Angelfish Breeding Cycle

Good news and bad news to report regarding my pair of angelfish lovers.

First, the bad news: it appears that none of the angelfish babies that hatched this past week have survived in the community tank. There are a number of hiding places, however, so the possibility does exist that I will find a few who have remained well-hidden from me as well as predators.

The good news: once a pair of angels successfully lays eggs and sees them hatch, they are hooked. About every two weeks that they are without babies to care for, they will lay more eggs. This could go on for months -or even years- at a time.

So today I discovered that they had laid more eggs on the same intake.

I had a dilemma.

If I allowed them to repeat the process of laying eggs in the community tank, I ran the risk that none of the babies would ever survive. Once they became free swimmers, it was just too much of a challenge to keep corydoras, plecos and tetras at bay.

I realized that because I'd removed the other angelfish to a separate community tank when John and Christy McFish decided to have a family, there were no predators in that tank that would bother my neon tetras, which had been housed in a separate, smaller tank. (Grown angelfish will eat neons.)

That is, there would be no predators if John and Christy McFish weren't there.

So today I moved all of the neon tetras, corydoras and two small plecos from their smaller tank (20 gallons) to the larger community tank (70 gallons) where they joined larger tetras and more corydoras. (I love corydoras; they seem like busy little Merry Maids.)


And I moved John and Christy McFish to the smaller tank, which is now officially the Honeymoon Suite.

The eggs on the intake were left behind, so they will be food for the fish that remained in the tank. However, once John and Christy realize they are all by themselves without any predators to harm their babies in the Honeymoon Suite, they'll lay eggs again. And this time, the babies have a much better chance of survival.

Stay tuned, and I'll post updates when they begin working on a family again!

p.m.terrell is the award-winning author of more than 20 books, including the Black Swamp Mysteries Series, which features CIA operatives who use an angelfish breeding facility as a front to cover their covert activities. Read Vicki's Key for details on raising angelfish from a breeder's perspective! And visit www.pmterrell.com for more infomation on all p.m.terrell's books!

Visit p.m.terrell's YouTube channel for videos on Angelfish Keeping and Breeding: https://www.youtube.com/user/terrellpm 

Angelfish Babies!

This has been an exciting week for me because for the first time in two years, I have a breeding pair of angelfish.

If you've been following my posts for awhile, you may remember that Lindsay Buckingfish and Stevie Fishnick had so many successful clutches that I lost count. But after Stevie passed away, Lindsay was uninterested in anyone else. Angelfish usually mate for life.

I have a black angel and a silver angel in a community tank that includes a marble angel, a pleco, about two dozen tetras and about a dozen corydoras. When they decided to lay eggs on an intake, I didn't give it much thought because with so many others in the tank, there would be little chance that they would survive.

However, John and Christie McFish (of Fleetfish Mac fame) have surprised me. Their eggs hatched within a few days and I now have several dozen babies ready to swim.

Once the eggs hatch, the mother or father catch the babies in their mouths and spit them out someplace where they can get plenty of food. In this case, it's on the intake itself where algae has formed. The angelfish stay glued to this by their little heads. In this stage, they are called wigglers.

As they grow, they become strong enough to eventually pop off and swim on their own. This is a dangerous time because they could get sucked into the intake itself, or they could be eaten by another fish. They are barely the size of a hat pin, and they are translucent. They are also shaped like bullets and not the shape we identify with angelfish.

During this phase, the parents will need to keep them corralled. Normally, I would have had them in a tank by themselves with a piece of foam over the intake to prevent anyone from being sucked into it, and there would be no predators in the tank. However, because they are in a community tank, I inserted a small screen between them and the others; it only reaches partway but it prevents a direct line-of-sight. I also removed the third angelfish to another community tank. The pleco was found dead the morning after they laid their eggs; I suspect during the night, the pleco attempted to eat the eggs and the parents viciously defended them.

The tetras and corys are remaining at the far end of the tank and both angelfish check frequently to make sure they stay on their side!

The next phase is called the Invisible Phase. Many of the babies will seem to disappear; they are actually living on the bottom of the tank, in the gravel, where predators are less likely to discover them. I do have an infant tank at the ready, filled with water from the original tank, and I will attempt to capture at least a few. Then I'll see what the survival rate is between those that are in the dedicated infant tank versus those that are kept with the parents.

