howd i know if my fish had eggs or not???

[noelleiscool]

I have two red blooded parrot cichild fish, and I think they had eggs but I can't tell, there about 30 little white dots on top of the stones and they are in one little sloped hole, and they are being protective and a little aggresive with each other, which I know they are aggresive by nature. but I still think they had eggs and my mom said its poop and I don't belive her. & I tried to clean their moss ball, one of them tried to bite me. so help mee

 

[platy ben]

Its not poop.

It sounds like eggs to me, however with parrot cichlids being hybrids, there is a good chance your male is infertile so the eggs won't hatch. Great job on a happy pair though

 

[Beth1965]

I have parrots as well, the white dots you see sound for sure like eggs.

 

[platy ben]

One thing I am concerned about, 2 blood parrots really need a tank of atleast 30G, and 2 adults would probably need atleast 45G.

 

[noelleiscool]

someone told me that they grow to be the size of their tank, which sounds kinda crazy but the guy has 60 years of experience soo..and I have another question, one of them has tiny white dots all over him like on his fins, and his body but hes eating and swimming could he possibly have ick and what should I do to help him?

 

[pinksprklmonkey]

someone told me that they grow to be the size of their tank, which sounds kinda crazy but the guy has 60 years of experience soo..and I have another question, one of them has tiny white dots all over him like on his fins, and his body but hes eating and swimming could he possibly have ick and what should I do to help him?

That is true that they grow to the size of their tank, but it means that it's stunting their growth. It prevents their organs from growing properly and can shorten their live span. Plus they enjoy the swim room. I've seen some HUGE parrots. How big are they?

That being said that does sound like ICH. Raise the temperature in the tank for a couple of weeks. I think between 85-86. This will help kill it off. But make sure you have an airstone because oxygen is needed in higher temperatures for your fish.

There is another thread right now that may help you.


Let us know how they're doing!
Also try to keep your fish from anything that may stress them out. Stress weakens their immune systems to the ICH.

 

[Lucy]

noelleiscool, can you post a picture?

That is true that they grow to the size of their tank, but it means that it's stunting their growth. It prevents their organs from growing properly and can shorten their live span. Plus they enjoy the swim room. I've seen some HUGE parrots. How big are they?

Great info. I've seen full grown parrot and IMO, they should have at least a 55.

That being said that does sound like ICH. Raise the temperature in the tank for a couple of weeks. I think between 85-86. This will help kill it off. But make sure you have an airstone because oxygen is needed in higher temperatures for your fish.

There is another thread right now that may help you.

I'm not 100% positive, but I'm pretty sure you can't see ich spores in gravel or on rocks.

 

[pinksprklmonkey]

I'm not 100% positive, but I'm pretty sure you can't see ich spores in gravel or on rocks.

I don't think so either. I think you just see it on the fish.

 

[Aquarist]

Good morning,

I've moved your thread to the Hybrid Fish/Parrot Cichlid section of the forum.

It sounds like your fish have spawned and what you're seeing is eggs. As mentioned above, these fish are a hybrid species and it's very doubtful that the eggs are viable. The parents are guarding the eggs and that is why they nipped you when you got close to the eggs. More than likely the eggs will turn white and the fish will eat them.


ICH cannot be seen until it's attached to a fish. If your fish appears to have been sprinkled with salt then it has ICH. Increase the tank temperature to 86 degrees and leave it there for a full two week period. Add an air stone as mentioned above as warmer water requires more oxygen. Do two gravel vacuums each week to remove the spores that fall off the fish and into the substrate. Note: Ich may appear worse before it gets better.

The fact that fish only grow to the size of the tank they are in is a MYTH. They stop growing and become stunted as mentioned above and do not live out their full life span. The fishes spines can also curve if they aren't in a home of the proper size. For Bloody Parrots I suggest 55 gallon or more and in 55 gallon I suggest only 2. My largest one's at the moment are 9x6.5 inches.

Click on my name and go to my profile. I have a video and photos of my 11 Bloody Parrots.

Best wishes and I hope you beat the ICH!

We love photos!

Ken

 

[noelleiscool]

wow thanks for all the information its great to hear. if I didnt get a bigger tank, how short would their lifespan be? because I don't want them dying in like a year, and I can't upload pictures idk how

 

[Aquarist]

Good morning Noelleiscool,

If your Bloody Parrots are tiny, about the size of a quarter, they may be ok for a few months in the 20 gallon tank. I kept two juvenile Bloody Parrots in my 26g for a few months while waiting for my fish room to be built and then I put them in my 265g tank with no issues. It was like an extended Quarantine period for new fish

I recommend that you not put it off for too long. I can't really say at what point they may become stunted. If you know you aren't going to be able to upgrade their tank, then it may be a good idea to return the fish and exchange them for something more suitable for a 20 gallon tank.

I'm sure you'll do what is best for your fish.

Too upload photos check out this link:


If you try to upload photos and you get a white screen the files are too large and they need to be resized. You can resize your photos here:
picresize.com

If you still have problems uploading your photos, let someone know. Everyone will be glad to help you

Good luck!
Ken

 

[noelleiscool]

what if I would return one of them? would just one of the fish be okay? because I doubt ill be upgrading the tank

 

[Aquarist]

Good morning,

Personally, I would return them both. The Bloody Parrots love having tank mates of their own kind and even for 1 I feel 20g's is just too small for them.

I wish I had better news for you.

Ken