Jack Dempsey questions

I just got 3 Jack Dempseys from the lfs.

They are small. About 2 inches in size.

I paid $3 a piece.

I bought 3 because I am hoping they will pair up at some point in time, and then I can just take the oddball out and get it a partner or return it to the store.

How long until they pair up?
And can I keep 2 pairs of Jack Demseys in the same tank?

Depends on food and tank size and H2O changes. 2 Pairs in the same tank. Good luck. Mybe if the aquarium is 300 or 400 gallons

fishman13218 wrote:

Depends on food and tank size and H2O changes. 2 Pairs in the same tank. Good luck. Mybe if the aquarium is 300 or 400 gallons

I don't get your response to my questions.

How would food and water changes affect them pairing up?

the tank is a 75 gallon that they are in for time being. they will eventually be in a 400 gallon tank.

If I can keep 2 pairs, I will. If I can't, then I will take the 3rd one back to the fish store AFTER they have paired up.

You said they were 2" Food and changes will get them there faster. Sexing them with 3 fish isn't good' Yes you can get a pair. 6 is a better number to start with.

fishman13218 wrote:

You said they were 2" Food and changes will get them there faster. Sexing them with 3 fish isn't good' Yes you can get a pair. 6 is a better number to start with.

how else do you get them paired up? Don't they have to choose to do it? That's why I got 3. Does size matter when you get them to pair up?

The only way I know how to tell the difference is with the anal fin, but at this size they all look the same.

The only difference I have noticed is that 2 of my fish are dark almost black, and one of them is not.

sexing CA is nearly impossible. Anal works on africans. with just 3 fish it makes it tougher. 6 is an ideal number. Yes size matters. 2" is not big enough. Yes they pair by themselves. Your odds are not in your favor with just three fish and one clearly smaller than the others. The fish not black is the king.

fishman13218 wrote:

sexing CA is nearly impossible. Anal works on africans. with just 3 fish it makes it tougher. 6 is an ideal number. Yes size matters. 2" is not big enough. Yes they pair by themselves. Your odds are not in your favor with just three fish and one clearly smaller than the others. The fish not black is the king.

Sexing CA? what does that mean?

The 3 fish I have are all the same size. No one is clearly bigger or smaller. They are all the same.

What do mean is the king? The place I got them from had black ones and light ones all in the same tank.

i think hes saying you need to wait it out because of size and your odds ould be with you with more fish try to get atleast 2 more from a separate tank about the same size then you would have a better chance for them to pair of in about 6 to 9 months good luck try to get an electric blue your moneys would be better with those fish

ricardorocks wrote:

i think hes saying you need to wait it out because of size and your odds ould be with you with more fish try to get atleast 2 more from a separate tank about the same size then you would have a better chance for them to pair of in about 6 to 9 months good luck try to get an electric blue your moneys would be better with those fish

There are no other tanks with them in at the pet store, and I only buy fish from that one store because they actually take care of them.

I don't want the electric blues. Not only are they $50 for a 2 inch baby around here, they are also a genetic mutation, which makes them harder to keep alive. They also have a habit of not eating when small (2 inches and under) and they die. I do also believe that they are sterile, so there would be no point pairing them up.

difrent strokes for difrent folks i have 3 ebjds and 2 regs about 2 inches so i hope for the best but good luck bro you cant just stick to one shop look around give yourself a chance and you can find what your looking for

ricardorocks wrote:

difrent strokes for difrent folks i have 3 ebjds and 2 regs about 2 inches so i hope for the best but good luck bro you cant just stick to one shop look around give yourself a chance and you can find what your looking for

I have definitely done my fair share of looking around at shops for fish. There are always a set of questions that I ask, and most of them don't know the answers.

Most of them only have a 24 hour return/dead policy, and all of them have dead fish in their tanks.

Most of them don't even QT their fish.

That is why there is only one place I buy my fish. They know what they talk about, they answer questions correctly, they QT their fish, and they have a 1 week policy.

mshill90 wrote:

ricardorocks wrote:

difrent strokes for difrent folks i have 3 ebjds and 2 regs about 2 inches so i hope for the best but good luck bro you cant just stick to one shop look around give yourself a chance and you can find what your looking for

I have definitely done my fair share of looking around at shops for fish. There are always a set of questions that I ask, and most of them don't know the answers.

Most of them only have a 24 hour return/dead policy, and all of them have dead fish in their tanks.

Most of them don't even QT their fish.

That is why there is only one place I buy my fish. They know what they talk about, they answer questions correctly, they QT their fish, and they have a 1 week policy.

what place is that?

