View Full Version : Much Better Pics of Macs discus
Here are some better pics for all to enjoy!
HERE ARE SOME FROM MY MAIN TANK
arpanlib
01-11-2003, 12:48 PM
hi,
nice looking fish and tank. specially the white discus.
arpanlib
Glad you are happy with your fish. If you want an honest critique, I would be happy to tell you what I see in these fish but only if you really want me to.
thats how you learn, go ahead...please
KC
chirohorn
01-12-2003, 02:38 AM
I honestly love the plants that you've got in the tank. Except for the java ferns & a couple of other hardier varieties, mine are withering away.
Hi KC,
Am glad Your Willing to learn about Quality:thumbsup:
Also Am happy that Wolf is willing to teach You! 8) Many here are only being nice. But We like it that way ;)
THANKS Guy's
Cary Gld!
mench
01-12-2003, 11:37 AM
I have always be a believer in....if you are happy with your fish,it doesn't matter what others say about them......If you are into breeding for resale or into shows,then go for the best...I know everyone wants the highest quality that they can get,but since we don't live in a perfect world that isn't going to happen all the time...we WILL get runts,some that are not quite as round as we would like but what the heck,as long as they are healthy and we like them,life is good.
I know if we posted pics of ourselfs and said go ahead and tell me what ya think,we might not like what we hear...that is except for Cary and myself of course 8) ;D ;D cuz we both are fashion statements and perfect male specimens!!!!!!!
Don't get me wrong,learning about how to pick quality fish is something that all fish keepers should be able to do,but unless you purchase your fish at a size,maybe 4 to 5 ", to see what they will look like full grown...you are still taking a chance you will get a stunted fish or two.
This is just my 2 cents,and may not even be worth that...
Mench
darcy
01-12-2003, 11:54 AM
Well said Mench!!!!!
The only thing I have to disagree on is the perfect male specimens!!!!!! I'd cull you both in 5 seconds flat!!!!! J/K!!!
I had to say that I couldn't help myself!!! ;D ;D ;D
darcy
April
01-12-2003, 01:23 PM
LOL Mench.(add psychadelic emotican) you just think your hansome with those fancy shirts that match every discus in your tank. pschadelic....man....... 8)
then theres cary :hat: who posts pics and forgot to put his shirt on at all.... ;D
but yeah..ok....sure... two perfect specimens. just razzing you..of course you both are. ::)
Well I do believe this thread just got hijacked by the perfect male specimen. lol :)
Someone tell me what is wrong with these fish. The color I think is good for being that young but if I'm wrong tell me. I know they are not Cary Quality but that does not tell me what I need to know in the future. Others may learn from this as well, I'm sure not all members can spot what is wrong with these fish. It's learning time and school is in, so teach oh great ones!
KC
PS. I will still be very happy with the fish I have so don't worry about me ;)
Don_Lee
01-12-2003, 01:50 PM
KC,
Some of the fish look a little "football" shaped. However, you do have some fish that look fairly round to compare them to. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder ultimately, but I think it is good you are trying to learn about quality. I am still learning that myself to be honest, hopefully some of our more knowledgeable members will comment further.
Regardless, glad to see you are here and posting. Thanks for being so open, and sharing your new fish with us!
Don ;D
Carol_Roberts
01-12-2003, 01:53 PM
In discus competitions the judges look for more than just color and pattern. First they look for very large discus. It isn't easy to grow out a baby discus to 7 or 8 inches. Conditions have to be just right from hatching to maturity.
Judges look for a round body shape, where the fish is a s tall as it is long. This is also hard to attain. First you have to start with top quality stock and then pick the best of the fry to grow out.
Some folks are trying to breed that perfect discus and have the rest of the batch to sell to other hobbiests. Other folks are just trying to produce as many discus as they can by breeding or importing because thats how they make their living and some folks are a combination of the two. They have some nice discus and lots of "puppy mill" discus.
If you saw a German Shephard on the street and another at a dog show would you be able to tell me why one was better quality than the other. Even if the dog show judge pointed out the differences to you, would you be able to "see" them - Probably not. It takes a while to develop your "eye". Look at lots of pictures. Look for round body shape, nice fins, small eyes and little or no peppering on pigeon bloods.
Carol :heart1:
Wow!
Kc My Hat is off to You!
Cary Gld!
Willie
01-12-2003, 02:02 PM
KC;
I'd agree with Don that some of these fish can be much rounder. A few of them, like the one marked "Main_tank_MVC-505S.JPG" have a notch above the mouth which produce a parrot beak type appearance. Also, pigeon blood types like this one should have smaller eyes relative to the body.
