i have 3 bronze cories but i have just noticed one has a HUGE tummy. is it sick????? we moved about a week ago and it was not like that then.

any ideas what it could be?

Could it be a female thats full of eggs?

how can i tell if it is? for all i know it is but i thought with only 2 i was unlikely to get a pair

If you look from the top, is the tummy even?

I've got 3 bronze cories who are a breeding trio So it does happen.

I'd think that producing eggs is a natural process that happens regardless of the presence of males in the tank. (I'm just guessing tho)

A picture could help...

Is just it's tummy big, or is it fat looking all over (broader chest, wide when looking down from the top) If it's fat all over, it's a girl.

If it's still doing all the things fishies do, don't worry too much about it. Do a big cold water change and see if they lay eggs!

its big all over. ill do a cold water change tonight and see what happens

Do the scales stick out like a pinecone? Just wonder if it's dropsy - but am hopeful she's expecting

its really hard to get a look at her as she keeps hiding. but she is doing all the normal fish things. i did a cold water cahnge last night so waiting now to see if anything happens

I think you've probably got a girl. When I saw how fat my girls were, I thought they were sick too. While she's doing normal fish things, I wouldn't worry too much.

Hopefully the water change will induce a spawn and you'll be able to know for sure!

no change- it (hopefully she!) is still the same size after a water change and no eggs yet. it is still doing all the normall fish things

should i do another cold water change? any other ideas?

I'd do a few more big cold water changes. Sometimes it takes a few times before they get to it.

so i did a couple now cold water changes and turned the heater down. the next day i had eggs.

they are in a little tank of their own. is there anything i should be doing for them? and how long do they take to hatch?

so i did a couple now cold water changes and turned the heater down. the next day i had eggs.

Excellent! :bounce:

Adding an airstone and a little methylene blue would help. Also get your brine shrimp hatching underway.

Basically as alan said - keep movement over the eggs, and the methylene blue helps stop the light getting at them so the bad ones fungus.

Depending on the temp you're keeping them at, they've probably hatched by now. You don't need to feed them until they start swimming around by themselves. Remember, little but often, otherwise the water in a small tank will go bad pretty quick.