My girlfriend got me an early x-mas present...

[gatotsu77]

I know that impulse buys are not always the best thing, but I aim to do the best I can to care for my beautiful new addition to my aquarium. I'm speaking, of course, of a stunning 3" pigeon blood discus. :D I know some of you may be thinking "they need to be in a school" or "a 55g tank isn't big enough for a discus..." or even "take it back to the store," but I intend to care for the little guy and see how well he does. :-) I always aim to maintain pristine water conditions, and having a discus now will only exacerbate that. As I'm sure I've mentioned on a few threads now, my water params are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, 5.0 nitrate, 7.2 ph, 82-84 degrees farenheit. I'm going to bump the water. I will likely bump the heater slightly so that the tank stays around 84-85 degrees farenheit, but is there anything else you guys can recommend I do to help take care of the little guy? I'm going to be doing 15% daily pwc's, feeding (thawed) frozen blood worms twice a day, and getting a few more plants. My lfs has some pennywort, which I've been wanting for a long time, so I'll probably go get some tomorrow. Well, since I've gone ahead and told you about him, I figure I should at least let you all see what the new little guy looks like. Enjoy the pictures. :D

I think I used a flash on this one... made him look a little pale
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/Discus.jpg

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/Discus2.jpg

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/Discus4.jpg

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/Discus3.jpg

This was taken with my good macro lens... I was at f3.5 (not enough light since its 180mm focal length) so there is a decent bit of bokeh, but the picture clarity is MUCH nicer than the ones I took with my cheapo canon lens.
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/Discusmacro.jpg

The colors are slightly off... now that my driftwood has leeched some tannins into the tank, the water is slightly golden, but I believe this fairly accurately captures what I am able to see. :-)

[Lupin]

I'd aim for a barebottom tank at this moment and frequently feed it and maintain the tank. Nice fish.:)

[destined_love7]

It's beautiful!

[gatotsu77]

I'd aim for a barebottom tank at this moment and frequently feed it and maintain the tank. Nice fish.:)

As much as I'd love to be able to provide that for the fish, I only just switched the tank over to sand, and have no desire to dredge it all back out to have to put it all back in. I understand that this may create a lot more work for myself, but I'm up to the challenge.

I also acknowledge that I'm kinda leaving myself open for bashing, as discus are schooling fish and I don't feel I have the room for a school of them, however, I will be adapting my tank a bit more to cater to its needs. I'm going with more plants, removing some of the fish I have, and going to stick with mainly cory's, harlequins, cardinals, my angel, and my discus. (I will likely keep my clown loaches for a little while longer too, but I don't want to stunt their growth)

It might be a long shot, but like I said, I'm going to do everything I can to care for this new addition to my tank. Do you agree with 15% daily pwc? Should I bump that up to 20%? I know its not really conducive to strong plant growth, but I do want to make sure my water is absolutely pristine. As it is, I over filter by quite a bit, and focus mainly on biological media in my filters. (XP3 and Emperor 400, full liter of Seachem Matrix in my filters) I believe I have also mentioned that I keep live plants. (hornwort, anubias, and melon swords)

[gatotsu77]

It's beautiful!

My thoughts exactly when I saw it... When my girlfriend told me she wanted to get it for me for x-mas (she was going to surprise me with a fish in a bag one day, but decided that was not wise... thank goodness...) I had a tough time saying no. I went into it knowing fully well that I couldn't provide a school of them, but depending on how this one goes, I very well might be willing to get 2-3 more, and just go with cardinals, discus, and cory's. As it is, I've had a hard time keeping my eyes off of the tank... constantly watching to see what my new discus is up to and how it is interacting with the other fish around it.

[destined_love7]

I love getting new fish. I have to stop myself all the time. I just like to see how the new guys interact with everyone else.

[tanker]

It looks a little skinny. I would try and vary it's diet--Blood worms, mysis, beefhearts, tubiflex, ect.

[gatotsu77]

I love getting new fish. I have to stop myself all the time. I just like to see how the new guys interact with everyone else.

Its addicting, no? My biggest problem is my inability to have more than my 55g tank. Its sad... but my folks have laid down the law on this one. I'm 21 and currently living at home... still hoping to change that some time soon, but even then I won't just go out and buy a whole bunch of tanks. No way in heck am I going to set up a lot of tanks in an apartment, only to have to relocate them a matter of months later. I'll just have to be patient until I own my own place, then I can really get cranking with the monster tanks. :-) Project 300g shall come to fruition! :grinyes:

Anyone else have an opinion on what I mentioned earlier about having 3-4 discus in a 55g tank as the primary inhabitants? Its a serious consideration of mine... and depending on how well this one does, I just might go for it. I've always enjoyed watching discus on youtube and the such... now I actually get to watch my own discus. I'm practically like a kid in a candy store. :silly:

[gatotsu77]

It looks a little skinny. I would try and vary it's diet--Blood worms, mysis, beefhearts, tubiflex, ect.

I agree... and I did my best to select the healthiest looking fish in the tank. The lfs owner had 3 other discus in the tank, this was the largest and looked to be fed the best. It was kinda bossing the other 3 around too, so I was hoping that going for a naturally dominant fish might help it stand a chance in a new environment. :D What is your take on Discus and krill? I have blood worms and krill on hand, but plan to go buy some beef heart tomorrow morning.

