any discus owners here

[D.J.]

just wondering if they are worth the money?

im bored with oscars,africans,south amercans,and community fish.

i really like the discus. ive read alil on them. are they really that hard to care for? i mean angels are usually sensative to water changes and all and they both are chiclids...

i went today to scope out some and they start at 27.99 for a 2in discus and go up to 99.99 for the real purty guys/gals......

[gatotsu77]

To me, they're worth it. (and its more effort than just the cost of the fish... I paid $50/each for mine) They aren't hard to care for, if you have an idea of what to provide for them. They need warm (82-86 degrees, depending on size) pristine water. We're talking 2 50% pwc's a week or more. They need to be in a group of 4+, and will need a 55+ gallon tank. They need to be fed several times a day, having their diet consist mostly of meaty foods such as blood worms, krill, brine shrimp, beef heart, grocery store shrimp, etc. and supplemented with a quality flake food, potentially even small soft pellets. Do a search on the forum for "Discus" and read some of the threads. You'll learn a lot. :D

[pinkertd]

:iagree: To me they are worth it! My last two albino royal blue babies (3") were $75 each and shipping was over $100. But I waited a long time for the right white discus for my collection. It's a considerable investment. So quality healthy discus are not cheap. They are not forgiving of neglect like some fishes, so it requires dedication. Start out with some of the more common strains and it shouldn't be so hard on your pocket. Red turqs, blue turks, pigeon bloods, marlboros are all gorgeous discus and very hardy strains.

[D.J.]

ive been doing more and more research on them....seem to be a very "needy" fish as far as care.

im not sure what im gona go with as of yet....but if i do go with discus im gona let the tank cycle for AWHILE before i think about adding any discus to the tank..

what kinda tankmates can they have? ive read angels can but not agood idea since tey transfer illness easy....

i seen a pic on the net with a 300g tank with discus and neon tetras....wouldnt the discus eat them?

[duffer]

Neon tetras shouldn't be kept with discus since they prefer cooler water temperature. Use cardinal tetras instead.

[Lady G]

I've never had them, but have always wanted them..as beautiful as they are, I would think they would be worth it:grinyes:

[pinkertd]

As far as tankmates, they are your centerpiece fish so you want smaller tankmates. And they are slow gliders rather than fast, darting swimmers so they don't really appreciate the constant fast movement of some fish like zebra danios for instance. So you can go with rams, almost all of the tetras....rummynose, black neon, cardinals are a couple of the best. There are several variety of cories that can tolerate those temps, a clown pleco, gold nugget pleco, or bristlenose are a few of the plecos you can put in there, otocinclus, various loaches, those are a few of the most common tankmates you see with discus.

[Star_Rider]

the difficulty level rises with young Discus.
many hard core discus keepers prefer bare bottom tanks..this is especially true with young discus.

they need a steady diet of high protein to get them big.

a bare bottom tank is easier to care for discus in this instance. easier to keep clean, remove uneaten foods and do water changes.. young discus benefit with daily water changes( this does not mean you have to do daily..they just benefit from it more)
discus have small stomachs, high metabolism and rather large bodies.
for this reason it is best to feed discus more than you would other fish.
I feed mine at least twice daily often times 3 X.
but all in all..not really that much more difficult to keep than other fish.

[D.J.]

thanks for the info so far ........

i really want to set this tank up as a discus....but im not sure on the funding for them.....my LFS has a 300g tank setup just for them and have from 2.5 all the way to full grown adults in there.....they seem to sell alot of them...always new fish in there week after week....

im figuring about $130 to start out with 3-4 fish and that makes me cringe alil bit!!! LOL

they used to have a special on them for the past year but the sign is gone now so i guess they dont do it anymore

the sale was....but 2 or more 2.5in and get 15%off....2+ 4in 20%off......4+ 6in+ and get 30% off.......

[pinkertd]

What area do you live? Maybe one of us can steer you to a breeder close to home. Some of the more common colors can sell for $18-20 for 2.5-3" fish.

[rowedder]

You will enjoy them if you decide to purchase them, I am a huge fan of discus, just started this year. I spent $50 on each of mine from Mac's Discus in Washington. They are awesome! My pictures show it. Once I return home from my Navy deployment I will post more pics, should be in June. I'm excited to be able to share my discus photo's with you all. Good luck with your choosings.

Rowe

[briggadane]

If you decide to do this, please make sure to get discus that are at least 3". I find the smaller ones are too shy, and dont group as well with larger ones. Try to keep to about the same size fish, but you can certainly mix your colors(as long as you are not setting up to breed). Keep in mind you can order groups of discus from some breeders and at a certain number they will give free shipping. It also helps with quarantine if you get them all at the same time and from the same supplier.
Clean tank and correct tank mates are the key. The people here are right on the money with advise they give, as long as you are willing to follow it. If you read the responses to your post, everyone has pretty much said the same thing. You know your on the right track.

[The Zigman]

I just got my first 3.
When I built up my 125, I did so with the discus in mind, It is plumbed into the house drain, and there is a 100 GPD RO system in the basement with a 65 gal heated storage tank, and a booster pump. doing a water change is a snap. and I can (in theory) do a 100% change every day (I mix R/O and Tap together to get a PH around 7.6)
To me they should be easy to care for, but I implemented some intense planning to get eliminate alot of the daily maintenance hassles..

I acclimated my 3 new discus, and within a few hours they were out and exploring the tank. they started eating right away.

They are a blast to watch, I have a 6" common pleco in the tank, and I dint think the discus have ever seen one before, they seem to be intrigued by him... they follow him all around the tank, just looking at him as if to say " what is that thing?"