How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

[MJY6087]

My sunshines just gave birth to a few babies, and I noticed before there was a lump near the throat (before she spit) how big is it and where do lump formation begin? (mouth throat, etc??)  Im asking because I see another one of my cichlids with kind of a bulging throat

[eklikewhoa]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Bulges in the bottom mouth area and throat.

[neuendri]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Another great clue is they stop eating...

[MJY6087]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

I want to try stripping, but Ive never tried it before.  Any hints, pointers, instructions (im gonna google it, but any add. info is helpful)

TIA!

[Hanson77]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Its really easy on Peacocks.  Just take a container with some of the water from your tank and hold her over it.  All you have to do is apply a little pressure to her gill plates and waaallaaaa....babies galore.  I like to leave them alone for about two weeks until the bulge just gets huge.  Plus if you look closely, you can normally see little eyes peering out of her mouth if she comes to the front of your tank.  Are these the ones that I sold you????

[rrocket2002]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

When a female first holds eggs, her throat will look huge but after a couple of days you see that the bulge is less noticeable.  The eggs/fry settle more to the back of her mouth.  AS the fry hatch, and fry get larger, you will see the bulge get larger.  If you do it too early, all you will get are eggs or egg yokes with two eyes and a tail.

Raul

[Hanson77]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

If you don't want to strip her and you already have a nursery set up is to just separate her into the nursery and let nature take its course.  Or separate her into the nursery foir a week and strip her there, that way the babies are already acclimated to the water chemistry.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/stripping.php

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/stripping_fry.php

Is there any reason why you want to strip them? IMO it's really stressful for the fish and yourself.

[Hanson77]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

EK is right on the stressful part......on both parties.  You because you don't want to hurt the fish by applying said pressure on her gills.  Your fish because of the whole process of being netted out of her environment and basically scared into spitting to try and protect herself.  If you have a nursery already just separate her into it and let her spit on her own.  May take a little longer but its worth the wait because by the time that she does spit, the fry are pretty much already free swimming.  If you do it too early you run the risk like Raul said.

[MJY6087]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

thanks for the tips

[Hanson77]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

You never answered....are these they guys that you got from me this last time?

[MJY6087]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

You never answered....are these they guys that you got from me this last time?

sorry, the sunshines & the hybrids were both from you.  Sunshines spit fry already, hybrid is holding  

[Hanson77]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Well...apparently you must have got things going right over there.  Congrats on your little ones.

[MJY6087]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Question:  When a female has eggs in her mouth, does that mean the male has already shed his sperm?  Right after I saw the female with her bulging throat, i isolated her in a 29 g.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: How do you tell when a cichlid is holding?

Yeah if it's in the mouth already and the male was able to do his thing they should be fertilized if not she will eat them eventually.