Willie Makeit?

[Rod Coleman]

That's the question for this little guy. The only wiggler to hatch from the spawn.

It's only the pair's second attempt to breed and on day 2 they started to eat the eggs. After I screened them the eggs went white - all except one! In due course Willie appeared, wiggling away, surrounded by his fungussed not-to-be siblings.

I've fixed him up in a luxury apartment with a surrogate mother made from an old mouse mat. He loves her like the real thing and sticks to her neoprene side by his head.

Now that he's free swimming he does a few laps of the pool and then back to mum for a bit of bonding. I've smeared her with a paste of egg yolk, spirulina and no BS fine.

I expect Willie has a few challenges ahead - so wish him luck! ::)

Rod

[Rod Coleman]

Willie's tank.

Oh boy, the water changes!!! ;D

[Rod Coleman]

Here's Willie stuck by his head to mum.

[Rod Coleman]

Willie close up.

What a smile!! ;D That kid's gotta make it!!

Rod

[Liz_Streithorst]

This is TOO COOL 8) Please give us daily (at least) up dates on his progress. That smiling pic is a classic...needs to be stickied somewhere. I had no idea that you could raise fry this way. WHAT IS IT that you're using for the phony mama? Egg yoke, huh? Raw? Hard boiled? Inquiring minds want to know ;D

Liz

[April]

those are cool pics. Now that we all met "Willie", he better make it! Looks like your gonna have your hands full..being Mr. MOM. diaper changes...fornula..
good luck. keep us updated.

[DarkDiscus]

Good luck Rod and Willie!

It would be very interesting to see if he can grow up big and strong!

John

[Ralph]

My sister was an only child and she came out just fine.

[georgef]

Oh my! :o

God bless you, Willie! Hang in there, little buddy!

[oodi]

Rod...

GREAT PICS!!! Here's wishing Willie all the best!!!

Judi

[Francisco_Borrero]

That was great indeed Rod. I am particularly impressed with your creativity in designing MOM, but also with the excellent picture-taking. It should work, and Willie seems to be bonding well. Keep with the water changes! How are you maintaining the temperature ? Is the air temp fairly high ?
Thanks for sharing. Good luck, Francisco.

[EthanCote.com]

U go Willie.

Nice photos taking indeed Rod, very impressive close up of Willie.

With the care you have been giving him, I'm sure he will make it just fine.

If you think he is a handful now, wait till he hits his teenage years... ;)


And to Ralph's post hehe ;D


Cheers,

Chi.

[Jeff]

Those pics are too cool! Please post more when you get a chance.

[Rod Coleman]

Willie says thanks for the good wishes guys. ;D ;D

His apartment floats in the bridal suite where mum and dad are looking ready to have another try soon. Might have to move him when the action heats up. Hoping for a bigger batch next time - maybe 2 or 3?

Willie pancaked for a while after I did a 100% wc last night but he bounced right back and found his mum freshly slimed up again. I'll be more gentle from now on.

He was doing just fine this morning. WC, fresh food then left him to it. The food is a paste of 50% hard bioled egg yolk, 50% raw, a little spirulina and Mike Reeds fine grade no BS fry food. Can't say that I've ever done this before - only been breeding discus for 2 weeks LOL ;D ;D ;D

To take the pics I put the eyepiece from my scope in front of the digital camera and just kind of fiddled around until I got some shots. Hope to record Willie's full transition to adulthood!

We'll keep you posted.

Rod

[EthanCote.com]

Hi Rod,

Not only is Willie a poster child of love but you, yourself is a poster child of what the hobby is all about or should be about.

Someone like myself would most likely get rid of Willie and start all over since it is work to just care for one, but I'm glad you didn't.

Hats off to you bud and may Willie grow up to be as big and strong and have kids of his own.


Cheers,

Chi.

[Willie]

He has a lot to live up to, Willie :D

[Rod Coleman]

LOL ;D ;D

Willie - just a coincidence - maybe you can be his mentor!

Here he is practicing the Australian crawl.

Rod

Nice post..I love it. Ralph..I read about 4 other posts before yours hit me..
LOL...witty!

[April]

LOL Rod..Australian crawl. well...hope he doesnt have issues..in his life from his little whirlpool going the wrong way..when you give him fresh water. if he grows up messed up..he can say ...well...heh..my whirlpool went backwards!!
send him to canada...and we can fix that little problem. other fish before him from oz had to be sent here ..for an attitude adjustment.cause of this.

[Rod Coleman]

Yes, good one, Ralph. I was a bit slow too - think I got to page 2 before it hit me!! :D ;D

Rod

[Rod Coleman]

Willie made it through the day OK. He was swimming laps when I got home - and, sure enough, his parents had produced a big new spawn.

After his dinner Willie kindly consented to a photo session then we moved his apartment into his cousins tank next door so mum and dad could have some quality egg time.

Rod

[Rod Coleman]

Willies surrogate mum-

She's a real headstander big-eyed runt but a totally dedicated parent.

[Rod Coleman]

Here's Willie's biological mum-

[Rod Coleman]

- his dad..

[Rod Coleman]

.. and Willie says "Goodnight to all"

Regards

Rod

[BLUEKNIGHT]

Nice post Rod . Keep us posted. ;D

[DarkDiscus]

Go Willie!

