Is my fish Pregnant? A newbie "must read"

[Andy Sager]

Look at the area just above the anal fin. There will be a triangular area that gets darker as the fry are developing inside the mother. The darker that area gets, the more pregnant the fish is.
You can't always go by the size of the belly as this area gets large after feeding which is why you look at the triangle. The general rule is that if the female is old enough and has ever been in a tank with a male, she is pregnant. That's Guppies for ya.
Hope this helps .

[PB_Smith]

and going by the pic and Andy's info, it looks as if the one in the back of the pic may be preggers more then the one in the foreground.

[mouse1989]

Here's some other ones don't know if it's much better. Also put lots of plants and a little tunnel thing do they can hide and not stressed. Also for the fry when they drop. Anything else I should know how to keep them comfy?

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by mouse1989

Here's some other ones don't know if it's much better. Also put lots of plants and a little tunnel thing do they can hide and not stressed. Also for the fry when they drop. Anything else I should know how to keep them comfy?

Yes, keep them as hidden as you can from their mother, father(s) and other fish. Fish fry of all types are great natural food sources so fish eat them when they can. A separate tank for the fry is best followed by a heavily planted tank if a second tank is not possible.

Hope this helps

[Toad]

For the love of god I hope this gets pinned lol. It would definitely help out in this section


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[Speed]

I have a yellow skirt Tetra or a Neon tetra, not sure but wondering if it may be packing eggs. Its the only 1 in a 75 g Aquarium with theis bloated looking belly & has been for over a month. No other signs of distress, all other fish are good. Whats going on with this fish ? Plz help


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[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Speed

I have a yellow skirt Tetra or a Neon tetra, not sure but wondering if it may be packing eggs. Its the only 1 in a 75 g Aquarium with theis bloated looking belly & has been for over a month. No other signs of distress, all other fish are good. Whats going on with this fish ? Plz help Attachment 247558


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Okay, for starters, that is not a Neon Tetra. This is a Neon :

What you have is a color morph of the black skirt tetra. That's for starters.
Since these fish have been bred for recoloring purposes ( Berrys & Glow types are made with this fish) it's physical appearance is not appearing "normal" for a gravid fish. ( It may have to do with some balloon genetics. I can't say for sure.)It does appear to be EXTREMELY gravid however since the other parts of the body don;t look to be enlarged or bloated. One way to tell for sure is if you see this fish having regular eliminations. If she's "pooping" she's just full of...........eggs. If she's hanging with the other fish and being"normal", she's just full of eggs. If she's eating but not having eliminations, she may be blocked/ constipated and will need to be treated. It will be best done in a separate tank with a bare bottom so you can see if anything is coming out of her. A common treatment is using Epsom Salt to help the fish ease the "stuff" out of the body.

Hope this helps

[Speed]

Tyvm. I work 12 -14 hrs a day so hard to tell if or when it potties. Swimming with other fish, eating fine, just very bloated looking & found it odd it was only that one fish. Seems to gradually be getting bigger but cld a fish have eggs for a month or so b4 laying ?


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[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by Speed

Tyvm. I work 12 -14 hrs a day so hard to tell if or when it potties. Swimming with other fish, eating fine, just very bloated looking & found it odd it was only that one fish. Seems to gradually be getting bigger but cld a fish have eggs for a month or so b4 laying ?


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Egg laying fish can go an entire lifetime carrying eggs and never spawning so YES, it's possible. What's disturbing to me is the shape. I've bred Black Skirt Tetras before and the females don't get THAT engorged with eggs. Again, however, we are not talking about a "normal" fish anymore. The Balloon craze has brought a gene into the bloodlines of many fish that makes things now very difficult to decipher. Is this fish "normal?" Does it carry the balloon gene? Because of all the genetic manipulation of this type of fish, are it's insides all in the correct position anymore? As I said, too many questions that only an x-ray or autopsy can answer.
Then there's the eggbound issue. She may be eggbound which is why she's so distended. Most fish will just release their eggs or reabsorb them back into their bodies if they become overly gravid. So this is just another hitch in the book of possibilities.
At this point, observation is about the best to do. If you can have someone look at the tank periodically while you are at work, that's great. If you can't, maybe invest in a 5 or 5 1/2 gal tank and put this fish in by itself with a sponge filter to see if she's defecating. At this point, these are your best options as I see it.

Hope this helps

[hroom88]

Maybe off-topic, but do you have any journals of fish you have bred? If you have, that might help members and also keep this thread alive.

[Andy Sager]

Originally Posted by hroom88

Maybe off-topic, but do you have any journals of fish you have bred? If you have, that might help members and also keep this thread alive.

Unfortunately, the journals I did have were were either left with my Mentor or lost many years ago. Most of what I write is either from memory or from the exact manuals I used back then. ( I am also still breeding certain fish today.) I have a fairly large library still but again, lost a number of books in occasional tank leaks. Lesson learned, book shelves don;t make good fish tank stands.

If there is some specific specie you need help with, feel free to PM me.