Alright, folks, let me tell you about my latest adventure in the fish-keeping world – dealing with a pregnant pictus catfish. Now, I’ve been keeping fish for a good while, and these guys have always been a favorite. They’re active, they’re pretty, and they’re always zipping around the tank, which I love. But a pregnant pictus? That was a new one for me.

First off, figuring out if you even have a pregnant pictus is a bit of a head-scratcher. It is not easy to tell the males and females apart. I mean, these fish don’t exactly make it easy. You might notice a bit of a rounder belly on the female, but that’s about it. So, I start to keep a close eye on my catfish, watching for any changes in their behavior or appearance.
I started to feed them more than usual. I figured if one of them was pregnant, she’d need the extra food, right? I mixed in some frozen foods. They seemed to like that, and I noticed one of my pictus getting a bit fatter. This period is kind of just waiting and watching. I read some folks online talking about how they tried to breed pictus catfish, but it sounded like a real pain. It’s not like breeding guppies, where you just put them together and wait. They need these special conditions, or they won’t lay eggs. But I just kept doing what I was doing, making sure they were well-fed and the water was clean. I kept an eye out for any signs of eggs, but honestly, I was pretty much just guessing.
Then, one day, I saw it – a bunch of tiny little pictus swimming around the bottom of the tank! I couldn’t believe it. I did some reading online about what to do next. I had to move the babies to a separate tank so they wouldn’t get eaten. That was a whole other adventure, trying to catch those little guys. And feeding them was another challenge. They need really tiny food, like baby brine shrimp or special fry food. It was a lot of work, but seeing those little catfish grow up was amazing. They started out as these tiny little specks, and now they’re looking more and more like their parents every day.
So, that’s my story of dealing with a pregnant pictus catfish. It was a lot of guesswork, a lot of waiting, and a lot of work taking care of the babies. But it was also really rewarding. I learned a lot, and I got to see a whole new side of these fascinating fish. If you’re thinking about keeping pictus catfish, be prepared for the unexpected. You never know when you might end up with a tank full of babies!
It’s a wild ride, but it’s definitely worth it. Just make sure you’re ready to put in the time and effort. And who knows, maybe you’ll get lucky like me and end up with a whole new generation of these awesome fish swimming around your tank.
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