[Lupin]

Do you agree with 15% daily pwc? Should I bump that up to 20%? I know its not really conducive to strong plant growth, but I do want to make sure my water is absolutely pristine. As it is, I over filter by quite a bit, and focus mainly on biological media in my filters. (XP3 and Emperor 400, full liter of Seachem Matrix in my filters) I believe I have also mentioned that I keep live plants. (hornwort, anubias, and melon swords)
I'd do 20-25%.:)

Good luck and hope everything goes well.

[gatotsu77]

I'd do 20-25%.:)

Good luck and hope everything goes well.

Wow... daily? How many tanks do you have? If it weren't for the parental limitations... I'd have MTS like mad... but then I wouldn't have very much time for my gf between work and fish keeping. (haha... I just noticed that you said "I'd" rather than just "I," implying that it was a suggestion and not listing what you personally do :silly:) I'm a little surprised to hear 20-25% daily... mostly because the websites I've read (NEVER trust everything on the net...) suggest 25-30% 3 times a week, but I have no intention to skimp out on maintenance. I want this fish to be healthy and happy. :grinyes: Oh, and thanks for not jumping on me for only having one atm. :P

[Lupin]

You'll be surprised most discus breeders do even more than that on daily basis. I have 5 tanks and I do daily on three tanks but those ones are not that large anyway.:)

[gatotsu77]

Hahaha... wow... seems I am getting myself into a lot of work, but they are definitely worth every bit of effort in my books. They are absolutely beautiful fish... incredibly peaceful and even awe inspiring to watch. I could lay on my bed and watch discus for hours at a time... to heck with a tv, I'd rather have a giant discus tank! :-P What is your take on 3-4 discus in the 55 Lupin? Think I can pull it off? Or would it be wise to just see how this one does as a centerpiece and let the tank be?

[Lupin]

3-4 for a 55g.:) Your discus will enjoy the company of others.

[gatotsu77]

3-4 for a 55g.:) Your discus will enjoy the company of others.

I won't be able to upgrade this tank for a long time... if ever. -_- Think they'll be happy as adults in a 55 with say a dozen cardinals, 6-8 harlequins, and 5-6 cory cats? (haha, sorry for all the troublesome posts on here, if you have AIM, feel free to message me. My sn is in my user info)

[Lupin]

I won't be able to upgrade this tank for a long time... if ever. -_- Think they'll be happy as adults in a 55 with say a dozen cardinals, 6-8 harlequins, and 5-6 cory cats? (haha, sorry for all the troublesome posts on here, if you have AIM, feel free to message me. My sn is in my user info)
That's fine to me.

[number1sixerfan]

I have kept discus on and off for about a year now. I started doing water changes once a day until I learned that it can be a waste.

I now have 4 discus in a 72g. I feed three times a day(feed four when they were younger) and I water change every two or three days. They follow me around and seem to be doing great. And they do much better with 3 or 4 or more. A 55g is big enough easily for five or six. Although they need open swimming space, tank size recommendations are sometimes more aimed at keeping more stable water parameters. In a 55g, I would do more water changes because their is less volume and it will possibly be less stable than a 75g or larger.

Good Luck

*edit* remember the more other fish you keep, the less discus you can probably keep. So with corys and tetras, you may want to keep the number around 4 like mentioned earlier.

[destined_love7]

I'm in the same boat. I'm 31 and staying with my grandmother (after a divorce). I was content staying here and helping her until I started this hobby. I now have 3 tanks in my bedroom, her 1 in the living room, and I REALLY want more. I keep getting these really good offers for a 55 but I have NOwhere to put it. Now I'm looking for an apartment. lol

[Temo]

awsome looking discus, remember do alot of waterchanges!!! recomented everyday,

[RedScare]

Aim at a minimum of 100% water turnaround weekly. More w/c will only help. He does look a little skinny so feed a lot and clean the gravel a lot. Do not worry about the pH and temps more than keeping them consistent. Discus do not like change even current differences will aggravate my fish.

I sternly believe you can keep Discus alone or with other fish; they are kinda boring to watch alone. They will always do better in schools of 6+. You must be careful of disease. Yogias recommends deworming once a month. I do not do this unless my fish begin to look emaciated. All new Discus should be dewormed and watched for illness. Angels are ok with Discus but you must deworm those fish as they do not get affected as bad as Discus and you may not even know they have them.

Currently my show tank has 6 Discus (4 Leopard Snakeskins and 2 reds) 6 corys and 1 bulldog pleco.


OH YEAH! BUY YOUR FISH FROM A BREEDER!!!

[gatotsu77]

Aim at a minimum of 100% water turnaround weekly. More w/c will only help. He does look a little skinny so feed a lot and clean the gravel a lot. Do not worry about the pH and temps more than keeping them consistent. Discus do not like change even current differences will aggravate my fish.

I sternly believe you can keep Discus alone or with other fish; they are kinda boring to watch alone. They will always do better in schools of 6+. You must be careful of disease. Yogias recommends deworming once a month. I do not do this unless my fish begin to look emaciated. All new Discus should be dewormed and watched for illness. Angels are ok with Discus but you must deworm those fish as they do not get affected as bad as Discus and you may not even know they have them.

Currently my show tank has 6 Discus (4 Leopard Snakeskins and 2 reds) 6 corys and 1 bulldog pleco.


OH YEAH! BUY YOUR FISH FROM A BREEDER!!!


What size is your show tank? I was aiming for a MINIMUM of 100% turnover weekly, prefferably 150%. I wish I knew where a discus breeder around here is... this is the only guy I have ever seen with discus, but his fish usually look quite nice. I'm not certain as to whether I'll go with 3 or 4... but I'm slightly inclined to lean towards 3. (hoping there will be no serious aggression... gonna keep cardinals and harlequins and hoping they will help dither)

[RedScare]

My tank is a 55 gallon. I have about 70 plants in there. I want to post pics but I'm currently fighting off some hair algae. My tap phosphates are HIGH.

