Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 Just got 2 Blue Rams and 2 Gold Rams from Animates today, wanting to know people have bred these before and is it easy? They're only young so I know sexing them by their dorsal fins is a little premature Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 They are relatively easy to sex just post some pics.. Are they normal or balloon golds? Breeding is easy in theory, the hardest part I have found (and I have owned an awful lot of them) is keeping the fish alive long enough to keep them to breed.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 the Gold Rams are balloon and the Blue Rams are normal - how long do they usually live? How come they die so easily? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 I have no idea why they die.. Water conditions are always fine have tried treating with prazi and metro with new additions, tried nz bred blue and golds lost the lot and wont ever buy them again sick of wasting my money lol There are theories about fish being hormone fed for growth/colour, theories about them being so inbred they cant handle a normal aquarium, there are theories they have all sorts of nasties from being bred in outdoor ponds.. Who knows? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrienne Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 I haven't been able to keep them alive either Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 wow keeping my fingers crossed..has anybody got NZ bred rams?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 There have been a few floating around at times and Bilbo and his brother in Bulls here have some beauty breeders and is about the only person who I know who has managed to breed and raise them.. I got some off them and managed to kill them though.. Good luck with yours! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oeminx Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 i have got a pair of blue rams, have found them easy to keep and get to laid. My parents have a bad habit of eating the eggs once they start wriggling. however i now have a batch of eggs i have taking from the parents that have started to wriggle and looking good. so will wait and see Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 I've got a breeding pair of blue rams, they're easy to get to breed if you have a boy and girl, they aren't treated with hormones and they are a compatible pair. They only live about 2 years max, and take a long time to colour up, so overseas, they are treated with hormones to bring the colour out, which also makes them infertile. If you do manage to get a pair, then pop them in a well planted tank with low KH, PH about 5.8 - 6.0, about 28-30deg, and feed them well. They like sand as the substrate so they can dig pits, where they take the babies at night time. They pick up sand in their mouths and spit it, and also rub themselves to make a hole. You'll notice the boy chases the girl, and she gets quite pale. When they're about ready to spawn, the girl gets REALLY fat, and really dark (tummy black, sides bright blue), and she will chase him. They'll lay about 150 eggs on a pot, stone, driftwood or something similar, and will keep everything away from their area. They will lay every 2 - 4 weeks if you remove the eggs. They 'tag team' to keep their eggs safe - mum will go off, eat and have a break, then when dad can see her again, he'll rush up to her, they'll tap noses, then it's his turn to have a swim. The eggs hatch in about 3 - 4 days (as usual, quicker in warmer temps). The fry are TINY, and stay wigglers for about 4 days. The parents take them to their pit at night and when they start swimming away (they pick them up in their mouths). The fry need to eat TINY food - the muck on the bottom of a planted tank is ideal, or they need green water if you choose to raise them yourself. They can't eat BBS until about 2 weeks old. Microworms about a week after they become free swimming. Keeping the fry alive is a mission and a half, that's why so many are wild caught or farmed in Malaysia. They're also pretty shoddy parents for the first few (5 or so for mine) spawns, and will eat the eggs or fry if they get spooked. However, they're really rewarding to raise, and beautiful fish! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oeminx Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 i love watching my pair tag in and out the male always seem to get the short straw 30sec eating 3 minutes guarding eggs. poor little guy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 i love watching my pair tag in and out the male always seem to get the short straw 30sec eating 3 minutes guarding eggs. poor little guy Mine too!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 I brought a pair of gold rams and balloon rams from animates and they lived for ages (the golds lived for about a year). Also you can sex them from their bottom fin closest to their tail. Post pics and I'm sure someone will be able to sex them for you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
livebearer_breeder Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 There have been a few floating around at times and Bilbo and his brother in Bulls here have some beauty breeders and is about the only person who I know who has managed to breed and raise them.. I got some off them and managed to kill them though.. Good luck with yours! Breeding them is a synch. Buy six, pop them into a heavily planted tank with some dither fish and WHAM they do the rest. Or at least that’s what I did, they do have a tendency of eating there own eggs the first few times around but eventually they get the hang of it. Sometimes you can even be lucky enough to get a primo pair of parents that give you no hassles. Also I am sure they live a bit longer than two years, I never had a problem keeping them alive or healthy. Biggest problem I had was if there were too many males in a tank and not enough space. Never kept the balloon rams (mutants), only referring to the blue’s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 Used the old digital to take this of the Gold Rams: waiting for the good camera to take a pic of the Blue Rams...I'm sure one's a boy but only guessing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 Girls have a pink tummy, boys (usually) have longer bodies and the front few 'poofs' on their top fin are much longer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 do you think the fatter one might be a girl? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted November 24, 2008 Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 Usually that seems to be the case, but I won't say for sure in case you just have a fatty boy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted November 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted November 24, 2008 haha happens Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted December 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 two out of my four Blue Rams have paired off and are defending a corner of the tank, Im 99% sure that it's a boy and girl due to the differences of their dorsal fins and how the male is always chasing the other male blue ram away and how the couple usually travel together. Here's a photo of the couple: She has one short operculum - will this be passed on? Also - what would be the best substrate for breeding these little guys? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 That looks like a boy and girl to me. Sand has always worked best for me, they like to make holes in the substrate to put the babies in at night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave+Amy Posted December 1, 2008 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 but how do you clean sand? Wouldn't it get messed up all the time because it's light weight? And lastly where did you get the sand from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lmsmith Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 The beach is a good place to get it from. Just wash it well, then boil it. It's not too hard to clean, vacuum just over it, then stir it up. Make sure your filter pipe isn't too close and it won't be sucked up. It's suprisingly easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Discusguru Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 BB tank will be easiest way to go. You don't need a big tank, just a 1 ft tank will do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Moon Posted December 1, 2008 Report Share Posted December 1, 2008 iv tryed breeding my rams in a BB tank. they not interested. Im thinking of putting a corner of silicon sand in and put there flat rocks near by. They were laying eggs in my fine pebble substrate like crazy! The fry ended up all dying cuz they sqeezed into the corners to the bottom and couldnt find there way back up or got stuck :roll: So will see if the sand will work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oeminx Posted December 2, 2008 Report Share Posted December 2, 2008 Thought you might be interested in these. Laid on the 20 November, and the last were free swimming on the 26, the photos taken today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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