Tiger Barbs

[amzy]

I have had my tiger barbs for about a year and i have noticed for the last 2 months two of them are quite large in the belly which I am assuming are my females, I believe I have at least one male in this tank. He chases them all over the place until they hide in the plants. Could they possibly be breeding?! Nothing has happened in the last 2 months since noticing the rounder bellies, but they look like they are about to explode!! The only thing i have noticed is they are eating slightly less.

I have read abit about breeding tiger barbs, but it gets so confusing! Should I seperate the two fatter ones from the male or vice versa? And see what happens? Or could this be something else?

Thanks for any help

 

[onidrase]

they might be sick or bloated. pictures?

 

[onidrase]

40L
34L
13L
Silver Dollars, Angelfish, Tetras, Algae Eaters, Corydoras, Rams, Barbs, Danios, Snails

What are you keeping the silver dollars, angelfish, algae eaters, and rams in? None of those tanks are near big enough for those fish.

 

[amzy]

I will try and upload a photo when I get a chance & they sit still!

To: onidrase
All these fish have been happy for the last year in their tank & look very healthy.

 

[amzy]

Sorry I didn't realise you had posted both! They don't appear to be sick and still seem quite active. I cut down their food a while ago thinking they were just obese, but it didn't really make much difference (except they got no bigger). I feed them once a day and only what they consume within a couple of minutes. If I can get a photo I'll try and upload it tomorrow so you can see.

 

[Tizer]

I will try and upload a photo when I get a chance & they sit still!

To: onidrase
All these fish have been happy for the last year in their tank & look very healthy.

Er, silver dollars in anything less than 20 gallons of water is terribly inhumane. You do realise they live for around 10 years and pretty much reach the size and an adult human hand or bigger?

I would really spend some time on this forum having a good read up on suitable tank stocking. Its very possible that your Tiger barbs are actually starting to suffer from deformaties from being in a cramped environment.

 

[onidrase]

20 gallons is big enough? Dang, I'd love to have some in my 37 some day if that's the case they're just so round, I thought they'd need at least like 55

 

[onidrase]

Sorry I didn't realise you had posted both! They don't appear to be sick and still seem quite active. I cut down their food a while ago thinking they were just obese, but it didn't really make much difference (except they got no bigger). I feed them once a day and only what they consume within a couple of minutes. If I can get a photo I'll try and upload it tomorrow so you can see.

You're stunting their growth with the small space. As tizer said, they're going to suffer from deformities, they will "grow to the size of the tank" but their organs grow past the size of their bodies. Their life will be shortened, and they'll die very painfully.

I don't even know what you'd put in a 13 liter tank, even a betta could use a bit more space than that.

Depending on what your "algae" eaters are, they could either stay a good size at 1-2 inches (otoclincus) or they can get up to 8 inches long (algae eaters of chinese, gold, regular, siamese) or even up to 2 feet (common pleco)

Angelfish grow throughout their entire lifespan if the space allows it, usually they get up to 6 inches long, even more inches from anal to dorsal fin, so they need a nice tall tank with about 30 inches of length to it.

As said by tizer again, silver dollars get 6 inches or more of size in diameter.

Tiger barbs themselves are pretty bulky despite staying in the 2.5 inch range, they're also active fish, and very nippy when put in small groups. I'd advise nothing less than 20 gallons.

Rams are also pretty bulky fish, although they stay in the 3-4 inch range, and should have about 30 inches of space.

Danios are very active schooling fish, and although they're very small, they enjoy a lot of room for a lot of swimming, some people are advising at least 4 feet of length for them to zip around.


Why I was asking about the tiger barbs is because it's possible, as said, that the cramped space is causing deformity, and the lack of eating can also be a sign of constipation or dropsy. I highly doubt your tiger barbs are breeding, though.

 

[amzy]

The Tiger Barbs are not in the same tank as my silver dollar.

The question I had asked was about my tiger barbs and not my other fish. If I had any problems with them or their tank I would have asked. As for my small tank, I only have neons (4).

 

[Tizer]

The Tiger Barbs are not in the same tank as my silver dollar.

The question I had asked was about my tiger barbs and not my other fish. If I had any problems with them or their tank I would have asked. As for my small tank, I only have neons (4).

People who post on here are interested in the welfare of the fish and for that reason you will find many of us will point out things that simply dont look right. I hope for your fish sake you will educate yourself a little more one day. Gluck with your Tiger barb problem.