And what do babies eat when they are barely the size of a hatpin? I will feed them First Bites, which is manufactured specifically for baby fish, and finely crumbled brine shrimp. As they grow over the course of the next eight weeks, they will eventually be weaned onto finely crumbled fish flakes, and then onto regular fish flakes.

Between the age of eight and twelve weeks (depending on their size) they will go to the local pet shop for sale. Although some breeders will sell the babies when they are the size of a dime, I wait until mine are the size of a quarter. By then, their coloring has taken effect and they have the beautiful lines of the angelfish.

To read more about my angelfish breeding, check out other blog posts at www.vickisangelfish.blogspot.com.

p.m.terrell is the author of more than 18 books in several genres. Her award-winning Black Swamp Mysteries features CIA operatives who use fronts as angelfish breeders to conceal their real identities. Visit www.pmterrell.com for more information and to read sample chapters.

Remember to Relax

Something I learned from my dogs:

Always remember to take time to relax.

Eddie the Jack Russell

Here are two pictures of Eddie and me. Eddie is a Jack Russell. The Robeson County (North Carolina) Humane Society discovered him at an area dog pound. He was scheduled for euthanasia because his leg was injured. They thought his leg had been broken but x-rays revealed that he'd been shot.

I adopted him and brought him to a surgeon in Cary, NC, who implanted a metal plate in his leg to help the shattered bone heal. He has made a full recovery and runs and walks to such an extent that you wouldn't even know he'd been injured. (The affected leg is the one that sticks out a bit from the rest of his body.)

Eddie has a special fondness for teeth and he cleans his sisters' teeth every day - a collie named Simone and another Jack Russell mix named Lucy. I draw the line at him cleaning mine.

Eddie loves to ride in a car, and he'd follow me anywhere and everywhere - as long as I am alone. When I take him out to the pet shop or someplace busy, he gets frightened and wants me to carry him - which I always do. I can't say "no" to the little fella.

A Video of the Pastel Betta

My pastel betta is a bit more shy than my multi-colored betta, so getting him to profile and stretch those fins is more of a challenge. I had never seen a betta with his coloring before - gold, lavender and green on a cream background - and he has become quite the pet. He usually watches me wash dishes and "follows" me around the kitchen from his tank, which is located on the counter between the kitchen and the breakfast nook.

It is also next to the multi-colored betta. This allows them to see each other, but it also gives them privacy when they swim elsewhere in their separate tanks.

Crepe Myrtle - Flowers in the Sky

With two Jack Russells and a collie that sometimes enjoy digging, I've found that I can't effectively grow flowers in my back yard.

So I have several crepe myrtle, which look to me like "flowers in the sky" ... They allow me to enjoy the beautiful colors of the spring and summer seasons, but the flowers are too high for paws to reach them.

In my back yard, I have one purple crepe myrtle and three white crepe myrtle, and in my front yard and side yard I have four pink crepe myrtle.

Family Portrait

Below is a family portrait of my three dogs.

Lucy is winking in the background; she is a Jack Russell.

Simone is a tr-colored collie.

Eddie is in the foreground, and he is also a Jack Russell.

Lavendar and Green Pastel Betta

Earlier this week, I profiled the multi-colored double-comb betta, and I mentioned that his tank is beside another betta tank.

Below is a picture of the second betta, a lavender and green pastel betta.

This betta is younger than my other one, so he has not yet reached his adult size or fin length. He is a double delta betta. He lives, like my other one, in a 2.5 gallon betta tank on the counter between my kitchen and my breakfast nook. One side is beside the other betta tank, which allows him to "profile", stretching his fins and getting some exercise. The other three sides are clear, allowing him to get some needed privacy or watch what is going on outside his tank.

On one side is my kitchen sink, and whenever I am working at the sink, he wants to watch what I am doing. Here he is, swimming among the castle "ruins" and plant in his tank, to keep an eye on me.

Multi-Colored Double-Comb Betta

A few weeks ago, I posted a picture of one of my bettas, which got quite a bit of attention.

Below is a better picture of this multi-colored double-comb male betta.

This betta lives in a 2.5 gallon tank that resides on the counter between my kitchen and the breakfast nook. He lives alone. His fins are so long that it takes effort to swim, which makes him a slow-moving fish. That means he would be easy prey for faster-moving fish who enjoy nipping, like barbs.

