Pimples and Not Hungry

[danotaylor]

Matt a confirmed pair is a pair that have had eggs, not just hangin out together all friendly like. Did the seller show you any pics of them with eggs? A "proven"pair has had wiggler's or fry. I would ask for evidence they were confirmed, otherwise they shouldn't have been sold to you as "confirmed". Did you know the seller?

[Second Hand Pat]

Hi Danny, they are a confirmed pair. They always hung out together in my show tank and when I was buying them. In this tank, the male always shields her when I try to come and check out her wound. I bought them as a proven pair but have seen none, if any, spawning moods. They just hang out together and always swim where their mate swims. I did buy them from someone with city water but my water is well water and the pH is pretty high, same as the KH but the GH is very low.

What should I do?

Matt, you should wait and be patient. The female needs to heal and heal well before worrying about spawning. When fish spawn and tend eggs. It is very stressful for them. If they were to spawn now it could compromise the healing process and cause that head wound to erupt and I am sure you do not want to see that happen. So while the fish is healing read thru the breeding section of the forum. Pay attention to conditioning the pair as a start point.
Pat

[DiscusDish]

Okay, thanks for your helpful advice Daniel.

[jeep]

I agree with Pat. The stress of spawning can easily weaken the immune system. Although it may be looking much better, it has a long way to go.

[LizStreithorst]

Add me to that list. Don't try to push things faster than they should go.

[DiscusDish]

Thank you. The wound has completely filled up, I will breed 5em in a week or two. Thanks again

[DiscusDish]

@Pat, could you please link me some reliable threads about conditioning?

@jeep,LizStreithorst,danotaylor: if possible could you do the same as Pat? Any reliable threads on conditioning? I want a lot of information so that I can do it right. Thank you

[LizStreithorst]

Matt, I don't know what threads mention conditioning and I'm not going to spend my time searching for them. Read around and you'll learn more than you even knew you wanted to know, including what you want to know. Do your research and when you have a specific question, ask us.

That said, the best foods to condition the fish are always live foods. I used to feed live CBWs but they are almost no longer available. I feed mosquito larvae from my many containers outside, but the harvest isn't that reliable. If I get a pair that shows interest in one another I'll feed them some of my red shrimp. I feed Al's black worms every day to all my fish. That's the second best thing.

[DiscusDish]

Ok, thanks Liz. It just seems that I can’t find what I’m looking for, the breeding section is a big bunch and there aren’t any sub-sections to look through. I will try the search bar. As for conditioning, I have zero access to live foods. No live food close to my area. Will FrozenBloodworms work? Or beef heart mix? Thanks

[DiscusDish]

Is this roobios tea aquarium safe? I would like to use it to create a more natural environment for them
https://www.amazon.ca/Davidsons-Tea-...2136420&sr=8-2

[danotaylor]

I personally would not feed frozen blood worms Matt. Second Hand Pat has a source for live black worms. Try sending her a PM and ask. If that doesn't work out many here exclusively feed Al's FDBW. BH is a good food for conditioning but you have to stay on top of your water quality if you opt to use it. Given your recent crisis I would use the cleanest food possible, FDBW.

[DiscusDish]

Okay, thanks.

[danotaylor]

No worries mate.
As mentioned by others, I do think your plans to try to move the pair into breeding mode in the next couple of weeks is premature and potentially unwise given her recent spate with dead. Ultimately they're your fish so it's your call, but if it were me I'd give it 4-6 months to make sure she's all good and can handle the internal strain of breeding and raising fry.

[jeep]

No worries mate.
As mentioned by others, I do think your plans to try to move the pair into breeding mode in the next couple of weeks is premature and potentially unwise given her recent spate with dead. Ultimately they're your fish so it's your call, but if it were me I'd give it 4-6 months to make sure she's all good and can handle the internal strain of breeding and raising fry.

[DiscusDish]

Ok. I was really hoping to get to breeding sooner but oh well. I can wait.