Dear Colby,
You got breeders from ORA, mature breeding fish. The female has an ovipositer that she lets down every 10-21 days when she is getting ready to lay eggs. The ovipositer is not a result of water changes, but a sign of impending spawn. It may not happen this time, but these are experienced fish. Their bodies do not necessarily shut down because of the stresses you mentioned, although sometimes they will.
Your feeding them saturation feedings, and taking care of water quality only makes them feel it is safe to spawn, but will not cause spawning if they are not ready to spawn. They will do it when they are ready. Sometimes the female gets agressive and lets down the ovipositer, and then reabsorbs the eggs if she is not ready. Other times, she lays the eggs and he fertilizes and guards them.
Perhaps I am mistaken, but didn't you say you had bred clownfish before?
Personally, I think it is great that you have this interest in breeding clownfish, and I think it is a great hobby. I am fairly passionate about it myself. I do, however, have a full time job that pays well with benefits, and I am not giving that up to breed fish. In five years, I can retire, and then I can do fish all day every day, and I look forward to that. I'll have a pension then, and retirement benefits including health care and prescription drug coverage. My dream is to BE Martin Moe. At least in the fish rearing part.
I have a small set up that is currently saturated with clownfish. To give you an idea of what your expenses might be, I have totalled up everything recently for tax purposes, and last year, May to December, I spent 1200.00 on setting up my system. It doesn't seem like it should have cost so much, and I did it on the cheap, with lots of stuff people gave me for free. I have 3 20 gallon tanks, free. A bioball sump, free. Stuff like that.
Still that was from only May to December. I haven't totalled up my expenses from January until now. Much of the up front expenses will not continue, as I will use the table I built for many years, etc. Still I seem to be making online purchases of little things that add up a hundred bucks here, a hundred bucks there.
So far I have only sold 40 fish, and of the ones I have now, 750, I only have about 20 that will be ready in the next month. After that, another 40, and the month after that, 150. That puts me into September and October before the big sales come in. It will be well over a year and a half before I break even, much less make money.
While you are making up your business plan, you may wish to get a job so you can pay for all this stuff. For me it is a hobby I can afford.
I must say you are showing a lot of spunk to keep asking questions here, and I wish you luck in your future endeavors.
Kathy
You got breeders from ORA, mature breeding fish. The female has an ovipositer that she lets down every 10-21 days when she is getting ready to lay eggs. The ovipositer is not a result of water changes, but a sign of impending spawn. It may not happen this time, but these are experienced fish. Their bodies do not necessarily shut down because of the stresses you mentioned, although sometimes they will.
Your feeding them saturation feedings, and taking care of water quality only makes them feel it is safe to spawn, but will not cause spawning if they are not ready to spawn. They will do it when they are ready. Sometimes the female gets agressive and lets down the ovipositer, and then reabsorbs the eggs if she is not ready. Other times, she lays the eggs and he fertilizes and guards them.
Perhaps I am mistaken, but didn't you say you had bred clownfish before?
Personally, I think it is great that you have this interest in breeding clownfish, and I think it is a great hobby. I am fairly passionate about it myself. I do, however, have a full time job that pays well with benefits, and I am not giving that up to breed fish. In five years, I can retire, and then I can do fish all day every day, and I look forward to that. I'll have a pension then, and retirement benefits including health care and prescription drug coverage. My dream is to BE Martin Moe. At least in the fish rearing part.
I have a small set up that is currently saturated with clownfish. To give you an idea of what your expenses might be, I have totalled up everything recently for tax purposes, and last year, May to December, I spent 1200.00 on setting up my system. It doesn't seem like it should have cost so much, and I did it on the cheap, with lots of stuff people gave me for free. I have 3 20 gallon tanks, free. A bioball sump, free. Stuff like that.
Still that was from only May to December. I haven't totalled up my expenses from January until now. Much of the up front expenses will not continue, as I will use the table I built for many years, etc. Still I seem to be making online purchases of little things that add up a hundred bucks here, a hundred bucks there.
So far I have only sold 40 fish, and of the ones I have now, 750, I only have about 20 that will be ready in the next month. After that, another 40, and the month after that, 150. That puts me into September and October before the big sales come in. It will be well over a year and a half before I break even, much less make money.
While you are making up your business plan, you may wish to get a job so you can pay for all this stuff. For me it is a hobby I can afford.
I must say you are showing a lot of spunk to keep asking questions here, and I wish you luck in your future endeavors.
Kathy
