How Do I Get My Feeder Goldfish to Mate?
Breeding your own feeder goldfish can be a good way to help keep your costs down and ensure the quality and health of your feeder fish for other species. Goldfish can reproduce at astonishing rates, with a single female releasing up to 1,000 eggs, according to AquaticCommunity.com. Feeder goldfish will often mate on their own, but there are things you can do to encourage the breeding process.
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Things You'll Need
- Tank thermometer
- Tank heater
- Small fan or tank chiller
- Frozen or live brine shrimp or worms
- Spawning mops
- Separate tank
Instructions
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Change part of the water in your feeder goldfish tank once per day to encourage mating. Change out about 20 percent of the water at a time to keep the water quality consistent.
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Keep the tank at about 70 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and about 50 degrees at night. Regulate tank temperature with a tank heater and either a small fan placed over the tank or a tank chiller, which you can purchase at a pet or fish supply store.
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Feed your goldfish frozen live brine shrimp or worms. A high-quality diet can help encourage mating.
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Purchase spawning mops, which are small tassel-like objects, to place in the tank for the female fish to lay eggs on. The surface of the mops is sticky and attractive to female goldfish.
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Tips & Warnings
Feeder goldfish eggs usually hatch in three or four days if you keep the water at about 70 degrees.
Only clear eggs have the potential to hatch. Remove eggs that look less clear, as they can encourage fungi.
Remove the spawning mops to a tank with water the same temperature and quality as the original tank water as soon as they are fertilized to prevent the adult goldfish from eating the eggs.
Make sure your feeder goldfish have room to swim freely. Crowded tanks can lead to illness and germs that could pass to the fish you feed them to.
References
- Photo Credit goldfish abstract image by Ken Marshall from Fotolia.com
