I have two swordtails that are mates. Too bad I don't think my girl can deliver. Shes been fat bellied (pregnant, im sure) for like a month by now. Since shes jumped out of the tank and i saved her, I think that has something to do with it. I didnt notice she was out of the tank for like, a few seconds.
Shes doing okay, just can't deliver.
Swordtais - No
Platies - Don't sell em at my lfs. (inorite, shocker?)
Mollies - ^
Guppies - they sell only males.
Gee I'd love to work at my lfs and change a lot with the fish section
(Pet store, the guy that works with the fish is good when it comes to tanks, but not that great with ordering fish.
)
Hi, kevinthecow,
if your female continues to remain apparently pregnant, there could be other potential causes of which you should be aware.
I lost my Glowlights to a mycobacterial infection: I didn't know enough at the time to recognise the symptoms in the fish when I bought them.
One was an enormous female I'd thought loaded with eggs.
When I lost a sorority (my first ever) of wild-caught female bettas to a nasty red East Asian nematode, the female guppies in the tank all appeared to be enormously and perpetually pregnant - because they had become infected with the worms as well and died of them.
With any luck, you'll be OK, but thought I should make sure you were aware and could keep a watch out for problems I'd had no idea were so common - and so commonly missed.
I've posted this before, but don't know if you've seen it.
http/thegab.org/Articles/WalstadMyco_APC1.pdf
'... Fig 10. This figure shows M. marinum (as fluorescent spots) distributed throughout a Zebrafish embryo
injected with just 9 M. marinum bacteria a few days earlier. The infected macrophages have carried the
bacteria far away from the injection site. The random distribution of bacteria (via the wandering
macrophages) explains why MB symptoms are so unpredictable. Some (but not all) symptoms are
reduced egg production, lethargy, sores, curved spines, swollen bodies, unnatural weight gain, emaciation,
and unnatural black pigmentation. ...'
http/www.aquaticplantcentral.com/forumap...eased-fish.html
Diana Walstad:
'... Symptoms of fish TB are vast and unpredictable, depending on which of the fish's tissue the bacteria (e.g., Mycobacterium marinum) attack the most.
A few common examples:
Blackhead disease of cichlids (fish's head turns black due to bacteria affecting melanin production)
shrunken bellies and crooked spines in livebearers
overweight fish that swell up (bacteria attack the liver causing unnatural fat metabolism)
reproductive failure (females stop producing eggs, as bacteria attack the ovaries)
Fish TB is slow-acting and often mis-diagnosed. Moreover, fish weakened by TB bacteria are much more susceptible to other disease. One study showed that goldfish experimentally infected with a non-killing dose of TB bacteria frequently came down with Ich. Control fish (not injected with TB bacteria) did not get Ich. ...'
From another of her posts following:
'... I suspect your Neons have TB. Fish TB is very common in tropical fish hobby. One study found that over 80% of the 300+ tropical fish examined had TB. Fish were from both home aquariums and pet shops. I'm speculating that the fish selected and autopsied were dead, dying, or moribund.
Fish TB is incurable. What's more, the usual measures, in my humble opinion, make it worse. I went all-out to feed my fish (for a month) with Rifampicin/Ethambutol (key antibiotics used for treating human TB). Did not work.
What's more, I think treatments and cleaning measures backfire. Mycobacterium species are all incredibly slow-growers that dominate clean environments. Some have been found in bottled water! They don't last long outside the fish in a dirty environment where they have to compete with much faster-growing, normal bacteria. ...'
My probably unnecessary comment: 'dirty' meaning normal, merely not sterile - good water quality is, of course more important than ever under the circumstances.
And further from Dwalstad on page 2:
'... I'm not sure that I would worry too much about it.
Why? Because many fish that have passed through my tanks (over the years) probably had tuberculosis. I suspect that the many of the store-bought guppies, Blue Dwarf Gouramis, etc that died within a few weeks were probably infected with TB. ...
'... I would keep an eye on the platies but not worry too much. As long as they are breeding and not showing symptoms, you're probably okay. Should any show symptoms (lethargy, not eating, etc), I would euthanize the afflicted fish immediately.
It seems to me that the really virulent strains that cause the problems are mainly associated with diseased fish. Thus, letting fish die in the tank and be picked on by healthy fish is a real no-no. I suspect that mycobacteria don't last long once outside the fish. ...'
From post on pg. 3:
'... Yes, Bettas get Fish TB. In fact, I have about 3 scientific papers describing infections in breeding farms of Siamese Fighting Fish. If any tropical fish died of swollen belly, I would suspect Fish TB.
The disease is widespread. One scientific survey (autopsies and histological exams) of 70 dead aquarium fish found that 1/2 clearly died of it.
I actually should have called the disease MB (mycobacteriosis). It is the fish/reptile equivalent of human tuberculosis, and just as devastating. ...'
I'm too lazy right now to dig up stuff on nematode infestation in fish, but I expect you're aware of that, although not perhaps on how prevalent it's become.
I've lost 2 betta sororities quite rapidly after purchase, one (most likely) from an East Asian nematode while the second lot had a large, horrible white (probably a type of anchor) worm burrow right out of their bodies.
(As badly as I'd like a healthy sorority, I still can't quite muster the courage to try again yet - and will someday get from a local breeder, not another pet store with multi exposures.)
This happened some time ago, and I really still can't stand to speak of it yet, but with all the world-wide importing and exposures of pet fish now occurring, it's important that people be aware of the potential for horribles being present we wouldn't normally even be able to imagine.
Many types of worm infestations are entirely and easily curable, if caught in time, before too much internal damage is sustained or the general condition of the fish too much lowered.
So I'd suggest keeping an eye on that fish and any others which are or have been in contact with her.
She could be fine, or she could need treatment to be fine.
But for obvious reasons, when I hear of a fish which has looked heavily pregnant for a month, a chill runs down my spine.
That leap out of water might have weakened her just enough to become more susceptiable.
anyways, their guppies are overpriced too.
