My lionhead Tango that has the breeding starts began chasing around my female black moore Bubbles the other morning. I have never seen a goldfish do this but new it was breeding behaviour because I have seen my cory cats breed before. The thing is I don't know if Bubbles the female was cooperating or enjoyed it or if her behaviour was normal.
Tango was chasing her around, head between her tail fins, right at her bottom. He sorta pushed her around the tank like this for a while, among the tall plastic plants. Then he'd swim out from behind her and wildly kinda flip back and forth (similar to when my male cory was busy fertilizing the female cory's eggs) . Then he'd go back to pushing her around from behind. Well, Bubbles didn't really try to escape or get away but she never went back to him either. She just had this dazed look and sat there in the plants, staring, drifting, when he swam away. She's not hurt but looked dazed or kinda like when they are asleep. I took Tango out in case she didn't want to breed, and Bubbles didn't look for him, she just went up to the top and calmly got a drink of air, then swim softly around.
When I put him back in an hour later, he was calm, ate, and didn't bother her again.
Were they breeding? was he trying to and she was not cooperating? How SHOULD the female act when they are breeding? Does she cooperate or does she just sit there?
Is this just playful breeding behaviour that might lead to actual breeding later but just not yet?