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Sick cory?

Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
Hi all,

Please would you be able to offer any insight if you have seen before or know what this is?

One of my dwarf cory cats looks bloated in my 5 gal tank. She acts normal still eating and swimming around but I can see she's not looking right. They received a hikari wafer yesterday so I thought maybe she's bloated/constipated but today she looks the same. Could this be dropsy I don't want her to infect any other fish in that tank there's 10 of them all others look fine?
 

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Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
To me it looks like your C. hastatus is full of eggs. Got males??


For sure, there must be I have 5 of Hastatus species so one of them at least is bound to be a male ...I find them so hard to tell apart. If she spawns, are they eating their Eggs/Fry?
 

dw1305

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
2,755
Location
Wiltshire UK
Hi all,
For sure, there must be I have 5 of Hastatus species so one of them at least is bound to be a male ...I find them so hard to tell apart. If she spawns, are they eating their Eggs/Fry?
No they don't tend to. You did well to find Corydoras hastatus, they are much sort after.

Have a <"look at her eyes">.

cheers Darrel
 

Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
Hi all, No they don't tend to. You did well to find Corydoras hastatus, they are much sort after.

Have a <"look at her eyes">.

cheers Darrel


That's a very detailed description of their spawning behaviour thanks Darrel. I got them actually by mistake, there's a huge online shop in London and I ordered 6 x Pigmy cory and they sent me the dwarfs instead. I liked them and kept them and they're schooling with the pigmy's without any problems.

Regarding my round fish, today she's still super round and I can see her eyes are bulging so I think she must have something...Still acting normal swimming around and eating or at least trying to eat (I dony actually see them eating their mouths are the smallest things)

Here's a photo I managed to snap of her and another Hastatus in comparison. The eyes dont look right?
 

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dw1305

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
2,755
Location
Wiltshire UK
Hi all,
there's a huge online shop in London and I ordered 6 x Pigmy cory and they sent me the dwarfs instead.
Ninety-nine times out of a hundred it works the other way around, the label says Corydoras hastatus, but the fish is Corydoras pygmaeus.
(I dony actually see them eating their mouths are the smallest things)
They really like Microworms.
I can see her eyes are bulging so I think she must have something
I didn't see mine very often, and I definitely didn't notice any eye bulging, but whenever they were broad (when looked at from above) and had solid black eyes they were ready to spawn.

Can you give them a cool water change with softer water? It doesn't have to be much cooler. If they are ready to spawn that should start them off.

cheers Darrel
 

Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
okay it seems like @Mike Wise was right, the little lady is full of eggs as her eyes have turned black and she still has a belly. I didn't have the heart to put her in quarantine tank as I found in the past these tiny corys to get terrified when not with their own and not move much.

Tomorrow is big waterchange day and I will try with 22° water(they're now on 24°) hopefully that will start her spawn although it kind of looks like she lost a little of her bump (or its just in my head).

Anyone had spawned Hastatus before care to share any tips?
 

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Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
Most cory breeders remove the eggs, not the mom. (The eggs are surprisingly sturdy.) Ask on the Planet Corydoras Facebook group, there are at least a few hastatus breeders there.

I could potentially do that as I'm setting a new tank for apistogramma fry for when they're out from the parents tank...I have 4-5 weeks until I plan to get the fry out so that could do if I can keep the eggs in a tank thats in a cycling process?

Thanks Ben Rhau I joined the group and if I manage to get her to spawn I'll try my best to give the eggs a chance.
 

Ben Rhau

Apisto Club
Messages
566
Location
San Francisco
You can hang a net breeder in the main tank or set up something similar with a tupperware container to allow flow with the tank. Corys tend to eat their eggs, which is why people separate if they want a good survival rate. I've never raised fish from eggs before but lots of folks here have and also in that Fb group. Good luck!
 

dw1305

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
2,755
Location
Wiltshire UK

Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
Hi all, <"I have">, and they don't eat their eggs or fry. Have a look at @Apistomaster <"C.hastatus breeding posts on PlanetCatfish">. I'm a great <"moss fan as well">.

I've found over time that it pays to listen to people like @Mike Wise, and Larry ("Apistomaster") would be another person well worth listening to.

cheers Darrel

Hi Darrel, thank you very much I'm going to look for Apistomaster's experiences on Planet Catfish I didnt even knew about that forum.

I was really not expecting the cory to be pregnant as I've had them for a while now and they never shown any signs and with a Ph of 7.8 and a GH of 16 I was sure it would be impossible.
 

Miss ATV

Member
Messages
58
Hi Darrel, thank you very much I'm going to look for Apistomaster's experiences on Planet Catfish I didnt even knew about that forum.

I was really not expecting the cory to be pregnant as I've had them for a while now and they never shown any signs and with a Ph of 7.8 and a GH of 16 I was sure it would be impossible.

And you're right Mike has so much experience I read some of his older reply posts and they're academic level. I am so impressed actually by the quality of the information shared on this forum even though its not the busiest it's just conistently good advice and tons of patience with newbies like me and many others who repeat the same questions over and over again. I am grateful for all the replies and advice.
 

dw1305

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Messages
2,755
Location
Wiltshire UK
Hi all,
and they never shown any signs and with a Ph of 7.8 and a GH of 16 I was sure it would be impossible.
I think they occur in water which is reasonable hard, as well as soft water etc. A lot of the fish from <"the Pantanal"> will breed at much higher hardness values than those from the central Amazon basin (where the water is always soft and acidic).
And you're right Mike has so much experience I read some of his older reply posts and they're academic level. I am so impressed actually by the quality of the information shared on this forum even though its not the busiest it's just conistently good advice and tons of patience with newbies like me and many others who repeat the same questions over and over again. I am grateful for all the replies and advice.
The usefulness of a forum depends upon the quality of the moderation and posters. This forum has @gerald, Mike, <"TomC"> etc. if they tell me something, then I know its likely to be right. One of the problems with the internet age is information over-load, and it is really difficult to sort the good from the bad.

I post on <"Apistogramma.com">, on <"UKAPS"> (I'm a botanist) and at <"PlanetCatfish">. I've been a member of all of these forums for more than ten years, because they offer consistently good advice and you can have an informed debate, without it degenerating into a flaming war.

cheers Darrel
 

Larry Rogers

Member
5 Year Member
Messages
91
I would concur with the eggbound diagnosis. Your female hastatus is significantly larger than the males and should be easily recognized. Males also tend to appear straight sided from above where females tend to be rounded when mature. A ratio of three males per female works better for breeding. If you have one male and several females some of the ladies are not getting attention. Hastatus also is a schooling fish and are better kept in a group of 25 or more. I have kept and bred them for years and they are easily marketed.
 

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