Topic: Spawning Brushes

[Anthony]

After spending a few weeks deliberating the pro and cons of purchasing a spawning brush, I finally took the plunge yesterday and ordered one off e-bay for about £6.00.  I did read somewhere that if there is not any suitable vegetation for a female to spawn in in a pond that she will not do it and that that can lead to stress related problems.

I know one of my goldfish layed a number of eggs last year in one of the plants which was then in the pond but unfortunately to my knowledge none of the eggs actually hatched. The plant along with a number of others has since been eaten by the koi!!!!

I'm hoping that this year and with the newly aquired brush I might be a little more successfull - I do already have plenty of orders coming in for if any survive. :)

[tricia]

Hi Anthony,

Your post has me worried! I bought a heavily pregnant goldfish five weeks ago and was told she would spawn in about a month. She hasn't so far and I'm now wondering if she is too stressed or hasn't found a suitable spawning area in the new pond. There are plenty of oxygenating plants where she hides a lot, in fact a lot of the fish do. Is it possible she's waiting for something she considers suitable to lay her eggs on?

Tricia

[Margaret]

Hi Tricia.I am a bit concerned too at your statement that she is heavily pregnant.Female goldfish are a little more rounded than males but they do not ever look heavily pregnant,ie fat.Are you sure there is not some other cause? it is very early for goldfish to spawn.Mine do not start till mid May at least.The males chase the females round until they spawn.It seems odd that  5 weeks ago your fish was supposed to be pregnant,it just does not happen like that.Were you told she was by the place you bought her? there are other causes of bloating in appearance.Is she eating ok?

Fish do not wait for a place to spawn,they usually just do it when they have had enough of being chased by the males!!Can you give me a few more precise details about your fish and i will try and help,or failing that,go to an experienced aquatic centre for advice.

[tricia]

Hi Margaret, Thanks for your response. I seem to have hijacked Anthony's post - sorry Anthony!
I bought the goldfish from my local aquatic centre and was assured the 6" long silver-coloured goldfish was pregnant and would spawn in the 'next month or so'. (I paid accordingly!) She is quite a bit more rounded than my smaller fish, but is not being chased at all. That said I bought a second one, which looks to be almost equally rounded, a week later. I was assured that this one is male! Both fish came from a tank in which I was told  'all the fish in this tank are breeding' and that the fish had been in the tank for a month or more. They are the largest of my fish and both are feeding ok, though it must be said that none of the fish are particularly interested in feeding. (I'm giving them wheatgerm as the water temperature is only about 12C during the day, though it was a bit warmer last week.) Both of the new fish spend a lot of time hiding - resting? in the vegetation at the bottom of the pond. I am in south Devon. Do you think I was told a load of rubbish? I assumed the guys at the aquatics centre knew what they were talking about! I guess I'm more likely to get expert advice here!

Tricia

[Margaret]

I think,Tricia that the guys told you what you wanted to hear and may be only partly right.From my experience of goldfish and their breeding habits(which i wish they wouldn't cos i have too many survive!!) it is largely as i explained before.I would not worry however.The fish are obviously large enough to breed when the time and the temperature of the water is right.It is too cold and they are still adapting to their surroundings at the moment.However if you think you are only going to get "pedigree" fish from the male who came with her,then think again!! Fish are not at all selective or fussy who they choose to chase.There is no "pairing up!!"" But then that is half the pleasure,when the young fry begin to take on their colouring,and you see what you have got!

You can feed normal fish food now,over 10 degrees is the benchmark.I would get some good quality food with vitamins etc in and then they should be in fine form for when they get frisky.The males can get quite aggressive when chasing a female  so watch out for her getting tired and being pushed into objects in the pond.I have had to deal with several females who have had scales ripped off so get some gel that can be applied to the wounds just in case.

Also goldfish come in many forms and some of mine are very rounded,whilst others are streamline.Again i would not worry.Your pond looks  very nice,by the way.

[Anthony]

No problem with comandeering the topic Tricia and apologies for the misinformation.  Like yourself I was really concerned about the lack of areas that spawning could take place, and after reading that article in the pond book I bought this brush because I felt it would be less stressfull for the fish.  I think part of the confusion we all suffer from is the contradictions we all read about in various books/magazines etc.  I half wonder if some the articles published are deliberately done so as scaremongering tactics so that we all go out and buy things like; Spawning Brushes & feeding rings & digital thermometers etc etc.

I guess my general rule of thumb would be that: "if in doubt, go with what Margaret says"  Which reminds me, I read somewhere that if the temp is less than 4C then don't feed at all - Between 4C & 10C then feed wheatgerm and anything over that, feed normal food - Does that sound about right Margaret?

thanks 

[tricia]

Me again Margaret - I have two fish with wounds, one has a deep wound on his back near the tail which doesn't seem to bother him (her?) and the other, a shubunkin, on its side. I had the shubunkin isolated in a salt bath for 10 days, and I think the wound is somewhat better so today he was put back in the pond. Now, you say get some gel to put on wounds, but firstly what kind of gel, and secondly, how the heck do you get a fish to stay still long enough to apply it? I've tried many times to get the wounded goldfish in my net, but the little devil is so fast I haven't been able to net him and it disturbs all the other fish too. I'm no longer worried about the 'pregnant' fish, thanks to you, but wait till I go to the aquatics centre next!! They will get to hear what I think of their sales tactics!!

