breeding jds

**dimdim** · 11-09-2010, 08:25 PM

hi there, my roommate and I have a community cichlid tank, we have a decent amount of fish, its a 36-40 gallon tank, and we have it populated with 11 fish.
we have a female jack dempsey about 5-6 inches long, very gorgeous fish!!! and we have a small male, about 2 inches long, is it possible to catch the male up to the female?

**Lab_Rat** · 11-09-2010, 10:35 PM

The 2 JDs alone need a larger size tank than 40g. Unless you provide proper housing for the fish, the male will likely be stunted.

**dimdim** · 11-10-2010, 12:16 AM

thanks lab rat, the male has his colors and they are verrry vivid, what sort of housing would you reccommend? heres a link to some of the pics with the sort of housing we have.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fb...7589.548335322
its a bit different set up now, with some of the fish that are in the pic are not in the tank, and we have a layered rock structure across the middle of our tank bed, with plants and very usable hiding places...any reccomendations on how to increase the males size? he is young, i purchased him about two months ago, and hes been doing great, but seems just a bit shy, i have a spare ten gallon as well with a pair of convicts in it i could replace with the male jd maybe?

**Rollins4Miles** · 11-10-2010, 12:27 AM

Originally Posted by dimdim

hi there, my roommate and I have a community cichlid tank, we have a decent amount of fish, its a 36-40 gallon tank, and we have it populated with 11 fish.
we have a female jack dempsey about 5-6 inches long, very gorgeous fish!!! and we have a small male, about 2 inches long, is it possible to catch the male up to the female?

As for your actual question, the male will only grow as fast as nature will allow. You can help promote good growth by proper feedings and maintaining a healthy environment for the fish. Give it six months or so and see where you're at.

As for the aquarium, your tank is currently maxed out. That amount of fish in such a small tank can lead to stress and poor water quality which can eventually kill the fish. Also, once the JDs are larger, they will more than likely become aggressive and harass and kill the other fish (or vice-versa depending on the other fish in your tank).

I currently have a mated pair of JDs in a 75g completely by themselves. This was the minimum I could do. I visually sized it up, looking to perhaps place them in my 55g, but I decided that it was just too narrow. I'm glad I went with the 75g over the 55g because even the 75g gets tight at times. I'm sorry but you're either going to have to get a larger tank or remove most of the fish in due time.

I hope this helps. And I can only keep my fingers crossed and hope that you take the route I did and buy more tanks...I guarantee you won't regret it

**dimdim** · 11-10-2010, 03:15 AM

hey rollins, thanks for the tips! we are currently looking into a 65 gallon, it will definately releive the stress in the tank when it does arise, as for now our tanks stress levels have balanced out well, i removed all the convicts in the tank, and it was instatnly more passive. the as for the jds, will they be able to mate in the future even though the male is significantly younger then the female?

**Lab_Rat** · 11-10-2010, 03:16 AM

I agree with Rollin, a 75g is the minimum to comfortably house a mated pair of JD adults. You've got a mix of cichlids with incompatible behaviors and dietary needs from what I can see in the pic. If you feed too much protein, the mbuna are likely to suffer from bloat.

Size won't matter for mating as long as both fish are healthy and mature.

**dimdim** · 11-10-2010, 03:51 AM

thanks lab rat! good advice, the fish seem to react to different foods we feed them, in order to accomodate thier dietary needs, a new tank will be aquired within a week or two, hopefully thats enough time ?

**Rollins4Miles** · 11-10-2010, 04:07 AM

Originally Posted by Lab_Rat

I agree with Rollin, a 75g is the minimum to comfortably house a mated pair of JD adults. You've got a mix of cichlids with incompatible behaviors and dietary needs from what I can see in the pic. If you feed too much protein, the mbuna are likely to suffer from bloat.

Size won't matter for mating as long as both fish are healthy and mature.

Lab Rat added a very good point. I noticed you had African cichlids in the mix with American cichlids. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but extra care is needed. My primary concern would be the dietary needs of the fish. Pellets will make a good stable diet, however it's good to supplement meaty protein foods. The American cichlids can handle these feedings without a problem but the Africans cannot. As Lab Rat stated, African cichlids are susceptible to Malawi bloat which is a result of too much protein and the fish's inability to process the food. I'm not saying that Africans can't have high protein foods, just that it has to be done with caution.

The 65g may, and probably is, too small to house the two JDs. One of the major concerns that I personally have is that the two JDs, despite them being a pair, are still going to need and want their own personal space. So if the female wants to or needs to get away from the male, the larger a tank the more room she has to escape. A smaller tank limits this and with an overly aggressive male the female may be at risk of getting injured or killed. Also, as time goes by, the fish will get larger and will accordingly need a larger tank.

As for the male being younger, this will not cause a problem with potential mating. Once the fish are at the point that they are able to mate, age won't matter.

**Rollins4Miles** · 11-10-2010, 04:14 AM

Originally Posted by dimdim

thanks lab rat! good advice, the fish seem to react to different foods we feed them, in order to accomodate thier dietary needs, a new tank will be aquired within a week or two, hopefully thats enough time ?

Take your time if you can with getting a new tank. It may be wiser to wait and get a tank appropriate for the two JDs rather then getting a tank to split up the Africans and Americans due to dietary differences. But this is simply a personal choice. If you do decide to get a new tank within a week or two just make sure it's cycled properly before moving the fish and you should be good to go