Egg stuck in tube?

5159 Views 10 Replies 3 Participants Last post by disjtr1, Apr 23, 2008

disjtr1

Discussion Starter · Apr 3, 2008

My female neolamprolgus multifasciatus has developed a pink blob on her underside. It is about the size of a grain of rice. She may have spawned recently and I know that can cause the vent to swell but it looks awfully large for her body size. She is a bit quiet and not feeding very much but otherwise she seems fine. I worry that an egg may be stuck in the tube.

I have had the fish for 10 days in a 30 gallon tank (2 juvenile calvus + the pair of multies). I have done three 15% water changes since getting them. Before the last water change the parameters were:

Water parameters:
pH 8.0
kH 12.0
gH 12.0
NH3 0.0
N02 0.0
N03 10mg/L

I will test them again tonight but the only change should be that the NO3 has gone down.

Here is a poor quality photo, you can just see the red blob:

Is she sick or just laying eggs?

Thanks,
Chris

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disjtr1

Discussion Starter · #2 · Apr 3, 2008

Forgot to say, she has had this lump for four days.

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cichlidaholic

· #3 · Apr 3, 2008

It looks like she may have a prolapsed oviposter or rectum.

Try adding epsom salt to the tank at 1 cup per 100G and see if you can notice any improvement over the next couple of days.

Should you do any water changes during this time, only replace the amount of epsom salt applicable to the amount of water you remove.

Kim

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disjtr1

Discussion Starter · #4 · Apr 3, 2008

Thanks for the advice. I think you may be right about the prolapse. Would a large dose of Epsom salts affect my two Calvus, it will result in a very large gH right? I have read that they are sensitive to changes in water properties?

Could I try putting her in a bucket of tank water with added Epsom salts for a while. I don't want to stress her out though. I wish I had a hospital tank.

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cichlidaholic

· #5 · Apr 3, 2008

Oh, I'm so sorry...I totally forgot about the calvus. You are right, they don't like changes in the water very much at all.

I'm not sure the epsom salt would hurt them, but it's better to be safe than sorry.

A hospital tank would be ideal, you may need to keep her in there longer than just a few hours, and I worry about the heat in a bucket.

You can try the bucket method if you can't set up a small hospital tank.

Kim

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disjtr1

Discussion Starter · #6 · Apr 5, 2008

I could not afford a hospital tank. I have been gradually adding epsom salts to the tank so as not to upset the Calvus. The gH is now 25 and I will carry on until it is 40 or so. However, my female n. multifasciatus is no better. The blob is the same size although she seems ok and is feeding fine.

My LFS recommended an antibacterial treatment, myxazin (active ingredient malachite green). I am bit wary of using this as the tank is new and I don't want to the upset the nitrogen cycle (which is working great). The multies also have eggs and I worry that it might harm them.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Chris

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cichlidaholic

· #7 · Apr 5, 2008

If it's a prolapse, she may recover over time.

Should she by chance be egg bound, she's really going to need the full strength epsom salt.

You could even pick up one of the tiny 2G hospital tanks.

I just hate the tell you to dose the tank full strength with the calvus in there.

Kim

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cajunmom

· #8 · Apr 6, 2008

I know I am new, but when I need an emergency hospital tank. I use a rubbermaid container, with a sponge filter. I usually DIY the sponge filter this way http://aquarticles.com/articles/managem ... ilter.html

I use some gravel from a cycled tank in the bottom as shown, and monitor water levels daily while I am treating. HTH.

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disjtr1

Discussion Starter · #9 · Apr 6, 2008

Thanks for your help,

I am definitely going to try setting up a hospital tank in future because it seems like a very useful thing to have. However in this situation it may not help anyway. The female multie lives in a barnacle cluster probably with eggs inside. I can only move her by moving the whole cluster which I think will leave the male a bit freaked out.

I now think that the female is not egg bound only prolapsed. She does not look swollen (she did before prolapsing) and she is eating well. I think she released her eggs but perhaps prolapsed in the process. I have found one egg.

So two questions:

Will the Epsom salts that I am adding harm the eggs? The one I found had floated up to the top of the tank (I have now put it in a net partition to keep other fish away). It seems odd that the egg should float could that be because the Epsom salts have made the tank water more dense?

Should I treat the tank with the myxazin (malachite green)?

Thanks,
Chris

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cichlidaholic

· #10 · Apr 6, 2008

Anytime you have to treat a tank with fry or eggs involved, it's a risk.

I can't say whether the epsom salt would have made that much of a change in the water or not...That's out of my realm of thought! :lol:

I'm sure it's possible, but I certainly don't know the answer!

I wouldn't add any other meds to the tank if she seems like she's doing okay. There will be other eggs/fry.

Kim

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disjtr1

Discussion Starter · #11 · Apr 23, 2008

My female multie, has completely recovered

After two weeks or so the blob gradually disappeared and I think she has laid eggs again. All I did was to add a bit (maybe 2tsp per 10L) of epsom salts. I guess it was a prolapse of some kind.

Just though that might be useful to anyone else who observes something similar.

Thanks for all the useful advice,
Chris

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