Breeding Siamese Fighters

Siamese fighters originate from areas of South East Asia. Most fancy fighters today are imported from Thailand. The males are best kept by themselves in small volumes of water of at least 1.5 litres. In these small environments, females should not be introduced as fighting may erupt.

Tropical Gold Fighter

Tropical Blue Fighter

It is highly recommended that a water conditioner be used to prepare any tap water before introducing fish and whenever additional tap water is added. Removing and replacing a third of the water in the tank every week, will ensure that the water will remain good. The addition of live plants will also help maintain the water quality. Feeding a small amount of food once a day is more than sufficient (during winter – even less). There is no need to have aeration or filtration with these fish. They can breathe air, and due to their small appetite, do not create much waste. If the gravel becomes very dirty, ask an AQUOTIX staff member to demonstrate how to use a gravel cleaner. This allows you to clean the gravel without removing the fish or all the water.

BREEDING SIAMESE FIGHTERS:
Fighting fish should be bred in aquaria of 15 litres or more. A plain glass tank with no gravel on the bottom and a sponge filter suction-cupped to the side (optional) with a lot of plants (suggest Java moss and Water Sprite) is all that is required. Normal tap water with a liquid water conditioner (with a neutral pH) to start with. Add the male several days before the female. The female will have a white dot on her rectum when she is ready to spawn. Some people assume that an aggressive female is actually a male, this is false, the white dot will give it away and its aggressive nature is quite normal with some individuals.

Java Moss

Siamese Nest

The Male will build a large bubble nest and entice the female to spawn at his own leisure. When the pair have completed spawning, remove the female. Eggs will hatch in 36 hours and on the 4th day the fry will become free swimming, at which stage the male can be removed. Adding 2 drops of “Liquifry” suspension food per 10 litres of water every day to the tank from day one and continuing while raising fry for the first three weeks at least, will ensure that ‘Infusoria’ will be available as first feed for the emerging young. By three weeks, the fry should begin to feed on the Liquifry directly and powdered freeze-dried bloodworm. At AQUOTIX we recommend the book “Siamese Fighting Fish” by Gene Wolfsheimer.