That water change schedule should bring healthy fish but not MONSTERS. One breeder/Discus competitor here does 100% daily! HAHAAa, I'm not gonna do that, but HOT **** you should see his fish; like 10" around. Make mine look like crap and I make LFS look like crap ahha.

Where are you located and ill check the Discus servers/forums for breeders around you.

Well this is my OPINION. If I were you I would buy like 8 2" and cull off the 3 or 4 weakest in about 6 months. A breeder will usually sell their fish for about 10$ an inch. Typically breeders put LFS to shame with Discus.

[gatotsu77]

I live in California, in the Irvine/Orange/Anaheim area. Haha... I don't know that I'd have the time or patience for 100% daily, but I can only imagine how the fish must look. :-) I'm interested by your idea... if I can find a breeder, perhaps that's what I'll do. If not, I am likely going to go back and get 2 more of the approx 3" (not including tail) discus that my lfs has. One closely resembles this fish http://www.chensdiscus.co.uk/wp-content/221224.jpg and the other is similar in color to the body of this one http://www.chensdiscus.co.uk/wp-content/Picture0871.jpg but has a slight marbled look. (like full orange body/head with darker red pattern) I'm going to be trading in most of my community fish, and hopefully keeping cory's, harlequin's, cardinals, and possibly even amano/cherry shrimp in this tank. Is 4 going to be a lot more work than 3? Would it be safer for aggression issues?

[gatotsu77]

I have some good news. :D My new discus just ate his first meal in his new home. :-) I defrosted a cube of hikari frozen bloodworms, and he ate pretty close to half of it by himself. :-)

[RedScare]

http://www.universaldiscus.com/univ2.htm
http://www.sunrisetropicals.com/index.html

Dang most of the Discus breeders are in San francisco.

I go to Chicago for mine. Unless 1 guy here has them.

[gatotsu77]

http://www.universaldiscus.com/univ2.htm
http://www.sunrisetropicals.com/index.html

Dang most of the Discus breeders are in San francisco.

I go to Chicago for mine. Unless 1 guy here has them.

Sadly, San Fransisco is about an 8 hour drive from here... not one I'd want to make to acquire discus. :-| I suppose I'll have to take my chances with the lfs... he's promised me he'll help reimburse me if something goes wrong with them.

[gatotsu77]

Well, I'm sad to announce that I took my clown loaches, black skirt tetras, and scissortail rasboras to the lfs and traded them in. I am, however, proud to announce that I am now the owner of 3 discus. Currently they're in my 55g with the discus my gf bought me yesterday, a bamboo shrimp, single swordtail, single killifish, 2 SAE's, and 5 cory's. I'm debating taking the SAE's out of the tank now too... and perhaps getting a few amano shrimp in their place. What do you guys think?

[gatotsu77]

Quick question: Are snails a bad thing to have in a discus tank? The plant I bought has what looks like 3-4 baby and a 1/2" ramshorn snail on it. I have not introduced it into the water yet.

[RedScare]

OK for a while I thought the pleco/otto/sae thing about eating the slime of Discus was CRAP but I was wrong. I had 5 Ottos and I noticed that they would take an interest in my Discus so I got rid of them. I now have a bulldog/rubberlip pleco in their place and it is a much better choice, not even nearing my Discus.

My Discus would eat Amano Shrimp if I put them in my tank.

[Tall Doll]

Hope you enjoy your Discus Hunny! Sorry for getting you a gift that inspired you to get rid of some of your favorite fish to switch over to discus. But they are beautiful!!! I hope you enjoy the one I got you!!!!

xoxox
:dance2:

[Tall Doll]

oh and what do you think of the name, Piastra?

I like it!!!!

[jpappy789]

gorgeous discus...with some excellent care that will be one stunning fish ;)!

[Tall Doll]

OK for a while I thought the pleco/otto/sae thing about eating the slime of Discus was CRAP but I was wrong. I had 5 Ottos and I noticed that they would take an interest in my Discus so I got rid of them. I now have a bulldog/rubberlip pleco in their place and it is a much better choice, not even nearing my Discus.

My Discus would eat Amano Shrimp if I put them in my tank.


Otto's I can see being a problem, as they are more "suckermouth cats" than the SAE's are, but I am slightly concerned with the SAE's chasing my discus. I don't necessarily HAVE to have something that eats algae, but I like most of them. I do have occasional formations of algae on my anubias, and I'd like something that will help keep them algae free for me without having to do chlorine dips. I saw a clown pleco at the store and practically fell in love with the little guy.. what do you think about them?

ahahaha... I just realized I'm still logged in as my girlfriend. :P (we're sharing my laptop at the moment, since my desktop is in the other room) I know the poster on this one says Tall Doll, but it was actually Gatotsu77. (I'll just use my name from here on out, I'm Andrew)

[gatotsu77]

Otto's I can see being a problem, as they are more "suckermouth cats" than the SAE's are, but I am slightly concerned with the SAE's chasing my discus. I don't necessarily HAVE to have something that eats algae, but I like most of them. I do have occasional formations of algae on my anubias, and I'd like something that will help keep them algae free for me without having to do chlorine dips. I saw a clown pleco at the store and practically fell in love with the little guy.. what do you think about them?

ahahaha... I just realized I'm still logged in as my girlfriend. :P (we're sharing my laptop at the moment, since my desktop is in the other room) I know the poster on this one says Tall Doll, but it was actually Gatotsu77. (I'll just use my name from here on out, I'm Andrew)

Just to show its really me, now I'm back on my account. :-P She'll get a laugh out of this when she sees it. :silly:

[gatotsu77]

Hope you enjoy your Discus Hunny! Sorry for getting you a gift that inspired you to get rid of some of your favorite fish to switch over to discus. But they are beautiful!!! I hope you enjoy the one I got you!!!!

xoxox
:dance2:

Thank you babe for the beautiful discus. :-D



oh and what do you think of the name, Piastra?

