Why is six the magic number....

[Lilly]

I recently,six weeks ago, purchased my first discus after coming across six adults of various strains at my LFS. I bought a checkerboard pigeon blood and the following weekend I purchased another one of its tank mates a snakeskin turquoise. They live in a 65g that has pool sand substrate and driftwood. The tank is well established and stocked with nine Candy Cane tetras and six Bolivian rams. The discus settled in and began to eat the first day they were introduced to the tank. I vac and change 35% of the tank water every day. These fish seem very happy and healthy. I feed three meals a day which consist of high quality flakes , discus pellets and either frozen blood worms or mysis shrimp. They eat each meal with gusto;)

Is the six discus rule because they need their own kind OR company to do well?

I don't understand because mine appear to be thriving:)

thank you...love the site:)

Lilly

[Larry Bugg]

Yes it is indeed because they are a social fish and do better in groups but even more than that they are cichlids and can have a problem with aggression in numbers less than 6 or more. They can still have problems with 6 but the odds are better at being less aggressive. Your two may do fine for a while but you are taking a chance that at some point they will fight.

[Bill63SG]

Unless you happened to get a male and a female and they like each other.dosent mean they wont still fight down the road.

[OC Discus]

Six is more like the "minimum" number than the magic number. 55 gallon is considered the minimum tank size for a group of discus, and six adults is considered the maximum number for a 55 gallon. 75 Gallon with 8 might actually be a better setup for spreading out common aggression.

[Lilly]

thank you everyone for the quick response...the PB is the dominant of the 2....it will chase the other from time to time, but I would not call it fighting . I do have sight line breaks so they can each get plenty to eat. I have been all over the sight absorbing the copious amount of information:) Love this site!

[Skip]

the 14 i had in my 75g.. were living large and happy.. :)

[discuspaul]

thank you everyone for the quick response...the PB is the dominant of the 2....it will chase the other from time to time, but I would not call it fighting . I do have sight line breaks so they can each get plenty to eat. I have been all over the sight absorbing the copious amount of information:) Love this site!

That gentle chasing will likely worsen over time, to the point when the chased discus becomes quite stressed, it may stop eating (or be prevented from eating by the dominant one), and then become readily susceptible to health issues. Chances are quite high that this will in fact occur.

[jim LI]

As a beginner myself, I lost 2 due to aggression. I now have 7 in a 72 gallon tank. They have gotten the pecking order settled now.

[Lilly]

Even though these fish lived together before I bought them? I will keep an eye on things and hopefully I bought the 2 that are the exception;)

Can I ask what everyone thinks about the tank mates? And what type of filtration is everyone using?

thanks again!

[Larry Bugg]

Even though these fish lived together before I bought them?

They lived for a short period of time together in a lfs correct? And they were in the tank with other discus right?

[discuspaul]

The Tetras and the Rams are acceptable tank-mates for discus.
The only slight hitch is that if you get at least 3 more discus (which you should), making 5 as a minimum acceptable group number for compatibility purposes, the bio-load in your 65 gal might just be pushing the envelope with the 6 Rams. Hopefully, large, frequent wcs can mitigate that.

[Lilly]

They lived for a short period of time together in a lfs correct? And they were in the tank with other discus right?

Yes they lived together, with another owner ,who traded them into the LFS. I think there were 6 or 7 of them.

[Lilly]

The Tetras and the Rams are acceptable tank-mates for discus.
The only slight hitch is that if you get at least 3 more discus (which you should), making 5 as a minimum acceptable group number for compatibility purposes, the bio-load in your 65 gal might just be pushing the envelope with the 6 Rams. Hopefully, large, frequent wcs can mitigate that.

Thank you... I have good news...I have Four 4" on the way :D . Be here on the 26th before 10:30 am! I will be re-homing all the tetras and maybe the rams? I have to see if the wcs keep the numbers good:)

[discuspaul]

6 good-sized discus along with 6 bolivian rams may still be pushing the stocking limit for a 65 gal. You may need to consider re-homing 4 of the rams.

[Lilly]

6 good-sized discus along with 6 bolivian rams may still be pushing the stocking limit for a 65 gal. You may need to consider re-homing 4 of the rams.

What would precipitate re homing? If the nitrates stay low...under 5ppm....won't it be okay to keep them?

[discuspaul]

I's not just a question of keeping the nitrates under 5 ppm.
It's never a good idea to overstock a discus tank - 6 adult or near adult discus need a good amount of tank room, and also having 6 Rams in with them in a 65 gal can cause you some problems maintaining good water quality and conditions - along with potential aggression issues between the 2 species given the lack of space. The rams can grow quite large and might tend to cause stress for the discus in competing for food, for example.
And should the Rams pair off for spawning, then you could have even greater aggression issues.
It's simply too many large-sized fish in a given sized tank. An invitation for trouble.

[Lilly]

Thank you Paul....going to look for a stand for my 36g and move the Bolivians and Tetras into that.