I also must keep the water movement to a minimum. This tank has a bottom filter with an air stone in the middle. I have adjusted this air stone for very little air, which keeps the current from overwhelming this betta.

Inside the tank are a couple of castle "ruins" and a plant. On one side is another betta tank, allowing him to get some exercise by "profiling" and stretching his fins out, as he is doing in the picture above. The other three sides are clear, which allow him to get some privacy or watch what is going on outside his tank.

Mr. Blue Gets Two Female Friends

Last week I mentioned that my blue marble angelfish had lost his long-time mate. He was pretty blue, hanging out in a corner and staring at his own reflection in the glass.

So I moved Emmie Lou, the platinum marble angelfish who was born to Lindsay Buckingfish and Stevie Fishnick right here in my own home, into his tank. (Shown below)

Because one should never introduce just one angelfish to a different tank, I also moved Alfreda AKA Alfie, a koi angelfish.

If I introduce just one angelfish to a group of angels, the newcomer will often be the target of territorial issues and bullying. By introducing two at once, especially in a tank with only three others present, it changes the dynamics and there is less likelihood of bullying.

Both Emmie Lou and Alfie are females, which is also acceptable in a tank with three males. Had I introduced another male, I would have had definite problems.

So far, Emmie Lou and Alfie have taken up with Mr. Blue, which is exactly what I wanted to happen.

The largest angels in this tank are Walter and Jack, two huge (12 inch tall) blue angels. They are named for Grumpy Old Men Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, because they are always bickering. But they're brothers and I suspect if I moved one, they'd miss each other. Besides, nobody else wants to put up with them.

A Dog Who Sleeps Like a Cat

Each evening, Lucy Lou sleeps on top of the couch at my head. I don't know how she manages to remain up there without falling off, but she never has. When I go to the bedroom, I pick up her and carry her to bed. She barely wakes up and snuggles right away under the covers.



Friday Friends - An Update on Angel

I received quite a few emails about the story of Angel, the collie/ border collie mix who was found half-frozen on Thanksgiving Day with two broken legs. Earlier this week, I received an unexpected visit from Angel and her foster parents. And I have to say, if I didn't already have a houseful of dogs, Angel would not have left.

She is absolutely adorable. Her legs have healed and the only consideration is to keep her from gaining too much weight (bad for anybody's bones) and adopting her into a family in a temperate area, as cold, snow and ice might aggravate the metal pins she has in one leg.

She is about 4-5 months old, and as you can see from the video below, she gets along wonderfully with other dogs. Lucy Loo in particular really enjoyed playing with her. The man in the video is the Assistant Manager at the Robeson County Humane Society, and also along with his wife provide Angel's foster home.

They have already received several applications from folks wanting to adopt her. When she is adopted, I'll be sure to post it.

Friday Friends - An Animal Rescue

So everyone who knows me knows how much I love all of God's creatures (okay, I'm working on spiders and snakes) and this past week an email came to me that was both disturbing and heartwarming.

On Thanksgiving Day, someone found a three-month-old puppy, a Border Collie/Collie mix, nearly frozen in the road. This kind person took the puppy to a local veterinarian, where they discovered both back legs were broken, as well as the right tibia and the left femur. The injuries were consistent with someone having thrown the dog out of a moving car.

She was named Angel and was brought to the Robeson County Humane Society in Lumberton, North Carolina. They paid for surgery and while she does have a pin in her leg, she has recovered very nicely. A foster couple currently has her in their home, and they have potty-trained and crate-trained her. They tell me that despite the cruelty and the pain she endured, she is very, very sweet and loving.

To read more about her, follow this link.

The story was disturbing to me because I do not understand the cruelty of some people. I don't know of any other creature that treats others with such hatred and disregard for their health and safety. Just thinking of that poor puppy lying in the roadway freezing to death with broken legs brings me to tears.

The story was also heartwarming, because a chain of people stepped in to save this dear puppy's life and nurse her back to health... From the person who found her in the roadway, to the veterarians who worked to save her life and her legs, to the Robeson County Humane Society whose volunteers footed the veterinary bills, to the foster couple who lovingly care for her...

