Breeding Freshwater Fish

The first rule of breeding is to only breed quality fish. If your fish is not in good condition,
make them improve first before you attempt to breed. If you have no fish in hand, then
don't skimp on quality fish. It does not mean you have to spend a ton of money on the most
expensive fish, but look at the condition of the fish closely before you aquire them. Don't
go for those that are on discount or fish that shows signs of injury to finnage or are lifeless.
Alway, the quality of the resulting fish always depend on the parents.

I've tried everything but they still don't breed!

Sometimes, some pairs just will not breed no matter what you do.
Check that you are not overcrowding them
Check that there are no other fish disturbing them
Check that the water condition is ideal
Check that you have a male and the female (depending on the species,
this can be very hard to determine)

When you are sure that you have done everything right and the fish will not breed,
try another pair. Some fish will not breed no matter what you do.
In such cases, you may want to spend your energy on a pair that will.

Food for breeding fish

Give the breeding fish live worms or frozen foods and keep them well fed at all times.
Feeding feeder fish can cause increased aggressiveness, and it may work against you.
I have good experience using bloodworms. They are nutritious and they
encourage the breeding instinct in fish. If you are unable to get live blood worms,
you can get frozen cubed ones at your local fish store.

Water

Make sure that water in the tank is kept clean at all times.
Fish will not breed in bad water conditions.
This is probably because their fry have a low chance of survival and they know that.
Try to use sponge corner filters so that if there are fry they don't get sucked into
the filter mechanism and die. Cleaner water also help fry grow up faster.
The bigger they grow, the lower the mortality rate will me. So we want them
to outgrow the "dying phase" fast!


	Getting Started
	Like the saying goes, 'a good start is half the battle's won'. This couldn't be more true in aquaria. Cycling a new fish tank Before you even aquire your fish, you should make sure that your fish tank is cycled first. Introducing new fishes You don't want to be suddenly chucked into your neighbour's house to stay for life. Why would you do it to your fish?
	What to add to the water
	Many people like to add all kinds of chemicals to the water. However, many of them just benefit the seller, not the fish. The reason why chemical addictives are useless is that they often 'treat the symptons not the source'. As a result, the problem is not solved, just the disaster is postponed. If use chemicals to keep the balance, then you will have to keep using them. I suppose this will make the seller very happy indeed. Just remember that man-made addictives are not present in the water in nature, but the fish are healthy and happy. If you are just interested in postponing the problem, then changing the water will be a much more effective 'solution'. In this section, you will learn you can add to the water. Naturally. If you need to analyse your aquarium water parameters, you can either bring a small sample of the water to a local fish shop or you can use commercially available test kits to test it yourself. Water parameters and what they really mean.
	Fish Nutrition
	Here you can tell from the symptoms what your fish is lacking. Proper nutrition is better than any medication because it is treating the source.
	Fish diseases
	As all living things live and die, sickness and diseases are part and parcel of life. In this section I will teach you how to recognise the most common fish diseases, as well as how to fight it. In most cases, your fish will get stronger and will gain increased immunity against future attacks.
	Breeding Fish
	This section will deal with breeding fish. If your fish has a short lifespan, you cannot make it live longer. However, you can extend its bloodline by breeding them raising the fry. This way, you can keep the family going for generations. However, note that this practise is not advisable for too sentimental people, because you may one day terminate the bloodline due to unforeseen circumstances or accidents. Expecially if you have bred the 'family' of fish for generations, a break may cause a tremendous feeling of lost.

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