Question about L201 Hypancistrus Contradens

[Mick John]

G'day everyone. Just a query. A friend and I recently purchased off someone via air freight a colony of L201 Pleco's. We are a bit concerned about the shape of these as they seem very bloated/swollen. Also one of the fishes nose is quite rounded in comparison to the other's. I called a past breeder of these fish (who also knows the breeder I bought off) and told him our concerns. He advised that this is ok and that the round belly of the fish means that the Catfish are all very fat and healthy. He said that is the way that the L201's look over here in Oz. He stated the the seller of these fish takes alot of care in the maintenance of all his Fish. I then spoke with the seller and he assured me that they are all in perfect condition and that is the way that the L201's look and that he feeds them well. He assured me that he is not into the dodgy dealings.
After looking at pictures on the Internet the photo's I observed looked different. They were slimmer. Can anyone tell me if this roundness of their bellies is normal/ok, or is this a strong indication of inbreeding!? Cheers.

[cichlidboy]

you can't really tell unless it's abnormally bloated.
other than that, it seriously could just be full of yummies.
cats love to eat, and will eat till they explode.
just wait a couple of days and see if the bloatiness goes away.
oh, and over that few days, try not too feed too much. just tiny bits.

[Woodsy]

If they're fed on high protein stuff like ox heart, they will put on the required fat for healthy breeding, in much the same way that bristles and pleco's will. If you believe what they've both told you, if may just be that he keeps all his fish in breeding condition, or has been pumping them full of food in order to grow them out.

[Mick John]

Thanks for that guys. Appreciate it. http://www.thefishtank.com.au/forums/images/icons/icon7.gif