Darker ones are weaker ones. Good colored one is the dominate one. Where is Mechanicsburg? What part of the state? Stores can't QT fish. They recieve to many to often. I ship fish for a living. Been doing it for 27 years. I keep each type of fish in a different tank. Thats all I can do to QT fish. I recieve about 500 bags of fish a week. Not counting saltwater. Store don't have 3000 tanks to do what I do. If you see dead fish in a tank. DON'T BUY ANY FISH FROM THAT TANK. You need to study the fish before you buy. Know what color they should be. Know there deportment. (how they should acting and swimming) Good luck. Stay away from chain Petsmart,Walmart,Petco. Go to what they call Mom and Pop store.

CA equals central american

I would go back and get three more JDs. You will have better odds of them pairing up. No matter how carefully you pick your breeders, they will decide who breeds with whom. Since mated pairs are not often on the market, most would-be Dempsey breeders select six or so fry and rear them together. The process takes about a year. (And never pick out all the biggest ones or you’ll get all males.) If you’re in a hurry (this is America, isn’t it?), toss four six-inch specimens in a 30-gallon tank and be prepared to remove the non-breeders. They will be the ones with the torn fins and missing scales, often lying on their side at the surface.

And to answer your other questions:

How long until they pair up?
Depends, they reach sexual maturity at 7-8" (follow fishmans suggestions and they will grow faster.)
And can I keep 2 pairs of Jack Demseys in the same tank?
No. They will wind up killing each other. You can try it in a large tank (400gl +) but I would not recommend it.

fishman13218 wrote:

Darker ones are weaker ones. Good colored one is the dominate one. Where is Mechanicsburg? What part of the state? Stores can't QT fish. They recieve to many to often. I ship fish for a living. Been doing it for 27 years. I keep each type of fish in a different tank. Thats all I can do to QT fish. I recieve about 500 bags of fish a week. Not counting saltwater. Store don't have 3000 tanks to do what I do. If you see dead fish in a tank. DON'T BUY ANY FISH FROM THAT TANK. You need to study the fish before you buy. Know what color they should be. Know there deportment. (how they should acting and swimming) Good luck. Stay away from chain Petsmart,Walmart,Petco. Go to what they call Mom and Pop store.

Mechanicsburg is towards Harrisburg on the map of PA.

The place I buy fish from is Called Petz Unlimited. It is NOT part of the Petz Unlimited Chain. This is owned by the person who runs this store. They only carry a small amount of fish, and they only buy what they need, or what is requested from a customer. If you ask to see how their fish room is run, they are free to show you everything. I have seen their "behind the scenes" and yes, they QT their fish. They only QT for 2 weeks, but it's better than nothing. I don't buy fish from tanks with dead fish in them, or even fish with clamped fins etc. I know fish, but I am new to cichlids, and jack dempseys.

I once bought a Koi from Petco over the summer. He's doing just fine. I have had NO problems with him at all.

I also just bought some clown loaches from walmart, since they re-vamped their set up, and also no problems at all.

Rachael0805 wrote:

I would go back and get three more JDs. You will have better odds of them pairing up. No matter how carefully you pick your breeders, they will decide who breeds with whom. Since mated pairs are not often on the market, most would-be Dempsey breeders select six or so fry and rear them together. The process takes about a year. (And never pick out all the biggest ones or you’ll get all males.) If you’re in a hurry (this is America, isn’t it?), toss four six-inch specimens in a 30-gallon tank and be prepared to remove the non-breeders. They will be the ones with the torn fins and missing scales, often lying on their side at the surface.

I dont think I want to subject myself to watching that. 3 more small ones, yes... big ones getting beat up.. no thanks.

There is a pair of breeding JD's at the LFS now. They are about 7 inches, and they are $9.99 each.

Is that a good deal?

I could take them all back and just get those 2.

You could do that. I dont blame you for not wanting to watch that, I wouldn't either, I yell at my fish when they fight lol. If you go back and get the pair ask them how many times they have bred and how many fry each time. Do some research on what those numbers should be and go from there. Good luck! Let us know what happens.

Rachael0805 wrote:

You could do that. I dont blame you for not wanting to watch that, I wouldn't either, I yell at my fish when they fight lol. If you go back and get the pair ask them how many times they have bred and how many fry each time. Do some research on what those numbers should be and go from there. Good luck! Let us know what happens.

It's not their breeding pair. They take fish in that people can no longer care for, and I just happened to be there the day they got dropped off. They guy said he had a breeding program going, but they had to move, and he can't take his fish.

Do you think they would eat clown loaches? They are like 1.5-2 inches.

Probably. I wouldn't chance it.

shoot thats cheep!!!
i would go for it! i mean u want fry right?
just keep up with the water changes n stuff n ull be golden!!
theyll breed quick status!!!
but ask if they are a prooven breeding pair 1st!!! not some 2 random JDs thrown in 1 tank lol

get the pair for sure and good luck

Cajun you never disagree. How was Fat Tuesday/