lombardio holding!!!

[OsciTheOscar]

So ive noticed a week or so ago that my female lombardio wouldnt eat... Being as i had a breeding pair of labs, this is a good sign of her being preggo... Then a few days ago i saw her.holding food in her little teeth and it eventually went into her mouth... So i said poop, shes not preggo... But now i can clearly see shes holding fry in her mouth! Any suggestions on when to strip her cause im not entirely sure when she.started holding... I know its about 18-21 days but im not sure... What would you do in this situation as i dont want her to starve and also i want the fry to have the best chance... Thanks ahead of time!

 

[Fishie]

Good luck!!! That almost looks like a kenyi!!

 

[OsciTheOscar]

It is a kenyi...

 

[Fishie]

It is a kenyi...

.. What's with the L name??? Lol sorry if it's scientific! I just know fish by names...

 

[OsciTheOscar]

Psuedotropheus lombardio

 

[Mogurako]

.. What's with the L name??? Lol sorry if it's scientific! I just know fish by names...

Lol that is its proper name, I prefer the scientific names there's less confusion that way. You always know exactly what fish someone is talking about.

 

[garfy]

Psuedotropheus lombardio

It's pseudotropheus lombardoi not lombardio

 

[OsciTheOscar]

I apologize for the slight misspelling... Can we get back on subject plz...

What would you do about stripping a fish if you werent sure when it first started holding?

 

[garfy]

I apologize for the slight misspelling... Can we get back on subject plz...

What would you do about stripping a fish if you werent sure when it first started holding?

If she's been holding for 18 to 21 days you could strip her now as they will be free swimming by now.

 

[OsciTheOscar]

The whole issue is i am unsure of how long she has been holding...

 

[kay-bee19]

... I know its about 18-21 days but im not sure... What would you do in this situation as i dont want her to starve and also i want the fry to have the best chance...

I had a yellow lab mouthbrood for 36 days in a solitary maternity tank which wasn't fed during the entire time. I had another mbuna hold for about 25 days, spat the fry and then re-collected all of them and held them for another 3 or 4 days. I've also had mbuna's release fry as early as 14-16 days.

Mouth-brooders are specifically adapted for this process and can go without food for weeks. I wouldn't worry about her starving.

Inexperienced mothers will sometimes consume the eggs or abandon them so that they can eat food but if that is to occur it seems to happen within the first 3 or 4 days of the mouthbrooding.

I'm guessing your fish may have a small brood (maybe less than 20) because after 2-3 weeks their buccal pouches are practically expanded to capacity when housing an average-large brood (25-40 fry); her's doesn't look as full (assuming the photo was taken after a couple of weeks of mouthbrooding).

 

[OsciTheOscar]

yea i agree it doesnt look that big... my female labs mouth looked like it was about to explode when she was holding... im just happy to see i stumbled across another breeding pair as my female lab has passed...