Tricia

[Margaret]

Hi again.

Tony,I have read that anything over 5 degrees is ok for the wheatgerm but i tend to play safe at 7 or 8. As i have said before,i have never lost a fish through not feeding ,but there are many who lose through overfeeding.I have never needed to bother with spawning brushes,i think mine would produce young in a barren bucket  ;D and yes,if you took note and bought everything the experts advised you would be adding to this countrys debt!!

Tricia, The wound you speak of on your goldfish is common when they take fright and bash into things.In the past i have used savlon which is very good actually and can help keep the wound clean and free of infection.But it won't heal unless the water is of good quality and your pond is still fairly immature.Fish wounds can very quickly become fungussed and that is much more difficult to treat.However,stress can also play a big part in whether a fish will recover from wounds and trying to catch it is very stressful for it.

If it has no fungus attached and you can catch it fairly easily i would try the savlon,or get some wound seal from NT Koi care(which is fine for all fish) This is a thick paste for sealing wounds and preventing infection.If you cannot catch it then treat the whole pond  with medifin.The last 3 years my orfe,who are getting old now at 15,have looked a bit ropey after the winter.I have dosed the pond with medifin and the difference is amazing.So it must be doing some good!! i am no great believer in constantly adding medications but have found this one very good.the product states that it can be used as a preventative remedy to protect fish against disease throughout the year.Fish are hard to treat and sometimes can even  get better on their own .Years of trial and error have given me a bit of insight as to whether to treat or leave well alone.It does depend very much on the water quality.Very thankfully i have never had any parasite infections.As i have rudd and orfe that would be a nightmare.

[tricia]

I'm a great believer in Savlon Margaret! But I'm not sure that I could hold a wriggling fish long enough to smear some on a wound! Do you have any tricks for keeping fish still enough? And should I manage to cover a wound, how often is it necessary to renew the Savlon?
I had the water tested for nitrites, ammonia and Ph just this week and the guy at the aquatics centre was surprised that all readings were 'spot on' . He also thought the readings, particularly for ammonia, would be high in my 5 week old pond. He said that the water was a tad soft, but we have very soft water here in Torbay and not to worry. I had kept as much of the old pond water as I had containers - maybe that has helped! The pond, which is approx. 240cm x 145cm (plus ledges and beach area) only has about 115cm of fish at present - 13 fish of various sizes - so there is probably not too much fish waste. I have a Fishmate pressure filter with UV and a large Titan pump. There is, however, a lot of wispy slimy algae building up that I try to fish out on a daily basis. Am I doing anything wrong? Is there anything else I should be doing. I so want my new pond and its inhabitants to have a healthy and happy life :). I shall be looking to buy some Medifin on my next visit to the aquatics centre. Thanks for the tip.

Tricia

[Anthony]

Hi Tricia,

Not sure if you've ever used e-bay before but I bought some medifin on there a couple of months back for £2.99 in total inc P&P.  This worked out about a third as what I've seen it advertised for in some shops for a 250ml container.

I've just checked and you can get a 500ml container (treats 11,500 litres) for £10 inc P&P which although a bit more expensive is still cheaper than anywhere else I have seen.

http://search.ebay.co.uk/medifin_W0QQsojsZ1QQfromZR40

Hope this helps

Tony

[Anthony]

If that link doesn't work try this one:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=20756&item=4375624130&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

[tricia]

Thanks for the link Tony, have bookmarked to watch this bid and will bid if no-one else does :). I've checked out the internet and you are right - it is much more expensive than 7.99 + 2.00 p+p, if indeed I can get it for that! I'll let you know the result.
Tricia

[Margaret]

Tricia ,i know exactly what you mean by the green slimey algae as it arrives each spring with incredible speed.Over the winter months i turn off my UV units on my ponds as they are not really necessary and it prolongs the life of the bulbs.When the algae appears it shows me that it is high time i turned the lamps back on!! Generally this clears it but if not then i know the bulb needs replacing.Could this be your problem? How long since you changed it? I had a pressure filter installed when my raised pond was built,and i hated it.It was not powerful enough,though i do have a lot of fish and you haven't so you should be ok with it for a while.I much prefer the old box type,they have always worked for me.

Don't be tempted to buy any more fish.let the ones you have breed.Soon you will be filling up your pond ,like i have and now wish there was a pill for fish!!

If you hold a fish in a wet towel,or even just with wet hands you do need another person to apply the savlon.If you hold the fish gently but firmly it will hopefully stay still long enough to apply the savlon.If the injury is towards the back of the fish you can hold its mouth under the water and then it will feel more secure.This way you can then keep the wound with the savlon on it out as long as possible.But the worst thing you can do is keep trying to catch it.Treat the pond by all means but don't delay too long while you wait to get the cheap treatment.Fish problems do not wait,they need treating asap.