# gourami help



## Guest (Aug 21, 2005)

I have a 20 gallon tank of which 2 occupants are gourami's... either fancy or blue... i've had them for a few weeks. one of them chases the other all the time, and he (i assume its a he) has had his colors brighten immensly since i've gotten him. his tail looks almost longer, its orange with stripes and his body stripes are more pronounced too. the one being chased is fat. really fat. and getting fatter. and he/she (how do you tell fish sex anyways?) doesn't have the bright colors like the other one does... he/she is blue with faint designs. my question is, could she be pregnant? how do i tell? what should i do? etc. any other info is helpful too!!! i'm still getting the hang of this message board thingy so feel free to email me responses too at [email protected]


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## Hamm35924 (Jun 13, 2005)

all i know is that females are longer, they are egg layers, so your female may be ripe with eggs, but not pregnant.


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## Guest (Aug 21, 2005)

would that be why the other one is chasing her?


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## garfieldnfish (Jan 18, 2005)

Could also be two males and the dominant one makes life miserable for the other one. Blue gouramis are very aggressive. I had one die of attack wounds inflicted by his tank mate. Here is a way to sex them.
http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/generalinfo/l/blqa2060.htm


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## Cichlid Man (Jan 19, 2005)

The one being chased is probably a female, buy some more females to reduce the males aggression, beleive me it's so easy to cure problems like this. Try keeping marine damsels and clowns, they're a nightmare.


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## Hamm35924 (Jun 13, 2005)

"All gouramis are egglaying fish. Males will build a nest of bubbles at the water surface, where the pair will deposit the eggs. The male will guard this nest and care for the eggs and young until they are able to swim on their own. In some species of gourami, both parents will share this duty. How the young are treated once they are on their own varies between the species: some will ignore their offspring while others will eat them. The exact level of care the parents will provide is different for each species, so you should research the type you are trying to breed to learn the specifics."


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## Guest (Aug 21, 2005)

I just took a few pictures of them if anyone wants to take a peek and give me input... i don't know if i have to email pictures or if i can post them on here.


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