My wife's first strip

FishDad

FishDad

Superstar Fish
#1
Mar 4, 2012
1,218
1
38
Cleveland
#1
Get your mind out of the gutter! This is a thread about stripping fry from their parents!

So I was able to catch all three preggers (sorry Thyra), and after extensive research by my wife, she deemed that two of the three ladies should have the fry "stripped" because they have been holding for over three weeks. So she held their mouths open and out came at least 2 dozen fry from each mom. I was shocked at how many fish they could hold in their mouths. It was really something to see.

So in my QT I've got about 50 or so OB peacock and Red top mbuna fry. The female electric blue we are temporarily housing in the 72 bow until she is ready to be stripped.

I just had to start a thread about that, it was so cool. Plus I got to use a funny and immature title... bonus!
 

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Rotaripsnoc

Large Fish
#3
Feb 18, 2013
194
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#3
Haha, so I figured the title must have intended something other than my first thought. As a bonus, my wife stood behind me, read the title, looked at your picture, and thought it was of Jack when he was suffering from brown blood, and proceeded to chastise me for making such a post ... thanks for the laugh :)

I've hot really had a cichlid tank before or dealt with fry from cichlids, looks like google is full of info though, and your wife seems on top of her game.

In other species, after the fry's yolk sack was gone, they would stay in a 20 gal, with a 100 + gal filter attached, and several sponges attached to the intake so if they were caught the could escape. Once they reached an inch or so, I would move them to a 55 gal or larger stock tank, to allow them more room, and better filtration. It also helped me to not get too attached to them by keeping them in a stock tank, otherwise I would have tried to keep them all ...

I typically offer friends and family first choice, and about the time they are taking their pick I let the lfs know I have X remaining and would be glad to support their business by providing them at low cost or credit if they ensure they go to good homes. Usually they will buy the fish at several stages, small, medium, and near adult. One thing I discovered quickly, is the local fish stores, even PetSmart, will gladly buy locally. They don't have to worry too much about water conditions matching their tanks, and they can basically forget transportation deaths.
 

FishDad

FishDad

Superstar Fish
#4
Mar 4, 2012
1,218
1
38
Cleveland
#4
Really? Petsmart? I never would have guessed. We were thinking of keeping the picks of the litter and then giving them to my local cichlid store. I really only have to ten gallon for the fry right now, so I'll have to sell them before they get too big.

That was a funny story by the way.
 

exhumed07

exhumed07

Superstar Fish
#5
Apr 30, 2006
1,774
0
36
Illinois
#5
thats pretty cool and i am also suprised at how many can be housed in their mouths. i also used to use first bites and then as they get bigger i moved to HBH baby bites. then to .5mm pellets for the remained of their lives. but i found a cheaper way. i bought a morte and pestle. i use it for a few things but mostly i take flake food and grind it up to a powder for first bites and i reuse the pack. then i take my .5mm pellets and grind them up to a course but small grain in substitute of the baby bites. and again reuse the container. the powder also works well to feed my clam. morte and pestles sometimes aint cheap so it's not always a good investment unless u plan to do this alot or if u have other uses for them. i got a small one for about 5 bucks but my new bigger one was about 80 bucks. i have no issues with either the first bites or the baby bites though.
 

exhumed07

exhumed07

Superstar Fish
#10
Apr 30, 2006
1,774
0
36
Illinois
#10
if u squeeze the back of the gills just right their mouth will pop open. it took me a bit of practice to figure it out properly. but once the mouth is open i just kinda lightly shake their head in the water in the breeder net till i'm sure all or most are out and then toss her back in the tank. thats how i was shown. the less handling the better. i strip after 11 days of noticing the female no longer feeding. so u got a fish that has not ate anything in about 2 weeks. less i can do to stress her i will. if i can't get her in the net fairly quickly i'll wait till the next day to try again.
 

FishDad

FishDad

Superstar Fish
#11
Mar 4, 2012
1,218
1
38
Cleveland
#11
So we moved the Electric blue mommy to the 72, until she was ready to be stripped. I had only noticed her holding for a couple days. But almost immediatly after we switched tanks it appeared that she is no longer holding. She still isn't eating but her lower jaw has lost that sagging look that it had just a couple days ago. Ever heard of this happening?
 

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OrangeCones

Elite Fish
#14
Feb 27, 2009
4,395
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#14
When I helped a breeder in Florida, he'd work in the dark, with (no joke) a miner's hat on with an ultraviolet light. Don't know if that was all necessary, but he said he had less issues with mouthbrooders (both male and female) eating eggs/fry when he moved them between tanks.
 

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OrangeCones

Elite Fish
#16
Feb 27, 2009
4,395
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#16
He said that fish are 'stupid' and if they can't see what it is, they are less stressed by whatever it is that is moving them. He'd also put a square jar in the tank and 'herd' the fish into it with a net. That was a technique I used with puffers, so doesn't seem so odd to me. Plus some fish (like the otos I love) get caught in the nets easily.
 

FishDad

FishDad

Superstar Fish
#17
Mar 4, 2012
1,218
1
38
Cleveland
#17
You know I tried that, but it was a cylindrical 1g tupperware. They avoided it like the plague, like they new it was a trap. Maybe they're not as stupid as we think. Or maybe I'm not as smart as I think?
 

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OrangeCones

Elite Fish
#18
Feb 27, 2009
4,395
0
36
#18
Square (so it fits in a corner), and glass, so its not so obvious. That is the key! If it is a fish likes to hide in rocks, he had one that he'd taken silicone as the 'glue' and sprinkled gravel on top so its an instant cave. For those that were more into plants, he'd put pieces of artifical plants on it.
 

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Rotaripsnoc

Large Fish
#20
Feb 18, 2013
194
0
0
#20
I can vouch to blending containers to capture and remove fish from tanks. I'm not the most experienced by any means, however I've found a solid clay pot darkly glazed or otherwise, or one with a sealed hole to be as effective as anything else.

The key to it is to allow it to stay in the tank a day or two if possible so they can adjust to the new "cave". Once they are comfortable with it, and the fish you wish to remove is near it, place the fish between the net and the pot. The fish will go to the pot every time, then it's easy to set the pot upright and remove both the pot and fish. My GSP's rarely swam up and out, usually they would sit near the bottom of the pot.

I'm not sure if it's true, however extracting the fish in an opaque container should reduce stress, they can feel they are moving, however they would not be able to see it.

Just my 2 cents if it's helpful for next time.
 

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