Electric Yellows

[drgreg75]

is there a humane way to make the mother release the fry, she has got an absolute gob full, you can see them trying to get out, but she just wont let go.

Ive heard that you can get them out somehow, but i want to know what i should do.

[fiona]

Yellows have small mouths. Better to separate her and let her let them go by herself. If you absolutely MUST strip her, try using a cotton bud to gently open her mouth, holding her gently in your hand, head down into the water. I have found the cotton bud gentlest especially with small fish/small mouths. Although I would recommend you just let her do it herself. Yellows are tenacious holders but they do let them go eventually. I understand your impatience to see the babies - been there done that - but why not try waiting a little longer.

[nissky]

yes, but sometimes it can be healthier for the mother and babies to

strip out the fry

mother will start eating sooner, so not lose so much condition

babies, you get many more if you strip them just after they start to hatch rather than naturally

in my tanks that are well stocked i find that almost all get eaten by others if i dont

strip them too..

I have never injured a mother by stripping them, just be gentle...

[anchar]

Hi,

I use a piece of airline (about 3" long) with an angle cut on one end. This provides a pointed slimmer edge to GENTLEY hold the mouth open and facilitate the release of fry. I've also found that gentley tapping the side of the mouth seems to make the female release quicker. Keep the fish in the water.

merjo

[fiona]

There was a long discussion about this topic recently on the Perth(?) forum. The consensus was that the "you get more if you strip" was a bit of a furphy. (Naturally if you let them spit into the main tank you will lose most of them.) There was also some debate about the "losing condition" thing. The outcome was basically that some people strip, some people allow them to spit, and each prefers the way they do it (which is quite logical if you think about it). The outcomes are similar. The best reason I could see for stripping was if there was nowhere to put holding mothers to spit by themselves.

[tykita]

i do both and i find impatience more than anything to atrip them. in the wild they don't have anyone to strip them so why do it here. i now prefer to let them hold and just put them in a different tank till they spit. i then leave them in there on their own and feed them up abit and regain their condition before putting them back.

[Exiledonmainstreet]

Hi I'm with Fiona 100%. The cu-tip is the way to go if you must do it. Good luck.

[smokedamage]

ancient fish geek old man near me picks them up and gives them a gentle shake by the tail. doesn't seem to hurt them

[catalyst]

What ever you do dont do what I did. I striped the fry because the mothers gills where quite red and then put the fry in to a breeder box in the main tank, The fry then found a small gap in the breader box and swam for it only to get eaten by the solusi, I had lost 6 before I knew what was happening.

Now I release them in to a breader box in another tank, and next time I will put the mothers in the other tank and let them spit on their own.

I find catching them in a tank full of rocks the biggest challenge, It takes 3 nets and a lot of patience but I am starting to out smart them easier now.

[Mazimbwe]

yes, but sometimes it can be healthier for the mother and babies to

strip out the fry

mother will start eating sooner, so not lose so much condition

babies, you get many more if you strip them just after they start to hatch rather than naturally

in my tanks that are well stocked i find that almost all get eaten by others if i dont

strip them too..

I have never injured a mother by stripping them, just be gentle...

hmmm...scuse me but that is just absolute B/S.

1. Where is your evidence that is more healthy to strip a female than let her do what thousands of years of evolution has worked out is the best???

2. All my Mbuna will eat in the last week when they are stiill holding and releasing the fry. If you use some thing like a floaty to allow the mother to release in her own time(or in a seperate tank) you can then re-condition the female B4 putting her back into the colony...I don't think this is a reason to strip.

3. "babies, you get many more if you strip them just after they start to hatch rather than naturally"

Can you provide any evidence of this, preferably from a reputable author? Or is this just a theory of your own...some emperical evidence would be nice.

4. To avoid the loss of fry, from predation, use a seperate tank for Mum to release or a floaty.

I find it impossible to understand why people want to strip Electric Yellows. They are great Mums and are not rare, by any stretch of the imagination, so there is no need to strip them.

Just be patient. I let my mouth-brooders hold in the tank for 10 - 14 days before seperating them into a floaty. Works for me and many others.

Furthermore, the info that Fiona is giving is spot on...there was a big discussion on the PCS-forum about this subject and many of the "Furphies" Nissky has posted where also posted there...but with no evidentiary support.

[Mazimbwe]

What is the difference between some english uni scholar named Dexter watching fish and noting down observations or yourself.

hmmm...OK, where is your emperical evidence and your testing regime(with notes) that you have taken in formulating your "opinion"...the difference between evidence and opinion is fact.

Please provide me with proof that you get more fry from mothers when you strip them and I will appologise.

[BLACKBAR]

i dont see what is wrong with stripping i have never let a female spit on her own and i dont really care if people think im inhumane because nothing has ever gone wrong its not like my females die when i strip them its not like im shoving something down their mouth and ripping the babies out of them i wait 14 days then i catch them out strip them then i seperate the female and start feeding her on her own in a week or so she has fattened up again and i can introduce back to the tank and i dont see what is wrong with doing what i do. it takes a minute or two and its over i just let her sit in my hand and i gently squeeze her jaw so her mouth opens or i open it with the rounded end of a paper clipand the fry swim out or i slowly move her back and forth and it causes movement in her mouth and out come the fry this is what i do and im not gonna stop. when someone gives me a reason for example im shortening the life of a female or something like that i'll stop stripping

if stripping is so bad why is there instructions on how to make an egg tumbler on this page maybe egg tumblers should require warning labels like cigarettes

"stripping when brooding harms your fry"

[Mazimbwe]

this is what i do and im not gonna stop. when someone gives me a reason for example im shortening the life of a female or something like that i'll stop stripping

hmmm...Ok, I imagine that my post has got you into this Thread.

