Breeding yellow labs

[Red]

i want a breeding colony of yellow labs in my 29... how many of each sex could i get? I know having them in a 29 is a do or die but so far it has been working...

[kaybee]

One male per several females. A breeding group could be as small as 1m/3f.

A 29gal limits the size of the colony.

[Red]

How many can you think i can put in the 29? And how do you exatley tell the differnce between a male and a female

[kaybee]

I don't recommend keeping mbuna's in tanks smaller than 55gal or in tanks with less than 48" of length (full grown mbuna's, that is), so it's kind of hard for me to recommend a good number for a 29gal. Perhaps 1m/4-5f.

Several methods to determine gender. Venting is the best method (and best done with matured specimens as opposed to small juvies).

There are some physical 'clues' which might tip off gender, but they're not fool-proof.

Behavior patterns are also a good indicator (the fish themselves are well-aware of the genders of the others). A careful observation and you can gather clues as to which one's are males based on their interaction. Again, this isn't fool proof but combined with physical clues, one can get an idea of who's who.

Unfortunately, it's very hard to accurately determine gender at time of purchase, unless they're matured and can be vented on the spot. It might be best to just get a larger group and weed out the excessive males as they reveal themselves, i.e., get a group of 9 and sell/trade all but the last male as they become apparent.

[Red]

Yeah i know about the smaller then the 55 i think that ison the way... but i got to save up the money...... thats what i was going to is weed out the males
thanks :)