FishProfiles.com Message Forums

I was wondering why the female is hiding in the plants all the time and not eating. Yesterday I looked close and her throat is swelled and bumpy.

The thing is, I have them in a community tank and I just switched males from another tank about two weeks ago...so I am wondering if maybe the one in there isnt that daddy. Will he eat the fry if they arent his? I know nothing about it.

congratulations !!! I have a pregnant guppy & dread to think what will happen when the babies come ... good luck :-)

have you got an empty tank you could out her in there and the dad and the other fish will eat them but i would put her into a seperate tank.

I dont have another tank...they are all taken. The male keeps harrassing her too.

If this is their first spawn, she will probably eat them. She'll just swallow the batch. It's very common in first time mommys.

Well, its always another excuse to go get another tank...but we are in the process of moving to another house....so that is on the back burner. Thanks for the info.

if yo ulet her spit in the tank, they will most likely be eaten, but that isnt a bad thing considering your situation. in the future, it is best to seperate the holding female. she will spit the fry into the rocks or you may have to pull the fry yourself. i keep the fry and parents seperated until the fry are at least an inch or more. the female you will want to feed good for a few days and then release her back into the main tank. sometimes the females will lay eggs even though there is no male. she will hold them for a few days until she realizes they arent fertilized and spit or swallow them.

Its been 5 days and she is still hiding and holding her eggs. Poor thing is getting skinny. The male wont let her come out unless I am feeding them but of course she isnt eating. How long does this go on?

I'd go to the local fish store and get one fo the isolation tanks, a small air pump, and an airstone. Fill the isolation tank with tank water and place it on the inside of the tank hanging on the wall. Then put the airstone in it at the bottom and let it bubble. Catch the female, hold her upside down in the isolation tank, and use a toothpick to open her mouth up, and shake her up and down. The eggs will fall into the isolation tank and you can put her back into the main part of the tank. Also, each day replace as much of the water as you can without losing the eggs with fresh tank water.

I know it sounds cruel, but it's a cichlid, they are very tough fish. My father bred hundreds and hundreds of cichlids using this same method.

This way the eggs remain safe, the female can eat, and she can defend herself from the males.

Chris