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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Male or Female?
I just got 3 Convicts. I would like to breed them. After reading several of the comments in this Forum it seems easy. My question is I was told I got 2 males and a female but they all seem like they have orange spots. On the bigger ones it is nearly impossible to see. I can only see pinhead sized orange spots and only in a certain angle. The smaller one has a hugh orange spot. I uploaded 3 picks and they are in my library of pics. I do not know how to get them in this message. Two of the picks are of the same fish but at a different angle and light. On one pic you can see the small pinhead sized spots and the other pic you see nothing. The third pic is the female. You see a big round orange spot. Do I need to go back to the fish store and try again to get a male?? | 
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| hi JD..I cant find your pics  but a fem convict will have a red/orange belly...and the male wont...
heres my fem 2.jpg
heres the man of the house mama.jpg
if you do get a mating pair, they will kill or stress ANYTHING in the tank once they lay eggs....so only have a 1male/1fem ratio | |
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| set up a breeding tank
i have some good pics of my males and females in that post | |
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Convict Pics
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| if I had to take a wild guess, as the pics are kinda hard to tell , the 1st and 3rd pic are fems and the 2nd is a male.. | |
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| The 1st and 2nd are the same fish. That is why I am unsure if it is a male or female. | |
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September 7th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| try to get a better pic because one pic has the orange/red and the other doesnt...  and id move that betta out of there or that convict will tear him up fast | |
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September 8th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| The reason I was having a problem telling if it was a male or female is because the orange dots are so small and faint most of the time I do not see them like in the 2nd pic. If the light is right and the convict is turned just right I see a few faint small orange pin head sized dots like in the 1st pic. I know my pics are not that great my camera is not that good. Believe it or not those pics were the best out of about 50 shots.
And I will get the Beta out soon. I have to set up a tank for him. | |
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September 8th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| I guess my main question is if the Convict has any trace of red/orange at all, no matter how small or hard to see, it is a Female, right? | |
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September 9th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Ok guys. Something strange is happening. I did have one tragedy one of my Convicts died today. He did not look sick but when I came home from work he was on his side not moving. I brought him back to Petsmart and they gave me a new fish. The strange thing is as soon as I released him into the tank the female I have that was really pale started getting darker strips in front of my eyes. It was really awsome. Before the 3 fish I had went their own seperate ways now with the new fish they are all swimming together. I am hopping this is a good sign. | |
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September 9th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| You do NOT have a Betta in that tank do you? | |
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September 9th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Don't worry I took the other fish out. | |
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September 9th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| i was waiting for one of the betta moms to see that lol good job taking it out though. anyways, well the fact there stripes got darker is good normaly they do that when breeding, normaly the darkest fish has the most dominance. but i would still recomend you take one of the convicts out becuase once spawing starts, there will be lots of fighting, what size tank is this that there in, i see u have a ocsar tank, the extra convict can fend for him self in there if you rally want to keep him | |
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September 10th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| It is a 20g. My Oscar is about 8 or 9 inches and has a huge mouth I am affraid he will eat the Convict for lunch. I have read that Convicts hold their own against Oscars but what size Convicts are they talking about. Also, I am still waiting to see if I do actually have a male and female. Two of the Convicts keep spreading their gills at each other. I am hoping it is a good sign and not a sign of fighting.
I have Pleco I would like to put in my Oscar Tank. Do you think the Oscar will eat him? He is about 2 to 3 inches. | |
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September 10th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| I went through 2 male convicts before my fem was satisfied im sorry you lost one of your guys..and I wouldnt put your convict in with the oscar until the convict is 4" or bigger...otherwise he will be a snack..and as far as your pleco, if he fits in the oscars mouth he will eat him ... | |
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September 10th, 2008
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| | Fish Keeper
| yeah i agree, otherwise a convict and pleco would work with him, but just give them some time. mine flare there gills at eachother, so thas a plus, i just got a male and a female and then were happy with eachother, thats werid that your female was so pick shawnie | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Mentor
| 2nd pic - Male
3rd pic - Female
I'd say. Kinda hard to tell. Thats just going by visible orange. I would of guessed they would be showing them now if they had them, not sure. The pictures are deceiving (1st pic has orange 2nd doesn't). Sorry to hear about one that died. | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| The betta shouldn't have ever been in with those evil fish. Betta cannot go with any type of cichlid period.
Convicts barely tolerate their own let alone a delicate fish like a betta. | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| My oscars are 11 inches.I have had many convicts in their 80 gallon tank.Right now I have an established breeding pair in the oscar tank.A pleco will get harrassed and even killed unless he is BIG.My oscars went thru 3 plecos before I found one that actually defends himself with his spines(sounds wierd,but true).Your oscars will be unable to catch the convict to eat him unless he is sick.I will putt some pics of my pair in the Oscar tank.(they are 3 1/2 inches long.The pleco in the Oscar tank is a good 10 inches.If you put a convict in with your Oscars just give em' a hiding spot.My two have this huge clay pot and plants surounding it so they can hang out in peace.good luck with the pair!! | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| Quote:
Originally Posted by bhone20  My oscars are 11 inches.I have had many convicts in their 80 gallon tank.Right now I have an established breeding pair in the oscar tank.A pleco will get harrassed and even killed unless he is BIG.My oscars went thru 3 plecos before I found one that actually defends himself with his spines(sounds wierd,but true).Your oscars will be unable to catch the convict to eat him unless he is sick.I will putt some pics of my pair in the Oscar tank.(they are 3 1/2 inches long.The pleco in the Oscar tank is a good 10 inches.If you put a convict in with your Oscars just give em' a hiding spot.My two have this huge clay pot and plants surounding it so they can hang out in peace.good luck with the pair!! | you have some slow oscars then!! mine have eaten a few under the 4 inch mark...my adult pair now chase the oscars ...but I guess theres an exception to every rule | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Its so funny, I have been observing the 3 Convicts for about 2 days. The 1 Convict (the real dark striped one) stays mostly in a little cavelike orniment all the time. He/She darts out once in a while and goes back in. The other 2 (both very pale with strips that darken and lighten all the time) swim around together sometimes chasing each other. I am thinking they may pair up. I know one of them is a female. It has a orange/red spot on its stomach. The other one I am hoping is a male. They are all very small. Under an inch. I did read they breed that small. I just put a small flowerpot in the tank. Maybe that will help some. I just have to wait and see. | |
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September 11th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| shawnie--Yes, my Oscars are lazy.You got me there 
jd oscar---Time is on your side.Remember 2 remove the third fish if 2 pair up. | |
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September 12th, 2008
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| | Fish Master
| Quote:
Originally Posted by bhone20 shawnie--Yes, my Oscars are lazy.You got me there
jd oscar---Time is on your side.Remember 2 remove the third fish if 2 pair up. | sometimes I wish my guys were lazy!! they make so much noise its unreal...a friend of mine raises feeders and now n then ill get my guys a dozen (will not buy them from LFS) and yesterday was a day for them...they had 24 of them gone within 5 min!! then floundered all night wanting more LOL
and yes I so agree to remove the 3rd wheel as soon as you notice a pair.. | |
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September 15th, 2008
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| | Fish Bum
| Alright guys I just put a clay pot in the tank and bought one more Convict. I have a good feeling about this one. I do not see any red or orange on this one. Wish me luck. | |
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