Is this normal?

[Oscar_Mania]

My female convict is very round with eggs and she is breathing quite rapidly. Is this normal because she has so many eggs in her?

[Oscar_Mania]

Ok she's layed a handful of eggs but she is still quite large. Do they sometimes not lay all the eggs at once or is she "plugged"
up.

[LongTime]

they may not lay all of them at exactly the same time. Is she still showing signs of distress?

[Oscar_Mania]

She's hanging out at the bottom right now and still breathing quite a bit. She's so large her scales are sticking out. The black on her head has lightened up a bit but her stripes are dark still.
I have another question regarding my male. I noticed yesterday as he was hovering above the few eggs in the pot that there was a tube sticking out of him. Does that mean that he is actually fertilizing this time?

[Dr_Woo]

Uh-oh, buddy..... If you said that her scales are sticking out and she is fat she might have dropsy. This is generally a fatal disease by the time you notice your fish has it. I mean she might have eggs, but if scales are sticking out, it is probably dropsy. Good luck and hope for the best.

[LongTime]

The good news is the male is doing what he is supposed to do.

The bad news is if the female sort of resembles a porcupine, it could very well be dropsy. Even if it isn't she should be through laying and back to normal by now. I do not have a solution.

[Blinky]

I hope she doesn't have dropsy. There's loads of info on the condition online so I won't get into details. It's an internal bacterial infection, generally considered incurable once it's gotten to the stage where the entire fish looks like a pinecone. It's also contagious, so remove her if you can to a hospital tank, treat her with antibiotics and above all, do these things as quickly as you can.
BUT, I have also read that it is possible for a fish to be so incredibly bloated by other means (constipation, eggs etc.) that _some_ scales stick out. If it's the entire fish, and she looks 'ill', you have big trouble on your hands I'm sorry to say. Good luck.

[Oscar_Mania]

Well she doesn't really look like a porcupine and she is swimming around fine and eating. Probably the reason she hasn't layed yet is because the male appears to be not letting the female near the nest again. If it is dropsy, it'll be too bad I can't help her. I'll keep an eye on the situation.

[LongTime]

Please keep us posted. I'd llike to know what happens!

[RyJ]

I've never heard of a Convict Cichlid getting that before. I mean..duh, I KNOW the can get it - but Convicts are usually so tough...even if your water quality isnt that great.

[Oscar_Mania]

The thing is the scales aren't all sticking out. She doesn't look like she is wasting away. But there is an increased respiratory rate. Right now I am treating with maracyn-2 in the hopes the male won't get it and the female might get better. If she doesn't get better and looks like she is suffering then I'll have to kill her quickly:sad That'll be a sad day.

[PumaWard]

Is she possibly constipated? Try adding 2tblsp of epsoms salt per 10g.

[Oscar_Mania]

I don't think she is constipated because I saw her pooping yesterday.