I like it!!!!

Italian for plate? I actually kinda like it :silly:



gorgeous discus...with some excellent care that will be one stunning fish ;)!

I'm looking forward to seeing his true colors shine. :-) I'll get pics of the 2 new discus up in the next couple hours! :grinyes:

[manitu710]

i know chens discus

that where i got some of my discus from

[manitu710]

i would add more discus they are very cheap that size

regards

[gatotsu77]

$40 is cheap? >_< hahaha... I didn't actually buy my discus from chen's... though the guy I did buy them from is named Chin. :silly: I linked those earlier to give an idea of what I was going to get. Here's an actual shot of the 3 discus now. :-)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/all3discus.jpg

The image quality isn't great... 180mm focal length at 1/25th of a second... that was one of 5 shots I took from that position and the only one which came close to turning out clearly. The other 4 were worse than this one... though that shot is pretty crummy as is. I'll be posting more pics in the next half hour. :-)

Oh, and the red one does have a tail... he's just turned at a funny angle from where I was standing. I was at about a 45 degree angle from the front of my tank. (at my bedroom door)

[gatotsu77]

Ok, as promised, I have 3 more pictures of the discus. :-)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/reddiscus.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/reddiscus2.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/bluediscus.jpg

The blue guy is darn near impossible to catch while he's holding still.... he's almost always moving, and with that lens I was working with a shallow depth of field. I think it kinda shows off his colors, but certainly is not my best work. I'll hopefully get some better pictures of him up here soon, but at least you guys can see what I'm working with now. :-)

[gatotsu77]

Sorry for being annoying about this particular topic, but are snails bad for a discus tank? There is a single 1/2" ramshorn snail and about 4 baby ramshorns on the plants I bought, but I have not put them in the tank yet. Will the snails potentially harm my discus?

[pinkertd]

Nice looking discus! You need to fatten that pigeon blood up some. Lots of frozen bloodworms!! Ramshorns will not harm your discus. Too bad you didn't hold on to the clown loaches a little bit longer, but if you dont want a snail infestation, catch them now and take them out! How big are they and did he give you the names of what strain they are called? And I'd lose the SAEs too in favor of a bristlenose or a rubber lip pleco.

[gatotsu77]

Is a clown pleco an ok replacement for the SAE's? I like their coloration more than the rubberlip. Bristlenose are cool, but I've yet to find anywhere out here that sells them. I don't mind the snails, just wanted to be sure they would not harm my discus at all. :) I aim to do everything I can to make them as healthy and happy as I can. :D Oh, and the bloodworms will be flowing into the tank. :-P The pigeon blood ate half a cube of hikari frozen bloodworms this morning, and I'm going to go feed again in about 20 minutes.

[gatotsu77]

Well, I've got yet another update. (hahaha... I feel like such a little kid with my discus :-P) Feeding time went well for the blood parrot and the reddish discus, however, the blue one (the banding suggests potentially wild-caught fish? I'm not sure..) did not seem interested this time. I know new fish may or may not be enthusiastic about their first meal, so I was pleased to see the reddish one eat, but was slightly disappointed that the blue one did not also eat. I'll be feeding them again in 3-4 hours to see what happens. Oh, I put the plants in the tank too... the pennywort looks great. :-)

[pinkertd]

The blue one looks a bit like a brilliant turq. There are so many varieties and different names, but I was recently looking at some young ones and yours resembles it. It is not wild. Clown plecos are ok, I had one for a while in my discus tank. They're not great algae eaters and they hide A LOT. They need driftwood to eat also.

[gatotsu77]

The blue one looks a bit like a brilliant turq. There are so many varieties and different names, but I was recently looking at some young ones and yours resembles it. It is not wild. Clown plecos are ok, I had one for a while in my discus tank. They're not great algae eaters and they hide A LOT. They need driftwood to eat also.

I'm good there... I've got approximately 25 lbs of driftwood in my tank. :-P Hahaha... check out the thread http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133162 for pics of my tank and its progress.

I'd like to be able to see the pleco... I'm sad that it would hide a lot. :-( Are the rubberlips more active? Do they hide as frequently?

Are the bands a sign of stress? I know that its their natural defense to help camouflage themselves, and he is new to the tank, same as the other two.

[pinkertd]

Plecos are nocturnal feeders so you won't see much of them during the day or when the lights are on in the tank. I think RedScare has a rubber lipped pleco so he can help you out with info on that one. I've never had one. I have bristlenose.....lots, cause I'm breeding them. When they are young, they are out in the tank all the time.

I don't think what we're seeing in your fish are stress bars. And yes, some varieties of discus, not all, will show stress bars when stressed. Yours looks to be part of the coloration of that particular strain so I wouldn't worry about it. I think all three of them are going to color up gorgeously as they get bigger!

