Trouble keeping betta fry alive

[Flyin Jawaiian]

Alright guys having a little trouble now. Not sure if it’s something I’m missing or whatnot but I’m gonna be going on my 4th batch of fry soon and need more advice. Every batch of fry I have seems to diminish slowly over time til there’s none left. So to start off, I use a 5gal storage tub to breed, a cycled sponge filter but I don’t turn it on til the fry are larger I just leave it to cycle, heater, and fake plants. Once the eggs are layed, female is pulled out, make then takes care til they hatch. Once they’re free swimming I pull the male out and the next day I start my water changes. I do 50% water changes daily, make sure my heater is always working (lost one batch cause I didn’t know it was off yet still plugged in) and I start feeding micro worms at about 2days in if free swimming. Now this is where is gets weird. They seem to be doing fine and growing older, I’ll see a few die off here and there which I think is normal then all of a sudden they seem to start crashing where more and more start to die, check my water parameters and they’re all perfect, I’m adding tanins into the water for every water change, checking temps all the time and doing 3-4 small feedings a day to ensure I’m not over feeding. What am I missing from these guys I really want to grow out at least one batch of fry to say I’ve successfully bred bettas then move onto my next project lol. 

[Fish Folk]

2 minutes ago, HanaHoo808 said:

Alright guys having a little trouble now. Not sure if it’s something I’m missing or whatnot but I’m gonna be going on my 4th batch of fry soon and need more advice. Every batch of fry I have seems to diminish slowly over time til there’s none left. So to start off, I use a 5gal storage tub to breed, a cycled sponge filter but I don’t turn it on til the fry are larger I just leave it to cycle, heater, and fake plants. Once the eggs are layed, female is pulled out, make then takes care til they hatch. Once they’re free swimming I pull the male out and the next day I start my water changes. I do 50% water changes daily, make sure my heater is always working (lost one batch cause I didn’t know it was off yet still plugged in) and I start feeding micro worms at about 2days in if free swimming. Now this is where is gets weird. They seem to be doing fine and growing older, I’ll see a few die off here and there which I think is normal then all of a sudden they seem to start crashing where more and more start to die, check my water parameters and they’re all perfect, I’m adding tanins into the water for every water change, checking temps all the time and doing 3-4 small feedings a day to ensure I’m not over feeding. What am I missing from these guys I really want to grow out at least one batch of fry to say I’ve successfully bred bettas then move onto my next project lol. 

Bummer! Kind of wish my bettas would’ve breed in the first place.

Some things to carefully evaluate—I’m guessing it’s something here:

(1) WATER QUALITY. Exactly how bad is the water you change out of the fry pail? 

(2) NOT ENOUGH / NOT FREQUENT ENOUGH FOOD. Do you hatch baby brine shrimp?

(3) LABYRINTH DEVELOPMENT. Do you maintain a closed off, consistent humidity above the water surface to allow the anabantid  labyrinth organ to develop?

 

[Flyin Jawaiian]

2 hours ago, Fish Folk said:

Bummer! Kind of wish my bettas would’ve breed in the first place.

Some things to carefully evaluate—I’m guessing it’s something here:

(1) WATER QUALITY. Exactly how bad is the water you change out of the fry pail? 

(2) NOT ENOUGH / NOT FREQUENT ENOUGH FOOD. Do you hatch baby brine shrimp?

(3) LABYRINTH DEVELOPMENT. Do you maintain a closed off, consistent humidity above the water surface to allow the anabantid  labyrinth organ to develop?

 

Hmm for #1, I’ve never tested that water I will next round Though. My process for daily water changes is as follows:

1. Use a turkey baster feeder tube to slowly suck out poop from the fish and snails and excess food which only totals to very little water. 
2. Goo with my straw sized siphon and siphon 50% of the water. ( I have gallon lines marked on the edge of the tub so I know exactly how much water I’m taking out at a time. 
3. Mount my jug of day old water above the tub and run the same siphon down but I tie a loose not and let the water drip into the tank so it acclimated and creates a little surface disruption which the fry always comes up and checks it out and normally swims around more. Maybe that’s my issue? 
 

as for number 2, I do hatch baby brine shrimp and also have vinegar eels but I’m more on the edge of feeding vinegar eels because even using the filter floss technique if sat long enough the water on top seems to collect vinegar as well I can smell and taste it before I give to the fry so I discard it and give micro worms which I feel most comfortable. Then I do feed brine shrimp when they’re about 5-7 days old. 
and for #3, I do keep the lid on the tub I notice it builds humid as everytime I lift the cover to feed there’s condensation on the top. The front is sealed good but the back is a little cracked to give the heater chord and air hose room 

[Fish Folk]

19 minutes ago, HanaHoo808 said:

Hmm for #1, I’ve never tested that water I will next round Though. My process for daily water changes is as follows:

1. Use a turkey baster feeder tube to slowly suck out poop from the fish and snails and excess food which only totals to very little water. 
2. Goo with my straw sized siphon and siphon 50% of the water. ( I have gallon lines marked on the edge of the tub so I know exactly how much water I’m taking out at a time. 
3. Mount my jug of day old water above the tub and run the same siphon down but I tie a loose not and let the water drip into the tank so it acclimated and creates a little surface disruption which the fry always comes up and checks it out and normally swims around more. Maybe that’s my issue? 
 

as for number 2, I do hatch baby brine shrimp and also have vinegar eels but I’m more on the edge of feeding vinegar eels because even using the filter floss technique if sat long enough the water on top seems to collect vinegar as well I can smell and taste it before I give to the fry so I discard it and give micro worms which I feel most comfortable. Then I do feed brine shrimp when they’re about 5-7 days old. 
and for #3, I do keep the lid on the tub I notice it builds humid as everytime I lift the cover to feed there’s condensation on the top. The front is sealed good but the back is a little cracked to give the heater chord and air hose room 

Sounds like you’re on the right track. Maybe using a wider, shallower dish rather than a tall pail / bucket would be best? Maybe something like a shallow plastic storage bin from WalMart? This ensures easy access to surface.

With our vinegar eels, we mix in ca. 1 tbsp baking soda to 6 oz. mug of fresh tank water and add 10-ml of vinegar eel culture. Baking soda helps neutralize the acid from the vinegar. Then, after letting the mug rest for a few minutes, I draw off the surface. Here’s a video - feeding Killifish fry.