John

[Ralph]

This would make a great movie. You could tell the story about how he was raised, your relationship with him, how sad he was to be by himself, and how you took him to the Amazon and released him into the wild.
You could call the movie Free Willie. Of course you'll have to train him to jump out of the water.

[EthanCote.com]

haha Ralph,

I was thinking of the exact same thing ;D

It would indeed make a great film or novel hehehe.

Go Willie go...


Cheers,

Chi.

[OEG]

willie you can make it little buddy, keep us posted as he grows into a big beautiful round male.
Oscar

[Rod Coleman]

You guys are giving Willie crazy ideas..

[Rod Coleman]

.. but he'll have to bulk up a bit first.

Willie is free-swimming more now so I've offered some ground up fresh bbs and fine powdered noBS fry food.

The next couple of days could be critical??? :-\

Regards

Rod

[nalah]

that is so cute......
little aussie battler.
good on you Rod. . can i be his godmother ;)

[rfidiscus]

What temp are you maintaining? Good luck!
TLM

[OEG]

great job Rod, keep his water clean.
Good luck Willie.
Oscar

[jim_shedden]

Congrats Rod............this is great.

Jim

[Rod Coleman]

Willie is a battler that's for sure.

Pascale, now that he's shown an independant streak and rejected his surrogate mum any advice you can offer to help him find his way in the world will be greatly appreciated. I can't keep him in a 500ml nursery forever. :'(

Willie has lots of cousins but they're too big to play with and would surely lead him astray (or worse ???). With a little luck Willie could get some brothers and sisters tomorrow but let's not start counting eggs just yet :P

Willie likes to cruise along at 29C so I have to keep the photo sessions under the hot lights short or he gets too tired to pose for the camera. 8)

Thought we had lost the little guy this afternoon - found him flaked on the bottom amongst the ground shrimp :o - and it wasn't because he was too stuffed to move. The water must have gone off a bit- you're spot-on Oscar. A big wc soon had him up and rocketing along. He's got a great little motor so must be getting energy from somewhere.

I've put him back on the green egg mix, smeared on the container sides (see www.dph.nl/sub-article/cat-02/feedfryart.shtml) and this seems to be very effective at the moment. I just had a look through a magnifying glass and Willie looked like he had the jet ski out- doing power runs and striking at the food mix quite frequently.

Hoping to see some real growth soon. :D

Regards

Rod

[April]

or...would that be willomena?

[Rod]

Go Willie Go!!!

Nice photography Rod, keep up the good work

hehe Ralph!!

[SLY]

willie is 1 hellof a fighter..all the best ;D

P.S. For better results please play the song survivor over and over again to motivate willie. ;D

[OEG]

Rod,
Im spot on, i like the sound of that is that an Ausie saying? Say good day to the crock hunter, i love that blyme *******.
Oscar

[EthanCote.com]

Go Willie go,

I tell you, this is like watching one of them reality tv show. ;D And its addictive, I have to tune in each day to see if Willie will make it or not...

Continue with the great work Rod.


G'day mate.

Chi.

[Rod Coleman]

"The Blue Turq Said Nothing"

Friends, I have some sad news.

Today I arrived home to find that one of Willie's voracious cousins had jumped into his nursery though a 6mm gap beneath the cover glass! :o

Sorry to say that there was nothing left of Willie. :'(

I knew those cousins were just too rough for Willie. If only I'd floated him in the brine shrimp bath instead. One thing we can be sure of, that little scrap of fish-flesh would have put up a valiant fight to the very end.

Willie's family line goes on, however. Today 60 sibling wigglers hatched out from his parents subsequent spawn.

...think I'll call 'em all Willie!

[nalah]

:'(
bye bye little willie...

[georgef]

:'( :'( :'(

[Ralph]

RIP Willie

[DarkDiscus]

Rod,

It was bad enough he didn't make it, but even worse that he was cannibalized!

Oh the humanity!!!

John

Pull one out of the latest batch and put him in the nursery....

[April]

geez....now we're all going to be greiving! of all ways for him to go....waaaaaa..
well hope this next spawn does well.

[Mattzilla]

i've just read this thread from beginning to end....and what a tragic story. i would have been devistated rod!!!!

at least we can all now carry on and be inspired be little willie's life story.

i hope the new batch do a bit better rod

matt ;D

[Liz_Streithorst]

Rod, You should have done what bradnc suggested and just not told us. You know we're all devistated. Come to think of it...why don't you go over to that juvie tank and look around in it r-e-a-l good. Could be Willie jumped out when his cousin jumped in and he's just in a corner hiding ;)

Liz

[OEG]

I say we dry that ******* cousin, it just aint right man.
Oscar :'(

[slicksta]

One of the best threads I've ever read....a sad one...but then again so was Shakespeare :'(

[dm]

Poor poor Willie.

[EthanCote.com]

Waaa waaaa,

tell me it ain't true? He has been cannibalized?? The horror :noway:

Please someone wake me up. This just ain't rite. I agreed with Oscar and we fried the *******. :fried:

I was so hoping as was everyone that Willie of all fishes would make it.

Poor lil Willie, may he rest in peace.

*sigh*


Not so cheerful,

Chi.

[RandalB]

Gotta Love those fish feeding habits :puke:


Sorry about the loss........

RandalB