[gatotsu77]

Plecos are nocturnal feeders so you won't see much of them during the day or when the lights are on in the tank. I think RedScare has a rubber lipped pleco so he can help you out with info on that one. I've never had one. I have bristlenose.....lots, cause I'm breeding them. When they are young, they are out in the tank all the time.

I don't think what we're seeing in your fish are stress bars. And yes, some varieties of discus, not all, will show stress bars when stressed. Yours looks to be part of the coloration of that particular strain so I wouldn't worry about it. I think all three of them are going to color up gorgeously as they get bigger!

I'm very much looking forward to it! :-) I think I will be taking the SAE's out of the tank tomorrow morning. (wish I had another tank I could put them in... I could give them to my gf, but she wouldn't be able to house them for long in her 10g anyway, so probably best not to stress them like that)

I may try a few amano shrimp to see what they do with them... if they eat them, no big deal. Heck, maybe I'll just get a few ghost shrimp and see what happens... less of a loss if they get eaten. (they're something like $2.50/each at my lfs for amano, and $1/10 for ghost shrimp) I'd love to get a few cherry or crystal red shrimp for my tank, but at $5/each... I'm not sure I want to risk them becoming snacks.

[RedScare]

My rubberlip rarely comes out during the day. I only see her about 2x a week if I'm not looking for her. At night she is very active. Always cleaning the glass and rocks but not the plants much. Typically not cleaning the plants is a good thing but I want this DAM hair algae to DIE!!!

[gatotsu77]

My rubberlip rarely comes out during the day. I only see her about 2x a week if I'm not looking for her. At night she is very active. Always cleaning the glass and rocks but not the plants much. Typically not cleaning the plants is a good thing but I want this DAM hair algae to DIE!!!

That's why I kinda want to try the amano shrimp... because I know how good they are at cleaning plants. My anubias always end up with these spots of very dark algae that is really tough to just rub off, so I end up leaving it on there so I won't damage the plant trying to remove it.


I do have some good news to share though. The brilliant turquoise finally ate last night! I was determined to make sure all 3 got some food, so from the "last" feeding I planned last night at about 11pm, I saved a little bit of blood worms and re-froze them. At 4am when I finally went to bed, I kept the tank light off, and gave them the last few blood worms. At first he completely ignored them... but then he decided to pick one off of the sand... and suddenly he realized "oh, these are good!" He started eating a few while they were floating about the tank, though he was still a little timid around the other two.

[Star_Rider]

you will find tha tdiscus like to forage for food..I feed mine color bits (tetra) theysink and the discuc will pick them up after a few minutes.


vary their diet..if the discus are young feed them beefheart you can either make your own or purchase a blend (frozen)

[john_matrix]

I checked out this book from the library and I'm not sure what to believe as it says you don't need a very big tank for Discus, even in a community. That seems just plain wrong!
Here is the book:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61S9GZ04Y4L._AA240_.jpg

Here is the info on Discus: (written by a Cichlid expert, Mary Bailey)

Although this is an easy, hardy fish if kept properly, it is all too frequently portrayed as requiring bare tanks, dangerously high water temperatures, and special, usually unsuitable diets. The result is that many discus are short lived, highly stressed, neurotic wrecks.

What size: 6 inches in diameter

What minimum size tank?:
24X12X18 in for a pair, 36X12X18 for a community.

How warm?:
77-82 F

The tank recommendations seem VERY small....I mean I, like many fish lovers, would like to have 2-3 discus in my tank, but I think I will have to wait until I get a larger tank.

(My tank is 36X13X18)

What do you folks think of this info? It's weird, usually books have rock solid info but this seems a little strange...I don't know what to make of it.

[NJ Devils Fan]

Its addicting, no? My biggest problem is my inability to have more than my 55g tank. Its sad... but my folks have laid down the law on this one. I'm 21 and currently living at home... still hoping to change that some time soon, but even then I won't just go out and buy a whole bunch of tanks. No way in heck am I going to set up a lot of tanks in an apartment, only to have to relocate them a matter of months later. I'll just have to be patient until I own my own place, then I can really get cranking with the monster tanks. :-) Project 300g shall come to fruition! :grinyes:

Anyone else have an opinion on what I mentioned earlier about having 3-4 discus in a 55g tank as the primary inhabitants? Its a serious consideration of mine... and depending on how well this one does, I just might go for it. I've always enjoyed watching discus on youtube and the such... now I actually get to watch my own discus. I'm practically like a kid in a candy store. :silly:

I'm in the same boat. I am going to be 21 in January and my mother won't let get a pressurized CO2 system because its "dangerous. Pretty pathetic that I have to have 4 diy co2 bottles with sugar and yeast under my tank, but I don't have a choice...if they could only see fishkeeping the way we do...

[gatotsu77]

I'm in the same boat. I am going to be 21 in January and my mother won't let get a pressurized CO2 system because its "dangerous. Pretty pathetic that I have to have 4 diy co2 bottles with sugar and yeast under my tank, but I don't have a choice...if they could only see fishkeeping the way we do...

Same thing about anything my mom doesn't understand. I want to do water cooling on my pc, but she insists that it will burn the house down. :wall: (sorry to get off topic there)

I wouldn't even tell her if I did a DIY CO2 since she would tell me there's no way in hell she'd let me do it. Why is it you have to have 4 bottles? Are they all 2 liter bottles? You must have a big friggin tank... or is it just to keep a steady supply? I did some reading on the jello method, and if I do DIY CO2, that is how I'd do it.

