How old does a male betta have to be when he can't spawn anymore?

Question

i thought i had eggs but i don't think that's what it is. anyway, i put my female in there and shes been in there for 3 days but no spawning has happened. my male betta was the one my granny gave me before she passed away 2 monthes ago. i don't know how old he is but i have an idea. i think maybe he is too old to spawn now =(. My female is still a young betta so i know it's not her that's causing the problem. any ideas???

the female has shown me vertical bars on her, her belly is HUGE and her gravid tube is sticking out. 3 signs that let's me know she is ready therefore she is not too young.

as i said before in the details under my question: i know nothing is wrong with her. she is somewhere from 3-5 monthes old which is perfect when spawning. i have done my homework. but i can't seem to find ANYTHING about eggs or age. she is well ready to spawn.

i try to feed the male but he ignores the food and works (or tries to work) on his bubble nest. the female eats enough for both of them though! maybe he just doesn't have it anymore. he can't catch the female either. he tears her fins but she zips here to there quicker than he can swim to her! she won't give in to hum either. she stays behind the plants i provided until he turns away from her direction. she also tears up his bubblenest when he's got a really good one. and i can assure SHE IS READY so no more answers that say she could NOT be ready.

i hear that after 1 year they lose it. he could be a year and a couple monthes but nothing more. maybe he's even only 11 monthes but it just doesn't seem like he's got it.

Answer 1

A male gets too old to spawn well at about 4 to 4.5 years. He will still be interested, but will not produce many fry and will not tend the nest as well.

It's possible the female is too young or that either one of them is not in good spawning condition at this point. As someone else mentioned, temperature can play a roll as well.

Be sure both the male and female are in good spawning condition. Place him in the breeding tank and feed well. Keep the tank clean and warm (80-86F) A sponge filter is the filter of choice for a breeding tank. Keep the water level low (about 5") and a few floating plants or even as a replacement you can use a styrofoam cup cut in half from top to bottom.

Keep her in a separate container and follow the same basic rules as for him.

You will know he is ready when he's building a bubble nest. She's ready when she is heavy with eggs and her egg spot is showing.

MM

Answer 2

You really need to get a good book,the female is probably not in spawning condition.If that's true the male will probably kill her. If the male is building bubble nests then he's ready to spawn. The female is too young to spawn. You need to get her into spawning condition with good clean water and top quality feeding. Never put a female into a tank with a male unless you can see her spawning tube. If you don't know what that is, it will be illustrated in the book.

Answer 3

The best advice to give you is to be patient. These things take time. The female will eventually give in when she is impressed with the bubble nest. If this is the first time you have spawned the pair it will take them a while to get things right.

Answer 4

Get a new male Betta for spawning, but get a seperate tank for the old one so the males dont start killing each other.

Answer 5

well usually fish need a certain temperature to spawn
im not sure about bettas but i belioeve they need it to
and about the female betta it might be two young that its unable to spawn