bolivianbaby

In this 55g tank, I have a pair of regular JD's (rescues) and two female convicts. My striped female con has been in breeding colors for about a week. She's getting plump. She's around 7 months old.

This particular tank is one I am cautious about since both JD's were in horrible conditions before SWilkins rescued them and they are VERY laid back and shy. This is one of the reasons I chose to put cons of the same sex in the tank and (yes-I know I'm crazy) chose two of the most laid-back cons I have.

So, do I take her out of the tank and put her with a male to make sure she can expel the eggs (I can handle any fry that could arise from this) and risk upsetting the balanced cichlid tank or should I add a male to the tank and risk stressing my JD's from an overprotective spawning convict pair or should I just leave her as she is?

If I leave her as she is, is there anything I should keep an eye out for as far as any side-effects? Do convicts get egg-bound?

Any advice or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Diggly

I think all egg bearers (I dont know if I just made that up or if its a real term lol) have a chance of getting egg bound. Though I think they just expel the eggs unfertilised most of the time. I just lost a female betta who was eggbound so personally I would breed her out of worry of losing another though I know its also hard int eh situation you are in.

Sorry if this hasnt helped.

bolivianbaby

I'm so sorry you lost your betta girl

This was VERY helpful! I was watching her and she seemed uncomfortable, so I took out the other female con and put in the biggest male I had (who was not paired off). He's her size (she's grown quite a bit). The JD's don't seem to mind, so hopefully this will do the trick.

Thank you

bolivianbaby

UPDATE: She's not too thrilled with him, but she hasn't tried to kill him yet. She's just chasing him and trying to corner him (unsuccessfully). The JD's are totally ignoring him, which is wonderful.

Maybe he'll get her so angry, she expels the eggs. If she wasn't so plump, I wouldn't worry but her belly is kinda low. She's got gorgeous coloring, though. Earlier, I saw her flirting (that's what it looked like) with my male JD, so maybe he'll be able to help her out if she decides she really doesn't like the male con. I've never seen a female con this chunky before.

Diggly

I have my fins crossed for you!! Keep us updated.

Shawnie

cons dont get egg bound...or at least none of my girls have in over a year by themselves LOL

I hope they work out well!

bolivianbaby

So I went into mass panic for nothing? Oops. Me overprotective, naaahh

Hmmm...now I need to figure out shy she's so chunky. I don't think she's overeating. My JD's are the pigs of the tank.

There is a male in with her now, I don't want to create chaos with another swap, so I'll just keep an eye on her. Maybe she's just "big-boned"

If for some reason they do spawn, they better not mess with my JD's.

Shawnie

@ bigboned...I wont tell her you said that hahaah
my 5 girls have been alone for over a year(I think ..cant keep track of them anymore) maybe throw some peas her way? or buy her a treadmill
in that size tank, your jd's will be fine if they spawn

bolivianbaby

Aaaahhh, peas. That's a great idea! She might tell Santa on me if I drop a treadmill in there I've been having a hard time convicing him that I've been good this year

Thanks, Shawnie

btate617

If you only have females BB they will lay their eggs just like they will in a breeding tank.

Obviously no fry will come from it, but there is nothing wrong with letting them do it. The other fish will probably enjoy the treat anyway.


Brian

bolivianbaby

Thanks Brian. I wish she'd hurry up. She's chunky and it has me worried.

btate617

Its a con.......

You could throw her out on your lawn for 15 minutes and it probably wouldn't hurt her.

Chances are it will be ok.


Brian

bolivianbaby

You're gonna get coal in your stocking for that comment

Don't try that at home, kids

Scary thing is Brian, you're probably right. These are tough little fish for sure.

Toddnbecka

If you can't find a treadmill I just received a slightly damaged but fully functional aquaclear 110 powerhead. A couple of pieces of the casing were broken out, but they're being epoxied back together for the sake of appearances. It pumps 900 GPH, enough to give any fish a workout. I held it in a 55 for a few seconds to make sure it was functional, and scared the snot out of an L-204 that wasn't even in the direct current path.

aquarist48

Best wishes BB. I hope she is going to be ok.
Keep us posted.
Ken

bolivianbaby

. Poor little pleco

Thanks, Ken