[NJ Devils Fan]

Same thing about anything my mom doesn't understand. I want to do water cooling on my pc, but she insists that it will burn the house down. :wall: (sorry to get off topic there)

I wouldn't even tell her if I did a DIY CO2 since she would tell me there's no way in hell she'd let me do it. Why is it you have to have 4 bottles? Are they all 2 liter bottles? You must have a big friggin tank... or is it just to keep a steady supply? I did some reading on the jello method, and if I do DIY CO2, that is how I'd do it.

Yea, 4 2 liter bottles, I have a 72g tank and I am barely getting enough with those 4 bottle. However, I am trying a different diffusion method, so hopefully things will get better.

What makes me crazy is the fact that my mother is a dental hygienist an is around pressurized tanks at work, and nothing has ever happened. Oh well, I think I may be sneaky and just order a system and see what happens, haha. Worst case scenario, I will just set everything up one day and hide it as best as possible, then tell her months later tha it had been there the entire time.

[gatotsu77]

Yea, 4 2 liter bottles, I have a 72g tank and I am barely getting enough with those 4 bottle. However, I am trying a different diffusion method, so hopefully things will get better.

What makes me crazy is the fact that my mother is a dental hygienist an is around pressurized tanks at work, and nothing has ever happened. Oh well, I think I may be sneaky and just order a system and see what happens, haha. Worst case scenario, I will just set everything up one day and hide it as best as possible, then tell her months later tha it had been there the entire time.

How visible are the current bottles? If she already knows there is an air line going in, just hook up your CO2 tank to the existing line, and hide the tank wherever the current bottles are. She'll never know the difference, unless of course she watches you mix your solution every so often. :-P

[Lupin]

I checked out this book from the library and I'm not sure what to believe as it says you don't need a very big tank for Discus, even in a community. That seems just plain wrong!
Here is the book:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/61S9GZ04Y4L._AA240_.jpg

Here is the info on Discus: (written by a Cichlid expert, Mary Bailey)

Although this is an easy, hardy fish if kept properly, it is all too frequently portrayed as requiring bare tanks, dangerously high water temperatures, and special, usually unsuitable diets. The result is that many discus are short lived, highly stressed, neurotic wrecks.

What size: 6 inches in diameter

What minimum size tank?:
24X12X18 in for a pair, 36X12X18 for a community.

How warm?:
77-82 F

The tank recommendations seem VERY small....I mean I, like many fish lovers, would like to have 2-3 discus in my tank, but I think I will have to wait until I get a larger tank.

(My tank is 36X13X18)

What do you folks think of this info? It's weird, usually books have rock solid info but this seems a little strange...I don't know what to make of it.
I actually think this seems more for a breeding purpose than keeping them long-term. The height at 18 inches is fine and is better than having a fewer inches than that. I've read that book several times in bookstores. The information is short and not seem very detailed so to get to the point, it is best followed if the discus are in breeding conditions only wherein you do need to separate them if you really want to raise the fry in the near future. Juveniles tend to be more vulnerable to diseases than adults which in this case, barebottom tanks are used to ensure the tank water does not deteriorate quickly while making tank maintenance much easier. As for temperatures, I'm just as confused why it is referred to as dangerously high unless you keep fish that won't do well at warm temperatures at all. I've kept discus before at 80-86 degrees Fahrenheit and they seem to do better than temperatures below 76 at adult stage. Adults can cope with temps lower than 80 but no lower than 76.

As for being neurotic, well, I think this is true if the tank is not designed to make the discus more comfortable. Lights should be kept subdued with black background for them to feel more secured.

[Lupin]

Are there any other foods (other than beefheart... heard lots of stuff about that) which the discus will likely enjoy and will help vary their diet? Or can they handle a steady diet of blood worms?
I'll respond to your question here so you can compile all your information here.;)
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1186145#post1186145

They cannot handle only bloodworms alone. There is not sufficient vitamins from that. Try earthworms, beefhearts, brine shrimps, mosquito larva and shrimps.

[gatotsu77]

I'll respond to your question here so you can compile all your information here.;)
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?p=1186145#post1186145

They cannot handle only bloodworms alone. There is not sufficient vitamins from that. Try earthworms, beefhearts, brine shrimps, mosquito larva and shrimps.

Awesome, thanks. :-) I was thinking about earthworms, but wasn't sure if they'd be able to digest them or not, as I know they are high in fat content. Beefheart I've read is messy, but worth it. I'll likely get a batch of live brine shrimp to see how they do with it... if they do well, I'll hatch some more myself. Think they'll munch ghost shrimp?

[Lupin]

Think they'll munch ghost shrimp?
Never seen my own discus capable of chasing shrimps around so I simply stick to getting raw ones from the fridge.

[gatotsu77]

Just figured I'd post this regarding my brilliant turquoise discus... this looked so darn close to the same it made me wonder if I got a sweet deal on him or not. I paid $40 each for my 3-3.5" discus. http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=979

[gatotsu77]

Never seen my own discus capable of chasing shrimps around so I simply stick to getting raw ones from the fridge.

So perhaps amano shrimp would be safe in the tank after all? I've been considering them, but don't want to lose a bunch of them if my discus get hungry. :-P Raw shrimp, as in the frozen shrimp humans consume, right? I used to feed my african brown knife and clown loaches pieces of shrimp from time to time... they loved it, but I realized that there might be too much salt in that meat for them. What do you think?

