# Urgent question about pregnant Gourami & male Gouramis.



## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)

Hi All,
Since I was last here (been awhile) I have traded in a 10 gal tank & 5 gal tank for a 55 gal! What a difference... and need I say ... I LOVE it! 
I have an Ehiem filter system and my water parameters are great! Most notably, the ammonia stays at 0ppm which was a battle with the smaller tanks.

I have 
2 High Fin Tetras
3 blue Mickey Mouse Platty females - 1 pregnant still
5 or more blue babies 
Double Bar Platty pair and 5 babies
2 fance male Guppies
1 female Guppy and several babies
4 Neon Tetras
4 bronze Neon Tetras
1 Pleco
2 Kuhli Loaches
1 Dwarf Gourami male
Sunset Gourami pair - female with eggs (lots)

The 2 male Gouramis are the problem... The have been great tank mates for months until yesterday. The male Sunset has become horribly aggressive, particularly towards the Dwarf male. I am guessing that the female is about ready to lay the eggs and he is frantically trying to get all the other fish away from her by any means he can and he is apt to hurt or kill some of the other fish?
I have a 5 gal up with a beautiful Betta. I also have a 1.5 gal tank that he was in prior to my getting the big tank. I often take babies and put them in that tank with the filter intact and place it in the Betta tank so the water temp will stay consistent with his heater.
My question is this... Should I put the Gourami pair in the 1.5 to lay the eggs, put the Betta in the small tank and the Gourami pair in the bigger 5 gal, or just leave nature alone????
I really hadn't worried about the Gourami fry and figured if some make it great and if not... but the aggression raises a whole other problem!
I would greatly appreciate your reply as the problem seems to be elevating rapidly!
Thanks so much!
Janintn


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## Mrmike (Apr 1, 2011)

I would either pull the dwarf out for his safety or put the pair in the 5, altho I would prefer a 10 just because of the male's aggression. Lots of plants and/or hiding places that she can't get trapped in will help keep her in one piece..... a few frayed fins are normal when breeding gouramis except the Pearls, they are gentle even then.


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## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)

He is less aggressive to her than he is the dwarf male... Can you tell by a pic if she is pregnant? I don't have any experience with the Gouramis when it comes to breeding. She appears to be but studying on the web I feel it could be some illness??? She looks healthy, eats well, swims and behaves totally normal. I don't believe constipation is a problem, again, she is so active. Did feed peas tonight to the whole yank and won't feed anything else until tomorrow. I will post one ASAP. Thanks so much!!!
Janintn


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## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)




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## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)




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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

Are you sure its a female as most of the time females are a drab color and most stores don't carry the females. They breed just like betta's where the male blows a bubble nest and deposits the eggs into the nest and takes care of them.


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## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)

No I am not sure... I asked for a male/female pair and thought they were! The bigger one has a very pointed dorsal fin and the smaller one has a very rounded dorsal fin. Does anyone know?? Thanks!


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## Mrmike (Apr 1, 2011)

Sounds like a male/female pair.... and if you see no raiised scales or any unusual behaviors you may just have a well conditioned female to go with the male.. I'd say they act like things are going well for them. Decide how you want to breed them and go for it!


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## janintn (Sep 9, 2010)

Thanks for the thumbs up! She appears healthy in every way, great apatite, is from one end to the other and happily standing on her head picking from the gravel! Still no sign of a bubble nest but I believe I will move them to the 5 gal and see what developes...
Janintn


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## Mrmike (Apr 1, 2011)

Good steady heat, low bubbles, maybe some plants on the surface, lots of cover for her to run and hide (or play coy) .... and good luck!


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