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Deformed Fish

Tangcollector

Active Member
Staff member
I have 2 paracyprichromis fry that have developed deformities ( bent tails)
Do you guys keep the deformed ones or do you cull them. I am not sure why the got deformed but I was wondering what everyone does with those.
 

jonclark96

Past CCA President
I will cull if I have any noticeably deformed fry. Big, angry Central American cichlids usually take care of anything as a quick snack.

I've had decent luck with having minimal culls from the fish I have bred. The worst example I had was with fire mouths, where a number of the fry had incomplete dorsal fins, an apparent common deformity with tank raised fire mouths.
 

thedavidzoo

Members
Aww, that sucks. Cull them. I held on to too many deformed fish, it really does no one any good.
I had numerous bent spine Paracyps and Cyps, usually if the mom had a really full mouth. I suppose the little ones couldn't stretch out properly as they grew. I thought a few might "straighten" out after a while, but they never did.
It is strange that they would get deformed AFTER spitting if they were fine before...
Picture?
 

Forester

Members
I have some bad with deformed fins and tails, should they be culled even if they're adults? If so how do you guys do it?

Sent from my SM-N910V using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
 

Tangcollector

Active Member
Staff member
Aww, that sucks. Cull them. I held on to too many deformed fish, it really does no one any good.
I had numerous bent spine Paracyps and Cyps, usually if the mom had a really full mouth. I suppose the little ones couldn't stretch out properly as they grew. I thought a few might "straighten" out after a while, but they never did.
It is strange that they would get deformed AFTER spitting if they were fine before...
Picture?
they may have been deformed when spit and I didn't notice it. I will get pictures. I also thought that maybe there were too many in a very small mouth.
 

Aqua410

Members
I would have to guess that a certain percentage of fry are born like this in nature but generally would be lost to predation if they couldn't swim as well. If I were in your position I would put the deformed ones in with something that can eat them.
 

CSnyder00

Bearded Wonder
Yup. I agree with all above. Cull them. As for fully grown with deformities, I believe the going idea is to use clove oil. I used to be part of other forums that told me to freeze them in a bowl of water with a lid, but this to me seems too slow.
 

Localzoo

Board of Directors
Yup. I agree with all above. Cull them. As for fully grown with deformities, I believe the going idea is to use clove oil. I used to be part of other forums that told me to freeze them in a bowl of water with a lid, but this to me seems too slow.

Freezing them isn't too bad they are cold blooded so their metabolism will slow and eventually they pass....it is slow but they pretty much just fall asleep.

Greg I think it's normal to have a few in every batch I've loss a few fry not even knowing why....some think it's just expected that a percentage have issues regardless of if we can see them or not. I think especially with a mama with a small mouth and a huge batch.... Culling them could involve what ever method you prefer even feeding to other fish in your room, since they are tiny.


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CSnyder00

Bearded Wonder
Deformities are a normal part of breeding. With all of my fish, even the plecos, sometimes you get some bad/crooked spines or malformed fins. I have breed many different species of fish, not just cichlids, and I have seen this pretty much across the board. No big deal. You just want to make sure that those genes do not get passed on. That is why we cull.
 
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