[Lupin]

So perhaps amano shrimp would be safe in the tank after all? I've been considering them, but don't want to lose a bunch of them if my discus get hungry. :-P Raw shrimp, as in the frozen shrimp humans consume, right? I used to feed my african brown knife and clown loaches pieces of shrimp from time to time... they loved it, but I realized that there might be too much salt in that meat for them. What do you think?
Yes, raw shrimps for human consumption. I'd feed twice a week. Never tried mixing Amanos with discus but could work if the tank is heavily-planted. I tried ghost shrimps with mine.

[gatotsu77]

Wouldn't say its "heavily planted" just yet, but its getting there. Lots of hiding places, and going to be adding more plants soon. My new light and glass tops are being shipped, estimated arrival on friday. :-D Going from 80/110 watts of t12 to 130 watts of compact fluorescent 6700k. :-) (the discrepancy on the t12's is the bulbs are 2x 40w but the ballast is supposedly overdriven to something like like 140%... wish I still had the box :silly:)

Oh, figured I'd add, since I don't remember if I mentioned this or not: (sorry if I already have... just anxious) I will likely be getting a 4th and final discus in the morning. Probably going to get a blue diamond discus. :-)

[Tall Doll]

Yay!!!! I gave you the discus fever!!! I have changed your life forever!!!!


xoxo

[pinkertd]

Not wild, for sure! Take a look at this site: http://www.sunrisetropicals.com/id61.html
I think the one you have showing some blue and red might be a juvie Red Turqoise (commonly known as red turq), and the red one may be a red pigeon blood. I don't know to tell similar strains apart real well.
I can tell you than sometimes juvies barely resemble what the adult fish will color up like. When I saw my first juvie red turq and the guy showed me what it would look like full grown, my reaction was....that baby fish IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE THAT???? They didn't even look remotely related!

[gatotsu77]

Not wild, for sure! Take a look at this site: http://www.sunrisetropicals.com/id61.html
I think the one you have showing some blue and red might be a juvie Red Turqoise (commonly known as red turq), and the red one may be a red pigeon blood. I don't know to tell similar strains apart real well.
I can tell you than sometimes juvies barely resemble what the adult fish will color up like. When I saw my first juvie red turq and the guy showed me what it would look like full grown, my reaction was....that baby fish IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE THAT???? They didn't even look remotely related!

I'm excited to see how they turn out. :D Oh, I did go get that 4th discus this morning, I'm actually drip acclimating him/her as we speak. Blue diamond/cobalt blue/whatever they call them. :silly: I'll get some pics up hopefully before I leave for work. :-)

[gatotsu77]

Ok guys, I have to run off to work, but I did take a couple minutes to snap off some pictures of the new discus. The pictures are horrible quality... but I honestly didn't have time to hang around for long this morning. I'll get some better ones up tomorrow. Enjoy. :-)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/bluediamond.jpg

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/bluediamond2.jpg

Btw, I am really starting to see what you mean about the banded one turning out to be a red turquoise. I'd love that! They're so pretty... :-)

[Star_Rider]

Discus are wonderful fish to keep and they will color up (IMO they are one of the most colorful cichlids out there)
as far as pricing goes..it varies considerably from source to source.

I get mine from a local breeder I get pigeon bloods for $15 ea or 4-$50he also has a strain he calls cobalt reds a cross btwn cobalt blues and red turq. tha adults when about 3-4 years old are striking but it takes awhile for them to get there.

so if varies..if you find local breeders you will get the best stock available..
I do not keep shrimp with mine..Discus like to forage any shrimp hiding will usually become discus fodder.

mine will actually turn upside down to get to food.

[Lupin]

Gat, your pics are great.:) That's a Blue Diamond.

[pinkertd]

Btw, I am really starting to see what you mean about the banded one turning out to be a red turquoise. I'd love that! They're so pretty... :-)

This last picture it definitely looks like a red turq. You can see it's colors better than the other pictures. And they are beautiful! The red turqs are one of the all time favorites with people who buy discus. I had two at one time. The blue one looks real nice too. The first picture the darker color makes me think cobalt...but we'll see as you take more pictures.

[gatotsu77]

Hahaha... I took those maybe 15 minutes or so after putting him into the tank, so I wasn't expecting to have his colors truly shine through. His body, which looks white in the pictures, is actually irridescent blue from certain angles... but from dead on like that and dependent on the angle of light, it looks almost white. (that's with the light actually shining through his body as opposed to reflecting off of it... he was right up against the glass in that shot)

[gatotsu77]

Discus are wonderful fish to keep and they will color up (IMO they are one of the most colorful cichlids out there)
as far as pricing goes..it varies considerably from source to source.

I get mine from a local breeder I get pigeon bloods for $15 ea or 4-$50he also has a strain he calls cobalt reds a cross btwn cobalt blues and red turq. tha adults when about 3-4 years old are striking but it takes awhile for them to get there.

so if varies..if you find local breeders you will get the best stock available..
I do not keep shrimp with mine..Discus like to forage any shrimp hiding will usually become discus fodder.

mine will actually turn upside down to get to food.

Hahaha... I have noticed them exploring the bottom of the tank more, and I believe they even munched on some hikari sinking algae wafers that I had in the tank earlier. I broke one up into 4 pieces for my cories, and in perhaps half an hour, it was gone. (usually the cories just sit and munch on it all day)



This last picture it definitely looks like a red turq. You can see it's colors better than the other pictures. And they are beautiful! The red turqs are one of the all time favorites with people who buy discus. I had two at one time. The blue one looks real nice too. The first picture the darker color makes me think cobalt...but we'll see as you take more pictures.

