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Raising ram fry *#@&%!!!!!!

georgedv

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
335
Location
South Carolina
Why am I having such a hard time getting my gold rams and EBRs past the fifth day free swimming? I can raise regular rams with my eyes closed. Is there anything different? The pairs breed on a regular basis. I keep the fry in there until the third day they are free swimming and then remove them in a plastic container w/air stone, water from their tank and lots of java moss also from their tank. Everyday I change out their water (50%) from their tank and the java moss. I also get "juice" from the sponge filter from their birth tank.

I know water parameters are not ideal...pH 6.9, everything else checks out neutral to slightly soft and acidic. No nitrits or nitrates, but regular rams are doing great.

Arrrrrrrrg.....can anyone give me a suggestions or a new approach altogether?
Thanks
george
 

Mike Wise

Moderator
Staff member
5 Year Member
Messages
11,202
Location
Denver, Colorado, U.S.A.
If successful with blue rams, you should be successful with other strains. All I can think of is that your other strains are weaker for some reason.
 

georgedv

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
335
Location
South Carolina
Thanks Mike. If I understand correctly its genetic. Is there anything I can do to counter act this weakness? I usually only take some of the fry from the parents, should I try to leave them alone. However, parents eat the remaining fry after I siphon a portion. What if I breed them w/ a regular ram, could some of the offspring be EBRs and/or gold rams?

thanks again
george
 

wethumbs

Active Member
5 Year Member
Messages
476
In my limited experience with breeding various color forms of rams, moving them during the first couple of weeks is not a good idea. A whole gamut of issues ranging from stunted growth, fin damage, uneven growth rate within a batch, arise from handling them at that size.

Siphoning a portion of fry could indeed trigger the parents to eat the remainder. Typically, the parents would choose to spend their energy in raising a large batch of fry. Eating a smaller batch of fry help them regain some of the energy from a previous spawn and use it towards the next spawn. I see the same thing in Jack Dempsey where a smaller spawn would get eaten a few days after free swimming as I am currently breeding Electric Blue and Platinum (EB and Gold double recessive) as well. The threshold number differs from pair to pair and species to species.

As for your question on breeding different color forms of rams, without going into too much details into genetics, German Blue is considered a dominate gene, Electric Blue is an incomplete dominate, Gold is a recessive.
 
Messages
3
Hi,

I have gotten about 400 EBR's to sale size 1 inch plus, in the last 6 months. I never move them from the fry tank until they are about a month. At which point I segregate the. In 40 gallon breeders. Throw some Malaysian Driftwood in. I keep it in all of my EBR tanks. I just put up about 75 for sale if anyone's interested it's posted.

Brad
5280 Electric Blue Rams
Denver, CO
 

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