I have a 55 gallon tank and have Malawai Cichlids. I have one (I wish I could tell you what kind) fairly young, yellow with 3 orange spots on his anal fin. It appears that he has lock jaw. looks healthy and swims around alot but doesnt seem like he can open his mouth. When its feeding time he goes up to the top with the others but hasnt eaten in 2 days. He was a real hearty eater till all this happened. At one time I thought he would eat too much, now this happens. Anyone think he is a gonner or will this go away. Any help is much appreciated!
cichlid with lockjaw?
- Thread starter bassman
- Start date
could "he" be a she? I know some cichlids are mouthbrooders.... could be holding babies...
but I'm just speculating...
but I'm just speculating...
Sounds like what snakeice said... he is actually a she. They are maternal mouthbrooders which means females hold the eggs in thier mouths. They will not eat (or eat VERY little) during this time, and may act a little reclusive.
Does it look like the throat area is enlarged a little? And is she making 'sucking' motions with her mouth closed? Over the next couple weeks the buldge in her throat should get larger and larger until she decides to spit the babies out.. which can happen anywhere from 2-4 weeks after spawning.
The only thing that i wonder about is the spots on the anal fin since its mostly the males that have them... although females can display some from time to time.
Read up on malawi cichlid breeding...
http://www.malawimayhem.com/articles_breeding.shtml
-Diana
Does it look like the throat area is enlarged a little? And is she making 'sucking' motions with her mouth closed? Over the next couple weeks the buldge in her throat should get larger and larger until she decides to spit the babies out.. which can happen anywhere from 2-4 weeks after spawning.
The only thing that i wonder about is the spots on the anal fin since its mostly the males that have them... although females can display some from time to time.
Read up on malawi cichlid breeding...
http://www.malawimayhem.com/articles_breeding.shtml
-Diana
This post reminds me of a time when I had to do what I call "emergency surgery" on one of my Convicts.
I noticed one day that one of my Convicts had a piece of gravel in its mouth. The pair were a breeding pair and it cause dme no alarm to see them moving gravel around.
3 days later, this same piece of gravel was still stuck in this poor fellas mouth.
I knew I either had to interveen or my Convict would surely die. I fished it out with a net and held it firmly in my hand. I fashioned a paperclip into a hook and used it to pry the rock loose.
That was about 6 months ago and he is still producing fry to this day.
Not sure how my post can help you, but your post reminded me of this story.
I noticed one day that one of my Convicts had a piece of gravel in its mouth. The pair were a breeding pair and it cause dme no alarm to see them moving gravel around.
3 days later, this same piece of gravel was still stuck in this poor fellas mouth.
I knew I either had to interveen or my Convict would surely die. I fished it out with a net and held it firmly in my hand. I fashioned a paperclip into a hook and used it to pry the rock loose.
That was about 6 months ago and he is still producing fry to this day.
Not sure how my post can help you, but your post reminded me of this story.
Do you know what species you have in your tank. If they are haps or peacocks then the females tend to appear drab with hardly any color (brown, silver, pale yellow). If you bought this fish solitary and had others in the tank of same species your fish could be brooding hybrids (if it is a female). Mbuna will hybrid but females are much easier to indentify. Can you take a picture of this fish?
bassman, I surely hope it’s a she and that she is bearing.
Anyway, on the spotted anal fin, even if it is a 'she' its well know that several female cichlids undertake male coloration when 'pregnant' so to look more intimidating, so this very well could be the case with your abnormal fish.
The fact that she was eating a lot before, maybe even too much, supports this theory even more, since a mother to-be knows she will starve for several weeks, so to survive they do overfeed for a while in some cases, only in order to survive the 2-3 weeks (sometimes even more) mouth brooding period of limited feeding.
wish you all the luck m8
Anyway, on the spotted anal fin, even if it is a 'she' its well know that several female cichlids undertake male coloration when 'pregnant' so to look more intimidating, so this very well could be the case with your abnormal fish.
The fact that she was eating a lot before, maybe even too much, supports this theory even more, since a mother to-be knows she will starve for several weeks, so to survive they do overfeed for a while in some cases, only in order to survive the 2-3 weeks (sometimes even more) mouth brooding period of limited feeding.
wish you all the luck m8
Well I cant get my picture to upload, but I went to my Lfsm and he tells me that it is a Victorian. Hey Luv, I think your right on this. I am really thinking too that I am having babies! She I mean. My lfsm seems to think the same. He specializes in Africans and seems to think she could have possible bred with any fish that might be willing. I just changed my water on Monday right b4 this happened and we got snow here too. Think the fish know this and acts as if a front has come through, so they bred? This is all new to me. I know its not gravel in his mouth because my gravel is too big for them to eat. This is definatley a new experience for me.
congrats! 
They usually breed after a water change and/or a atmospheric pressure change.
And yes, she may be holding hybrid babies if there are no males of the same species as her. Which, of course, isnt a good thing. I would let her spit in the tank and see what happens... although many of the fry most likely will be eaten.
They usually breed after a water change and/or a atmospheric pressure change. And yes, she may be holding hybrid babies if there are no males of the same species as her. Which, of course, isnt a good thing. I would let her spit in the tank and see what happens... although many of the fry most likely will be eaten.
Thanks! I am thinking about putting her in a smaller tank and let her do her thing. not really sure yet. Do you think if I just let nature take its course that she might try to kill my other fish? Thats the only thing I am worried about. I had a friend with jewel cichlids have babies and they wiped out everything that he had.
Yes putting her in her own little tank would be a good idea, although i wouldn't worry about her attacking anyone. Its more so she doesnt get picked on. The males might try to harass her, and its hard for her to defend herself with a mouthfull of babies. Also she cant (usually) eat during the time she's holding, so she'll be weak, and its better she have a tank to herself.
If you put her in a smaller tank (10-20 gallon would be perfect) put some rocks or plants in there for the fry to hide in when she spits them out, so she doesnt try to eat them. She'll be awfully hungry when the babies come out and they might look a little too tempting
-Diana
If you put her in a smaller tank (10-20 gallon would be perfect) put some rocks or plants in there for the fry to hide in when she spits them out, so she doesnt try to eat them. She'll be awfully hungry when the babies come out and they might look a little too tempting
-Diana