My female is holding!!!

K

Kevin007

AC Members
May 27, 2008
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What should I do!?!?

Its been a month since this yellow lab has ate. I thought she had some kind of internal parasite and was going to die soon or something, she hides alot, is very skinny and swollenish mouth I even saw food flow right by her mouth and she ignores it.

I can confirm that she has fry in her mouth because I see it. What can i do at this point?

I have 2 breeding trap for live bearers, perhaps I can strip her and put the fry there?!?!!?

I am so excited, this is her first time so I don't expect alot of fry.
 
I wouldn't do anything, its more natural to let her spit them into the rock piles and the fry will have a strong survival sense..

If you feel compelled to do anything remove her to her very own tank where she can remain in a stress free environment along with extra rock formations..

As for female mbuna they will be fine while caring for fry in her mouth and she should start feeding again when she releases the fry..
 
Whoo, this tank is going up hill!

Only 1 death in 3 months, everyone getting along great, new fry! whoo love mbunas!

I think I will leave the female alone. I don't see too many fry though, maybe 3ish. But I'm still very excited although I'm not very optimistic about the survival rate, its a 55 gallon tank with about 20 fish.
 
28-32 days is fine for the mother and fry. After that you risk the fry starving to death and the mother having a long recovery time. You have to rememeber there is only a limited amount of egg sack and the mother generally does not eat, so there is not much around if the fry runs out of egg sack and the mother won't release.

Up to thirty days I would let her hold, after that is getting risky.
 
The problem is that I never noticed her holding the eggs in the first place, I have no idea how long it has been.

The mother is looking very weak right now, I think I have to do something, leaving her in there is not going to work out, she cannot defend her territory anymore.

I plan on buying a net this after noon and putting her in it until she spits. then I'll scoop her up, put her in another net/breeding box, so she recovers and then I'll let her join the rest.

I have to do something, she was resting on one of my fake plants vertically at one point.
 
If she is weak, strip her. Don't let her hold onto them. Sometimes the maternal drive overloads the fish and they will hold too long. They won't hold so long that they die, but they hold so long that other fish can kill them. i'd strip her today and get her feeding. Several minutes after I strip mine they're looking for food.
 
rogersb said:
If she is weak, strip her. Don't let her hold onto them. Sometimes the maternal drive overloads the fish and they will hold too long. They won't hold so long that they die, but they hold so long that other fish can kill them. i'd strip her today and get her feeding. Several minutes after I strip mine they're looking for food.
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She is very very very weak, I will strip her asap.

I'm going to go out to buy a large breeding net to house the fry.

should I keep the female in an extra breeding box for a day or 2 just to fatten her up or is she ok in the big tank?
 
Here is an update:

I stripped the female and she has 6 fry, I was shocked when the first fry came out, how amazing.

Anyway I have the 6 fry who still have thier yolk sac in a plastic breeding box and the female in the other. I brought a breeding net but I know it wouldn't work since they are laying on the bottom at the moment and they'll get killed easily.

The female has yet to eat so I'm kinda worried about that.

The fry are 1 cm each. :thm:
 
The female will remain weak for a bit, recovery time for a cichlid past maternity can take a couple of weeks or so.

Yes more than likely she will die in that breeder box, mbuna and or african cichlids can not handle the small confines like those nets or breeder boxes it causes way to much stress and since she will feel trapped she may not eat.

I know you say you have done this already with the breeder box thing, but in the future i would plan ahead and set up a 20gal for a maternity ward in the event she recovers and the process starts all over again.

The fry may be ok for now but once they get some size i would release them or rehome what you dont want.

Good luck and take care..
 
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