# Convict Cichlid Line Breeding Question



## MonsterCichlids (Jan 25, 2012)

How many generations down can you breed convicts together before you start getting fish that are born with mutations and deformities and genetics faults? Because a while ago i had a convict pair that were unrelated, then i took a male and female from their offspring and bred them together, Now the babies from their offspring are just under a year old and i have a super awesome looking male and one of the most beautiful orange female convicts I've seen! They are brother and sister yes, but I want to breed them together now and see what awesome colors i can get from their offspring. What im worried about though is that this will be breeding the same genes too many generations down if thats what you would call it. If i breed this male and female together, is it at the point where their offspring will have genetic deformities and problems?


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## bernie comeau (Feb 19, 2007)

A good question, but i think a question with no definate answer. 
For starters, it would depend on what genetic faults the parents are carrying from their past. Then, which and how, offspring are selected to carry on the line. If you select just because the fish looks 'pretty', I suspect you will probably see some deformities soon enough, but then who knows :lol:


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## bernie comeau (Feb 19, 2007)

I see from re-reading this thread, I only responded to your first question: "How many generations down can you breed convicts together before you start getting fish that are born with mutations and deformities and genetic faults?" Breed any fish for many years, and your bound to see it some where eventually , whether you inbreed or outcross. I think the underlying assumption of this question is that it is somehow inevitable that inbreeding, after a certain number of generations, will produce a high degree of deformity and lack of fitness. You could see a very high degree of genetic faults from the very first brother-sister mating.....maybe a grandparent carried a whole bunch of bad recessive genes! Or conceivably , you could go on inbreeding forever and not see much of anything for genetic faults.

Your second question is the likelyhood of the 2nd generation of inbred convicts showing a high degree of genetic faults? IMO, probably no more likely then any other convict brood. I've inbred convicts for a long time, and there are no deformities nor lack of fitness. Sometimes there are a few odd striping patterns .....but that is no different then most convict broods, including the offspring of some wild caught.


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## Bree (Jun 13, 2012)

I think the underlying assumption of this question is that it is somehow inevitable that inbreeding, after a certain number of generations, will produce a high degree of deformity and lack of fitness. You could see a very high degree of genetic faults from the very first brother-sister mating.....maybe a grandparent carried a whole bunch of bad recessive genes! Or conceivably , you could go on inbreeding forever and not see much of anything for genetic faults.

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