Willie
brewmaster15
01-12-2003, 02:29 PM
Hi Cary,
Hi KC,
Am glad Your Willing to learn about Quality
Also Am happy that Wolf is willing to teach You! Many here are only being nice. But We like it that way
THANKS Guy's
Cary Gld!
Hi Cary,
Learning about Quality is a great thing. I was thinking it might be real helpful to everyone if we maybe showcased a breeder/seller each month, and ask everyone who has received fish from that breeder to post pics of their fish there. Then we'd have them all in one spot, And then everyone could learn from it.
Can I volunteer you to be the first breeder?
-al
daninthesand
01-12-2003, 02:30 PM
uh oh ;)
I should mention that the "MAIN TANK" pics are not from MACS the "MVC" series are, the main tank pics were just throw ins. The pigeon blood was a discus I took from a guy who did not take care of his fish. All but two died and he decided to find them a home (the other is stunted). Ironically, this guy worked for a local fish store. Two out of ten survived the swamp he had cultivating in his living room. I have 5 tanks of Discus, a 180 built into the wall of the living room and 4 in the garage. A 75, a 40, a 20 and a 10.... all with Discus. I use plants to add to the effect for the living room tank but the others are glass bottom.
I understand the judging standards but I personally would not like having discus that are all the same in shape. I like diversity and bright color that make the fish unique. Having said that though, I would still like for someone to tell me what stands out in the MACS pics that I am missing. Upon close examination, I have found some peppering, should that not be there? I thought some peppering was common with discus, am I wrong? Attached is are two pics, can we use these as exhibits to point to? The first is from my main tank. A discus I got from MACS two years ago. The other is one of the new ones just in. Let the learning begin!
Ryan Smith
01-12-2003, 02:56 PM
Hi KC,
Thanks for sharing pictures. You have a point when you say you don't like all your fish to be the same shape. This is not a trait in discus that everyone worries about, though most of us do like them round. As a hobbyist who is keeping discus for enjoyment, there's nothing that says your fish have to be round, but keep in mind that when breeders and such critique fish, they will always consider shape.
Also note that eye size is something breeders will look at. Small fish with huge eyes are often stunted because of poor conditions or lack of food, or for whatever reason.
The shape on your Thai Yellow (I think that's what you called it) is a little long based on what I like, but that's my preference. Also, no one has mentioned it (it could be just the picture angle or something) but in the first pic in this thread (MVC-459S.JPG) the fish appears to have a nick in his eye, on the bottom. If I'm not mistaken I think this is a genetic defect, but I could be wrong. There was mention of it several months ago from Cary or someone. That was the thing that stood out the most to me.
I'm glad you were open-minded about having your fish critiqued. I am always a little nervous about posting pictures here because not everyone will always like what they see. You are happy with your fish and that is what counts. :)
Ryan
Should MAC have sent those in first place? KC i know your happy with them but I don't think mac did you right. I thinks it great that you like them but I don't think a quality breeder or broker would have sent those out in the first place. I don't think I would go through MAC myself based on the pics above and I would think a lot of other people would not buy from there based on the pics.
Just my .02
Drew
Liz_Streithorst
01-12-2003, 03:06 PM
Brew, I thionk that's a great idea! Does one breeder even have to be first? I have discus from Cary Joe and Gabe. Set up a place for each and I'll post pics of all my fish. No comments...just the strain of the fish and the pic.
Liz
Thanks for the info. I took a closer look and the eye of this Discus does not have a nick (thank god) I think it was the angle of the pic and the fish was looking down.
DREW.... Why do you say he should not have sent them in the first place? I'm learning that these are not real good discus but I would like to know why they are so... is "inferior" the right word I should be using? We spend a lot of money on these fish and I think that some of us (including me) need to understand how to better critique what we get.
A board like this can assist in doing this. I think a section of sample discus that shows good and bad indicators should be put up for everyone to "SEE" what the differences are.
KC
Group pic of MACS discus
Ok Brew No problem
Sounds Great! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Liz You cannot use Joe's cuz I picked them Out! hee.hee.hee ;D
joyofdiscus
01-12-2003, 04:25 PM
hello,
i was planing to visit mac's discus to purchase some of his discus so i can save the shipping, but now I don't know. i live closed to mac's place and after reading all the posts on this topic, it making me think twice about paying shipping to get high quality discus from Cary or recommended breeders on this broad.
hank
brewmaster15
01-12-2003, 04:47 PM
Thanks Cary,
I knew we could count on you. I'll make the post. This should really be great.
