Young Discus

[Smoke to Fire]

Hi, I was curious if any of you have any ideas I might be able to try. Currently I purchased two young discus, approx 2 1/2-3 inches. A Apricot Rainbow and a Blue Diamond High Fin. Unfortunately I do not have a quarantine tank to keep them in so they had to go into my 55 gallon with 11 cardinals and one blue ram. They are healthy from what I have seen so far and besides the fact that when people are present they hide (which on their own they are all over the tank exploring), but the only problem I see is the only thing I can get them to eat is frozen blood worms. In order to feed them, I have to use a tube filled up with a little bit of water and the blood worms, then put that in the tank and let the food out by them or else they just sit back and watch everybody else eat. I was wondering if anybody has any tips concerning what you might feed yours, or how you went about getting them to readily accept dry as well. I would like to start feeding a combination of Spectrum as well as several different types of frozen to get a more balanced diet. Any ideas? Also I was curious, they have been in the tank approx 4 days now so their still kinda new to their environment, but would adding another discus or two help with the shyness? Granted I would probably have to remove some of the 11 cardinals due to overstock issues when they mature (though my wife loves them), but if it would help id be willing to give it a go, or do you think just giving them time will help out?
Current temp is 83, Ammonia and Nitrites are both at 0

[Star_Rider]

83 is a bit cool for juvies it is the lower end of their temp range.(IMO)

that said..they should be in schools...they are out of the 'norm' when in pairs like this..and they will tend to be more shy as a result.

4 discus is considered the lowest recommended stocking level. you may want to up that to a total of 5.

but with the tank a 55(smallest I would suggest for a school) you may have some limitations.

I highly recommend a qt/hospital tank but you have already added the 2 discus. keep in mind tho that adding 2 more will increase the liklihood of introducing a pathogen of some sort..isf you choose thie route just keep a very watchful eye out and you should be fine.

[golfproinlexky]

Smoke- Star gives good advice. Check the links to my forum posts in my signature, as they share many of the same issues that you discuss in your post. I am about 6 weeks ahead of you in the discus game and had many of the same questions. Be patient with the eating, as mine took almost a week before they were "competing" for food with tank mates. They will warm up to their environment. From all of the posts I've read (and my short experience) I think you should consider a few more discus and do it sooner than later so they don't become territorial and combatant with one another.

Good luck and post pictures when you can!

[Smoke to Fire]

Thank you both for the quick reply.

Ok so higher temps, and a few more discus. What would be a good temp then to raise it to? Keeping in mind that their are still the 11 cardinals and one German blue ram in there? Unfortunately I don't have a place to put them as of just yet if they will need to be removed. Finding a good home takes a while living on a army post.

[pinkertd]

The cardinals and rams will tolerate the discus temps. I've kept them both in my 86F tank. My discus seem happiest at 86. I've tried higher and lower and they are just more "settled" at 86. I agree with the previous responses, you need to up the number, I would do 5. As long as you keep up with the water changes, they'll be fine. The last two discus I added took about a week to really feel comfortable and come out like rockets for their food and for the other discus to let them fit in.

[gatotsu77]

The cardinals should do just fine with the higher temps, as should the ram. Albeit not for a true extended period, I had cardinals in my tank at 88 degrees with no apparent adverse effects. A lot of discus display tanks will pair discus and cardinals, so its not uncommon for many of us to wish to do the same. (the colors go together beautifully) I myself would recommend bringing the tank temp up to 85-86 degrees if possible. The 2-3 degrees will really do wonders for the discus. As far as picky eating is concerned... its a bit of an uphill battle, but if you're persistent, you'll succeed. When thawing some blood worms, try soaking just a very small sprinkle of flake food with the worms, and let it sit for a good 15 mins. Once they've absorbed a bit of the scent/flavor of the blood worms, the discus may be more attracted to at least try them. Familiarity is key. Once you've gotten them eating a couple little flakes here and there, try increasing their flake intake, as well as experimenting with other meaty foods mixed into their blood worms. Krill, brine shrimp, squid, beef heart, etc. As long as the discus are wel fed and healthy, you can easily let them fast for 2-3 days to encourage them to eat whatever new food you try them on, as they can survive a week or more without food. I know its possible to fast for 4-5 days and then give them the new food... I myself just don't like not feeding them for so long. (especially since their metabolisms are so fast and they are young) As I said, with persistence, you'll have 'em eating a varied diet in a matter of a month or so. :)

Oh, and one final thought... pictures are ALWAYS welcome on this thread, so I totally second that idea. :)

[Marinemom]

Persistence is the key as well as a varied diet for these gentle giants. Try soaking the flake food in garlic. That has seemed to work for me in the past. When I first got my group of discus they refused food for eleven days and then all of a sudden they started eating as if there were no tomorrow.

I would also increase the number of discus that you have. Often times, just having two of them, one will become dominant over the other one and it will lead to problems. If you have a group of say five of them(which by the way will look fantastic in your aquarium), they will establish a pecking order and will do so quickly. As far as the temp. goes, I would keep the temp. at a consistent 86-88 degrees. Anything cooler then that and the discus tend to get lethargic.

Marinemom

[Mij]

Discus do much better in the middle 80's for water temps. Also, when purchasing cichlids of any kind, unless you are going to breed them, should never be purchased in pairs. Always buy three or more so the aggression will be spread more evenly and one dominant fish cannot pick on just one other less dominant fish. Quarantine is a must, especially when using larger display tanks. It is much easier and cheaper to medicate 20 gallons of water instead of 55 or 135.

[rowedder]

I just started keeping discus myself in January, it's been a very pleasing experience thus far! I can only tell you the water paramiters and my daily schedule I perform for my 20 discus that I have. Of course the ammonia & nitrites are "0" while I read 1 or 2ppm on my nitrates. My pH varies as my water changes occur. When the water changes take effect my pH rises to about 6.8 and then over a 32-34 hour period it ends up being down to about 5.5. I have built an automatic water changing system that dumps about 40-45 gallons of fresh R.O. water into my 210 Gal aquarium every 32-34 hours. I add four tablespoons of Kent R.O. right powder and two capfuls of discus essentials also made by Kent once the water change has been performed. I have several swords that I have weighted down because I removed all my gravel from my tank. I learned that it's a lot easier to keep a healthy clean tank that way. I am currently on deployment in the navy and have a few people looking after my discus. They must be doing a heck of a job because since leaving there developed three pairs, proven mated pairs!! Three of them! They ALL laid eggs, what a surprise that was! ANyway to get back to the subject here. Seems to me that a large fluctuation when dealing with pH isn't all that big of a deal as long as it's done slowly. Well it drops slowly but raises quickly when the new water is put in within 10 minutes from 5.5 to 6.8 but the fish don't act any different. My discus were breathing heavy when I first purchased them also. I added a 36" bubble wand to ensure there was enough water movement in the tank. I keep my temp at 86 as well. I have a pair of gold rams, about 12 corys, and about 6 otocinclus, oh yeah I also have about 10 black mollies, thinking about getting rid of them soon though, they seem to aggrivate the discus at times. I am running 2 marineland canister filters along with two aqua sponge 5 filters. I feed them bloodworms, flakefood, brine shrimp, beef heart, and emerald green frozen food. Each eats what they want, pretty picky. There favorite food is bloodworms hands down! I'd have at least five discus if I were you, they will adjust to your tank in no time, time is the key though! Be patient.