Pair keeps eating them - separate them?

[billeagan]

I have a pair that I identified in a pet shop a few months ago. They are large 6 - 7 inches.

When I first got them she would lay the eggs then eat them. Then they started raising to wrigglers and would move them and appear to be real good parents. Then, after a day or so they would be eaten.

I lowered the water level and then didn't work. I put in a tank divider with a lower water level and I was able to get 5 to about 3 days old or so. I removed the screen and they laid eggs on the glass in the morning and had eaten both the fry and the eggs before I got home from work so I could move the babies.

I believe its the female that is eating the fry.

I don't have an extra tank to move the female to, per se. I was thinking of just using the tank divider. I have a 29 with a couple of goldens that I believe are female and a male.

should I use the tank divider, wait it out and let them get it right or move the female to another tank with two fish?

[Carol_Roberts]

I'd try the tank divider first - babies may be able to swim thru divider though . . .

[billeagan]

They definitely can swim through for the first couple of days. I have one of this tubes with the bulb on the top from one of my seachem plant products that I cut off the bottom until it was at its largest point adn used that to suck up the fry and put them back.

They should be laying again soon so I'll try the divider and let you know how it goes.

[billeagan]

They laid eggs last night and I put in the tank divider and lowered the water with a water change.

She isn't very happy and he keeps going to her and then back to the eggs.

Hopefully, it will work out.

Maybe she will raise any of the fry that make it to the other side of the divider and I'll just have to separate the parents from now...

[billeagan]

They hatched two days ago and the male moved them and cleaned off the fungused eggs.

Today they are gone... Or, he hid them really good behind the cone or somewhere...

Maybe he was the one eating them?? I guess he could be rebelling - damn teenagers ... LOL

[Carol_Roberts]

When at first you don't succeed, try, try again, lol

[billeagan]

Well, they tried again last night. Pretty good size clutch, but a lot more white ones than usual at this time...

I'll cross my fingers.

[Kagan]

Hi,

What are the water parameters? Also what is the water changing schedule?

Kagan

[billeagan]

50% daily with R/O water .. I add seachems equilibrium to bring the GH back to around 3.

Temp 85 - 87.

[Kagan]

I think you can try mixing the RO water with tap water and doing the water change with this mixture. Of course, you should stop changing water after spawning to see if w/c makes them nervous. Also, please minimize the disturbance around the tank. Too much parameter swinging and too high/low parameter might drive them to eating the egg/fry

Kagan

[Barb Newell]

You could also try deworming them with piperazine, panacur or levamisole.

Barb

[billeagan]

It may be because I am cleaning them or lowering the water level.

It seems that they like to spawn when I have missed a bunch of food in the corner and I don't want it sitting there for 3 days.

I'll have to track their spawning a bit better.

[billeagan]

They showed me, they laid eggs on the tube for the spone filter... Less eggs this time.

They actually put one egg on the very top of the tube...

We'll see what happens with this bunch.