I can certainly see why people love them! They are absolutely gorgeous! :D



Gat, your pics are great.:) That's a Blue Diamond.

Hahaha... thank you. :-) When I get more than 3 minutes to take pictures, I'll set up and take some really nice ones. :-)

[NJ Devils Fan]

How visible are the current bottles? If she already knows there is an air line going in, just hook up your CO2 tank to the existing line, and hide the tank wherever the current bottles are. She'll never know the difference, unless of course she watches you mix your solution every so often. :-P

Haha, if it were only that easy. I have the 4 bottles in a 10g tank under my tank now, inside the stand. The little tank is filled with water and a heater to keep the mixture warm as to allow the mixture to ferment. I also made a shelf under the stand so putting a CO2 tank under it wouldn't fit. Also, you should never put a CO2 tank under a fish tank in case that 1 out of 1,000,000 chance that something happens and a gasket shoots straight up and breaks the tank...wouldn't want 70+ gallons of water everywhere. Idk, I'm old enough now to put of a real argument and its not like I can "get in trouble." Whatever, I can always use the ***** and moan technique until she goes crazy...worth a shot.:devil:

[gatotsu77]

Haha, if it were only that easy. I have the 4 bottles in a 10g tank under my tank now, inside the stand. The little tank is filled with water and a heater to keep the mixture warm as to allow the mixture to ferment. I also made a shelf under the stand so putting a CO2 tank under it wouldn't fit. Also, you should never put a CO2 tank under a fish tank in case that 1 out of 1,000,000 chance that something happens and a gasket shoots straight up and breaks the tank...wouldn't want 70+ gallons of water everywhere. Idk, I'm old enough now to put of a real argument and its not like I can "get in trouble." Whatever, I can always use the ***** and moan technique until she goes crazy...worth a shot.:devil:

How would you go about storing a CO2 tank safely then? Build it a 2x4 cage and house it off to the side of the tank, perhaps in the corner of a room? Sounds like it could be dangerous if it happened to go off while you're near it...

Good luck convincing them... my parents are too effing stubborn. If I act like I'm going to do it anyway, they just insist they'll boot my *** out of the house. :angryfire:

[NJ Devils Fan]

How would you go about storing a CO2 tank safely then? Build it a 2x4 cage and house it off to the side of the tank, perhaps in the corner of a room? Sounds like it could be dangerous if it happened to go off while you're near it...

Good luck convincing them... my parents are too effing stubborn. If I act like I'm going to do it anyway, they just insist they'll boot my *** out of the house. :angryfire:

Usually people bolt it to the side of the stand so prevent it from falling over. I'll see what I can do, but its hard since the tank is in the dining room where the computer is located...whatever, I'll deal with sugar and yeast for now.

[gatotsu77]

I just now noticed this today on one of my discus, and realized that it was in one of the pictures I posted earlier this week. My red turquoise discus has what almost looks like 2 damaged rays in his right pectoral fin, but I can't tell for sure if that's what it is. I'll repost the image I had up which shows it, but I will aim to get a better picture of it tomorrow. (I'm stuck at work, so all I can show you is what I already have online for the time being... sorry the picture isn't very clear... he's certainly not one to hold still for the camera)

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c70/animefan73/bluediamond2.jpg

Does anyone else think that its just damaged rays? Could this be a precursor to ich or another parasite? Goodness... I really really hope not......

[pinkertd]

He has two white spots on that pectoral fin, so just keep an eye on them. Sometimes discus get areas like that on their fins that come and go. His pectoral fin may have been damaged a bit in netting him or may be from getting harassed by a tankmate. It's nothing to worry about, just keep up with your water changes. It will heal on its own.

[RedScare]

HAHHAAHAHAHAAaaaa

I was worried the first time i saw that on my Discus too.

He should be fine. If your Discus get ill you probably wont be asking questions like "is this an illness." You will be saying, "oh man my fish are gonna die."

[pinkertd]

If your Discus get ill you probably wont be asking questions like "is this an illness." You will be saying, "oh man my fish are gonna die."

RedScare - you know you're pretty right about that. It's not a little of anything with discus! They are either perfectly fine or have a serious issue. Never seems to be just a tad of this or that like other fish.

[gatotsu77]

Thank you guys. :-) I was really worried that I was going to get my whole tank infected and lose all of my beautiful discus. :-\ Another question for you: (this might sound kinda lame, but here goes anyway) What method do you guys usually use for enticing your discus to eat new foods? I've tried plankton twice now (little tiny shrimp... perhaps 5-10mm total length) and the discus are showing interest by hovering towards them, but if they happen to try to eat them, they spit them out right away and leave them alone. Should I try some of that garlic stuff seachem sells? Also related to feeding... the 2 blood parrots (assuming the red one is a red blood parrot) seem to be quite the hungry hungry hippos... while the blue diamond and red turq are kinda shying away from food, even if I put food in multiple spots. I've been including some hikari aglage wafers, broken into 4-5 pieces, and they seem to be disappearing within an hour or so of putting them in the tank, but I never actually see the discus chewing on those either. Perhaps they're just "camera shy"?

[RedScare]

Well your fish are pretty new so just worry about getting them eating regularly. Later on if you want them to change their diet just dont feed them for a day and they should try just about anything.

[kr0nic]

I think people are really over the top when it comes to caring for Discus, i simply do 30-40% weekly waterchanges and try and clean as much gunk up as i can from the bottom, they just get fed like the regular fish do, some flakes in the morning and either flakes or bloodworm / dalphia at night and my discus are doing great.