Discus questions

C

ccorrow

AC Members
Mar 28, 2005
11
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0
Maryland
Okay... I'm new to this but wanted some feedback to help me along w/ making my Discus happy... along w/ the rest of the tank.
55 gal, 84° temp, Ph 6.8
One 2" Beautiful Yellow and One 2.5" Blue Snakeskin

I recently had a 3.5" Blue Snakeskin and the 2.5" but the 3.5" was so aggressive I lost several fish and she bullied the other Discus. I returned her and got the beautiful yellow one. 3 days later... I now find that the Blue Discus isn't eating like he use to (if at all), his color has darkened on the body and he hides more. I was concerned about the darkness of color, but he was slightly darker when purchased a few weeks ago. Could he miss his bully partner? or could this be a sign of a parasite?
 
ccorrow: your parameters appear fine, at least as far as the parameters you list, but discus also require frequent water changes and good filtration to avoid problems. Please give us some details on what you are doing in these two areas.

Having said that, the darkening and lack of appetite in your one discus would imply that there is a problem brewing, so I would definitely do a couple of preventative water changes and rinse the media from your filtration system in a bucket of tank water to remove any organic detritus. Incidentally, it would most likely not be a parasite that would be your problem, but an internal bacterial infection, if that is indeed what is going on here.

What are the other tankmates of your discus, by the way?
 
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Oooo i see it was originally posted in the "Discussion about Aquaria Central" forum and then was moved here... then he thought Spartan's post meant not here when really he meant not in the original location... ahhh!

ccorrow, this is the best place to ask the question. ;)
 
I've heard lots of stories about Discus getting moody and not eating. I'd check your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels. If there's nothing wrong there, you might try tempting him with some of his favorite foods. Shrimp and bloodworms are both good and you might try some live foods too.
 
I think it's generally a mistake to keep small discus like yours in groups of less than 5, and I much prefer groups of 8. It spreads bullying out a lot more, which I suspect is the cause of what you're seeing
 
so you only have 2 Discus.....this could be part of the problem....discus are still cichlids and cichlids can be very aggressive. If you can't add more dicsus(this would be best) maybe add some other target fish...silver dollars? Similar shape but I don't know how they will do at high heats.
 
Harry Tolen: thanks so much for the reply... the other tank mates are:
3 Clown Loaches
2 Chinese algae eaters
3 White tetras
6 Red nosed tetras
10 Rasbora's (sp?)
1 Tequila Sunrise 2" Discus

Water changes 1 x per week appx 20% adding aquarium salt as prescribed, black water extract as prescribed, genesis for chlorine and then a ph adjustment additive because my tap water is 7.6 Ph.

I have been told not to disturb the bottom gravel much, so I just dust the surface during a water change.

I have a fluval 204 that seems to be doing great. I've just recently added a water softener to it per the instructions of the fish store manager. I also noticed that his one eye is now dark... not red anymore... I hope I'm not learning at these beautiful specimens’s expense. What type of antibiotic would you recommend? and can I treat in same tank or do I need to move by himself? Again... thanks so much!
 
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