I have not said that it is harmfull or wrong or dangerous to your fish, etc, etc,...

What I said was...

"I find it impossible to understand why people want to strip Electric Yellows. They are great Mums and are not rare, by any stretch of the imagination, so there is no need to strip them."

And I stand by that.

If you wanna strip your fish do so...I have no problem with it.

What I took/take exception to is the mis-information provided to people about stripping...ie:

"you get many more if you strip them just after they start to hatch rather than naturally"

and:

"yes, but sometimes it can be healthier for the mother and babies to

strip out the fry"

[Mazimbwe]

See below.

[Mazimbwe]

hmmm...OK Maswa, the difference is that you are talking about Tropheus.

If you read back on what I have said you will see that I made, something of, a qualification about stripping.

I think Tropheus are, in my experience anyway, something of a different kind. I know other Tropheus breeders that strip and also let their Mums release naturally.

I still don't see any emperical evidence that stripping improves numbers.

I do agree that you have your own theory/opinion...furthermore, I would fight very hard for you to be able to have/voice that opinion.

But please, do not try to tell me that theory and fact are the same. People can choose for themselves what they do with their fish but they need to know that some of the things people say about their-own fish(believing it to be fact) is only an opinion.

[nissky]

Note: My post is my opinion MAZIMBWE!

Fact: I have kept lithobates for over 5 years.

Fact: I have kept yellows for 4 years.

Fact: I have kept electric blues for over 5 years.

Fact: These are all mouthbrooders and have shown similar behaviours in my tanks.

Fact: I am not a 12 year old child that often frequent these forums.

Fact: I have 5 tanks currently with 14 breeding yellows, 12 breeding blues, 10

breeding lithobates.

Fact: I have 7 different females holding right now.

Fact: The most fry have have taken out of a yellow was 30.

Fact: I do not have space to have females in holding tanks, as there are two 4 foot tanks filled with fry.

Fact: I cannot stand to watch a female with mouthful being chased by other tank mates.

Fact: I have had 3 fish losses in 6+ years.

Some other hard evidence, although i cant prove it you you....i have never pulled

as many fry from a female as with stripping them, and i only started stripping in the last 3 years as i was too worried to hurt them.

Opinion: Dont believe everything you read, are told, hear... you listen have your own experiences and form your own conclusions.

Different opinions are good....not misinformation :D

[BaZ]

I'm putting a vote in for the 'not stripping' club.

I care for the fish I keep, just like I care for my other pets, and at the end of the day I don't care whether I get an extra 3 fry by stripping because this is a hobby for me and not a business.

I don't particularly have a problem with those who choose to strip their fish, and they are entitled to their opinions. But let's remember here, that these are just that. Opinions.

Has anyone here actually done a proper study to test which method produces the most fry? I'm not sure how you could tell, because I know that the fry released from any one of my females could vary from 20-40 each time, depending on all the circumstances.

Some things to consider:

A holding mother does not have to be chased by her tankmates, simply seperate her.

It does not take any more tanks to let a mother spit naturally, just use a floatie and the fry can be raised in that to a suitable size.

If it is so wrong for a female to hold fry full term, why has it been happening this way for so long in nature?

Anyway, let's not let this debate get heated and out of control. Some of us do it one way, some of us do it another way.

Who is right? Who cares! :lol:

[Mazimbwe]

Note: My post is my opinion MAZIMBWE!

hmmm...there ya go nissky, that wasn't that hard to say was it.

All the facts that you listed in your second-last post are being disputed. I have not made any attack on you and there is no need to be offended because I have disagreed with your theory.

Basically you have a theory without evidence. That was/is the point I was making.

p.s. You don't need to YELL my name to get me to read/notice the post.

[Mazimbwe]

Anyway, let's not let this debate get heated and out of control. Some of us do it one way, some of us do it another way.

Finally the voice of reason!! lol

Well said Baz.

[nissky]

im going to give the floating containers a try long term, i got one lying around somewhere

i agree baz, im not right, and its not about money, theres no profit for me anyway

i totally understand the argument about letting nature takes it course, the fish know

what they are doing....but then on the other hand is it really fair to have these wonderful fish in tanks......

cheers,

walter

[anchar]

Hi all,

Just thought I'd throw a cat amongst the pidgeons. What about stripping potential Synodontis sp. hosts? I don't know about anyone else, but I have lost a few hosts before I started stripping them.

Therefore I would think that there are times when stimulating mum to let go are beneficial to their health. What do you think? :

merjo

[Guest african-au]

Hi all in my experience i have done both strip and let female release naturally,,,stripping fry is definately the way,,,there is a gentle way of stripping fry,,no need to force mouth open,,,,,,,gently apply pressure to sides of mouth and she will release fry without a problem !!!!

if you allow female to go the full term you will have to seperate her & feed her twise the amount of food,,, (also i wouldnt be able to afford tanks for every female i strip as for one comment on the forum,)as i average 9 females a week

i strip in 10 days with 99% success rate & all my females can recover in 2 days of normal feeding in the same tank & spawn again in 4 weeks!!!

CHEERS

CHRIS!!!!!