anal fin today. Maybe after a few days of the male relaxing and the female out on her own, he will be able to settle down, he still has a few dark areas (as if he was stressed out).
By all means transfer a filter pad. There isn't much beneficial bacteria in the water column. I'd remove her sooner rather than later if he is showing dark and has 2 rips...
Ok, so NOW.... I saw my male this morning and his fins look wonderful. BUT, at certain times with the light, when his body is mostly white, and pretty much see through, I can see the spine, there is a red blob about 3/4 of the way down his spine, like a blood vessel popped or something. Anyone heard of this? There is not too much to take a picture of, it is just a red blob inside his body?!?
Sounds like he may indeed have some problems & the female is picking up on it. Survival of the fittest. Where do you live? If the male doesn't make it through I could probably provide you with a nice aggressive male.
Getting another male from the breeder would be the best option. Rams are not at all difficult to pair up. If you have any difficulties, let me know but if I were to send a new male, it would cost shipping from Utah.
Success! I put the female back in and they are swimming like best friends. It has only been 14 hours but she is showing great colors and is not picking on the male at all. Hopefully it will stay that way.
Ok, now another weird thing. Ok, so as far as I have seen, there is no bullying going on. The female has a few little tears in her anal and tail fin but definately nothing to worry about. So I first saw this around 8:20pm. The male and female were sitting on the bottom of the tank, motionless - breathing and moving their caudal fins of course - in a dark coloration. Just sitting there facing each other. I thought it was weird so I kinda tapped on the glass, it looked as if the female was angry at the male so I wanted to distract her. Now when I came home around 10:30pm, they were in the same area, not same exact spot though, this time parallel to each other on the bottom of the tank, with dark coloration and just staring at the wall. So weird!! Is this some sort of staredown? Has anyone experienced this with Rams, or any other fish for that matter? Are they becoming a pair? They look so silly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Nothing. I thought they might have babies there too but nope. They aren't doing it anymore but I will see, maybe they only do it at night. I do 1-2 gallon water changes a day on their tank.
Ok well they did the same thing last night at the same time! They were there until the lights go off! It's so wierd. I think they are becoming a pair because today after school, now they are swimming around, the male in such bright colors from his already stunning blue, and they periodically swim in a circle rubbing up against each other. :biggrin: :biggrin: YAY!
P.S. - does anyone have any good heaters that are for small aquariums. I have 2, but both pretty much stink. They never turn off and will go until forever so the temp is so varied right now. I have a large heater, for around 40ish gallons, but that is huge, and also, it is not so great. Does anyone have any suggestions for a heater that is for small tanks that is super duper accurate and keeps the temp stable no matter what?
Hi Tbar,
congratulations on your rams. I have been away for a while and read all the thread again. I'm sorry that I cannot help with your heater, (i live in London) but glad you have sorted you pH swing. I have had to get a new RO unit and am waiting for that to be delivered. So I am still at square one with my tank - drat:frown: Good luck with the rams and hope they breed for you soon.
Michelle