Angel will soon be ready to find her Forever Home, and I hope that all of the loving and giving people that have come into her life have completely erased the memories of the cruel and inhumane treatment she endured.

Happy New Year!

We hope you have a very Happy New Year!

We are all exhausted from a night of partying!



Angels Ready to Sell

There is quite a discrepancy in the sizes of the angels as they continue to grow. The largest angels have bodies larger than a quarter, and they will go to the pet shop first.

Having the larger ones gone will give the smaller ones more of a chance to grow and flourish. They should then gain weight much faster and will be able to go to the pet shop in about 2-3 more weeks.

The smallest ones, two black marble angels, are not quite a dime in diameter, even though they are from the same clutch. Had the parents remained with them, they would have killed those to give the larger ones a better chance. But these can flourish as well and live long and happy lives. I've seen it happen!

Batch Nine

I've decided to number the latest batch of eggs Batch Nine. Yesterday I posted some pictures, and today I have this short video of Stevie watching over the eggs. The video was taken as I was looking down into the tank.

The angels prefer to lay their eggs on amazon leaves. This time, they selected a leaf where I see only the back of it when I approach the tank. This gives the eggs more privacy, for sure!

As they get close to hatching, the parents will clean other leaves and adhere the babies to the leaves by their heads, where they will dangle until they are large enough and strong enough to pop off and swim.

Friday Friends: I'm Stumped

Lucy gets more than her share of attention. She demands it. She is extremely bright, catches on quickly, and loves to play.

We've had her for about 16 months - close to a year and a half. She was more difficult to house train than any of our other dogs. But then she seemed to get it. We have three doggie doors that allow her into a fenced back yard that is about half an acre in size, and she can come and go 24 hours a day.

So why has she started urinating on the carpet again?

We did not get any new pets - dogs or cats or anything else other than fish babies who stay in their tank.

Nothing traumatic has happened. No one left for college. No one got married or brought a stranger into the house. No furniture has been moved. I'm so boring I am totally predictable.

She is spayed and is perfectly healthy.

We have a collie (female) who is extremely docile. And a Jack Russell (male) she plays with constantly. Neither of them are having issues.

Any ideas on why a dog will suddenly lose their house training?

Eddie Sings

I took a break from writing and found Eddie, the Jack Russell, sitting next to my desk. His favorite song is the Andy Griffith song, and I sang it with him several times. But when I pulled out my iPhone to film, he became shy and hid for a bit under my desk.

He does start to sing, though!



Desperation

The last few days have been tough. For some strange reason, the newest batch of baby angelfish have not grown nearly as large and robust as previous batches. I've contributed it to the parents, who remained with them much longer than any previous time, because the Infant Tank was being used by an aggressive koi angelfish couple, Robert Redfish and Susan Saranfish.

The parents have remained extremely possessive of the babies, so that long after they should have been rising to the surface and eating food and coming to the front of the tank to greet me, they were still hiding in the back behind the plants.

Then one by one, I've found a dead baby each morning.

I am down to four angelfish, and one of those I thought was dead but found he was still breathing. So I did something drastic. I moved them to the betta tank.

Before you gasp and have images of the betta having the babies for breakfast, I should mention that the golden betta has been ill for the last couple of weeks. I've seen bettas go through this stage before as they reach the end of their natural life. It has no virus and no bacterial infection; it's just old and spends 99% of his time on the bottom of the tank next to his favorite castle.

So I decided I would move the angelfish into the 2.5 gallon betta tank, observe them, and if the betta appears the least bit curious, out he would come and into a nice betta bowl.

But he hasn't paid them any attention at all.

They are gathered next to the heater in the tank. The temperature gauge is about six inches, so you can see how tiny they are next to it. Two white patterned and one black marble appear robust. A fourth black marble is the one that I thought was dead but was still breathing - I don't know if he will make it.

I'll play things by ear, keeping a very close watch on the babies. In the future, I will separate the parents from the babies when they are much younger. I believe it helps the babies grow stronger when they are not overprotected.

Friday Friends - Lucy Waits

Last week, Simone went to the beauty shop to get her hair done. Being a collie, she goes to the beauty shop as often as I do... And Eddie went to the same wonderful shop in the afternoon to get his nails clipped.

While they were gone, it was just Lucy and me.

And I caught her sitting at the side door, staring down the street, waiting for Simone and Eddie to come home.