Have I Jumped The Gun?.....

[deb53cl]

Good evening everyone,

My large swordtail seems to have been pregnant for ages!!!

I bought her about 6 weeks ago and she looked pretty well gravid then. Last evening I thought it was about time I put her into the net and was hopeful that by today she would have dropped her fry.

But no nothing.

Last night after putting her in she seemed to stress a bit, swimming up and down the sides and I got a bit worried because I did not want to cause her too much stress that I would lose her.


Kept the light off all last evening and today but now she is just lying on the bottom.


Have I jumped the gun and put her in too early?


Can anyone advise on how much longer they think she has through the dreadful photos!!! (took them through the net because I did not want to stress her even more by lifting her out).


Is it cruel to net such a beautiful fish just to try and save the fry?


She is suspended in the fry tank that homes 2 week old guppy fry and 3 week old molly fry so did not really want to have her swimming freely for her to feast on the babies already in there although I do with expecting guppies and mollies but she is so much larger.

Any advice would be grateful please.

 

[Charlieboy]

I went through the "in the net, out of the net" problem when I had quite a few pregnant guppies. I then bought a molly who also looked pregnant and a few days later I found quite a lot of fry ! These are 3 weeks old now and I have also got new fry in my guppy tank that are very clever at hiding ! As long as you got alot of plants for them to hide they will be fine........no more breeding box as I always felt sorry for them in it !

 

[deb53cl]

I went through the "in the net, out of the net" problem when I had quite a few pregnant guppies. I then bought a molly who also looked pregnant and a few days later I found quite a lot of fry ! These are 3 weeks old now and I have also got new fry in my guppy tank that are very clever at hiding ! As long as you got alot of plants for them to hide they will be fine........no more breeding box as I always felt sorry for them in it !

Still no fry this morning.

I have never used a net before as I do usually transfer the pregnant female into the fry tank just before i think they are going to drop and so far have been lucky that none of the babies have been touched.

But because she is such a large female i thought she may devour them.

mmmmm.... decisions decisions.... keep in the net for a bit longer?....let her into the fry tank?....or just take the bull by the horns and let her back into the main tank?

I did really want to try and save these fry because when i got her she was in a tank with beautiful lyre tail swords and would have loved to have saved these fry.

Or i suppose the answer is go buy another tank haha..any excuse!!!

 

[gremlin]

get a milk carton or bottle and cut the top of put some water in the bottom then the fry and change the water every 2 weeks

 

[nosoup4you]

She looks pretty well squared but I never leave a fish in the trap for more than 24 hours.

 

[deb53cl]

She looks pretty well squared but I never leave a fish in the trap for more than 24 hours.

Thanks no soup,

I thought so but was beginning to doubt myself!!! Needed those new pair of eyes to have an opinion.

Been in net now 36 hours so think I will let her out.....You just know whats going to happen don't you!! haha

 

[nosoup4you]

Let her out for a bit, give her a feed and put her back in before you go to bed tonight if you are worried.

 

[HCpetraitis]

Yea I have done that before where you let her stay in the tank in the day, and then at night you scoop her into the net. It works out pretty well. Just ometimes the fish like to make us mad and they have the babies in the tank just to make us mad.