How can i get my texas to breed when it has killed every other fish in the tank?

Question

a woman wants to breed her texas with mine but i'm worried that mine will just kill hers, it ate my pleco and my gibboset which were both twice it's size.

Answer 1

If you put a divider into the tank such that they can see each other but not touch each other, then you can sit back and see what behaviour develops. If it looks as if the male calms down enough then remove the divider and watch carefully. If he starts to go after her too aggressively then rescue her and put the divider back between them again and wait some more.

Some people use what they call egg-crating. It is obtained in the hardware store and is used between a flourescent light and the room. You can cut it to the appropriate size. It is like a plastic grid. The holes are too small for the male Texas cichlid to get through, but the two fish can still communicate with each other.

If they both become ready to spawn but the male is still too aggressive some people just leave the grid in place. Eventually she may spawn on her side of the grating and the male may release his sperm into the water on his side. Some of it will spread through the water and fertilize the eggs, though maybe you won't have as many fertilized eggs as if they were together. At least the female will still be alive and able to care for the eggs that do hatch and  the fry.

If the filter provides some current in the water you can take advantage of that to help the sperm pass through the grating to fertilize the eggs.