-al
Willie
01-12-2003, 04:55 PM
Hank;
I don't think there's any reason why you shouldn't visit a hatchery and pick out your own fish. In every spawn, there are some fish with higher quality than others.
You'll also get a better understanding of how the fish is kept, how clean the place is, the type of water changes, etc. You're not under any obligation to buy. Alternatively, you may be delighted by something unexpected. Either way, you'll leave learning a ton of stuff.
Willie
Hi KC,
For me there is a known standard to discus that are sold and breeders who are in the business know this. Round and healthy. If I tell a breeder I don't care about shape and I'm open to anything as long as its heathy then everything is good but if a breeder or broker that has been in the business for a long time knownly sends football shaped fish then something is wrong. Its great your happy with your fish but he sent some not all footballish shaped fish. Your fish will make fine pets and I bet they will color up nice. Its just my opinion and not everybody shares my view point. All that matters is that your happy. I'm glad you posted pictures of your fish and people can determine for themselves if they they would purchase from him or not. I bet if you would speak to him I bet he would be more than nice.
Drew
Ryan Smith
01-12-2003, 05:48 PM
Willie brings up a very good point. If you have the opportunity to visit a hatchery, go for it. This allows you to pick out your own fish based on what you like and what you expect. Even if you don't like anything you see at a certain hatchery, you can at least say that you went and saw for yourself.
Buying discus from anyone sight-unseen can be pretty risky. You have to be very specific in what you expect from the fish you are ordering. Some of the breeders who frequent this board are very well known and have made reputations for themselves as being trustworthy sellers, and I would not hesitate to send them money and say, "Send me something nice." However, not every mail order place is like that (this goes for any fish, or any product for that matter).
It should be clear what you expect when you order fish. I know to some it seems like that would be obvious, but maybe not to all. KC, if you are happy then all is well. If this thread has disappointed you in any way, I would contact Mac's and express my feelings and tell them why. Also, it would be nice to have some updated pictures in a couple months. You never really know what a fish will turn out like. :)
Ryan
Liz_Streithorst
01-12-2003, 06:07 PM
Don't be jealous Cary. You just picked out my second best discus. I picked the melon...the most beautiful discus in the world (eesob) ;)
KC,
My hat is off to you for asking questions and showing pictures of your fish from Steve (MACS).
Miles :)
Kc, I was just going to point out what looked to be a defect in the first fishes eye. Also, I see a black spot in the white fishes eye pic 9@10 that looks like it also may be a defect. Some of those fish aren't exactly round but they may grow out of it as they mature. I think the adults you have are very nice fish.
Thanks guys (and gals) I will be calling Steve at MACS on Monday about this matter and express my concern. If round and healthy is the standard then he did not deliver as a seller and I will take him to task on that. The issue was well defined by Drew and I thank him for that. I do still like the fish very much and will keep them but that is another matter all together. I don't judge a fish by shape as a primary concern. Color, peppering and character along with a "nice" shape is my criteria and I thank everyone for respecting that individual preference is truly what matters. I have looked at the Photo Gallery on this board and found a wide variety of color, size, peppering and shape in those discus. It seems that there are many diversified tastes in that section and I hope that these guys did not get discouraged by this string. The bottom line is that they are discus and I would enjoy them even if they were stunted and black. :'(
I want everyone who gave me impute on this issue to know that I took no offence, this issue is an important part of keeping discus. I know that there is much more to judging discus then them being round and healthy but this is a start. This has been a good learning experience and money well spent. Many other guys got a lot out of this post and we now have a new section called Educational Series which may not have come to be without this group of folks and by discus. I can tell you that it is much easier to define a good cigar then it is to define a nice discus and for now I will sit back and light up a good Hemmingway Classic and enjoy my discus. ;D I hope that others will tell me how they judge their discus in terms of color, size, peppering and so on as I'm am still listing...and watching. :D
Your fellow discus lover ... KC (from Tampa) 8)
KC, It is not my intention to cause any undue durress. Many of the pictures are hard to decipher due to possibly focusing or light. Here are my observations:
MVC 459 big eye--anal fin starts too far back--caudal appears to have environmental damage previously done. Dorsal -irregularly shaped bad body shape
460 large eye
462 Large eyes--looks like the onset of popeye?
471 large eyes--bad shape
473 too skinny---long caudal fin ( runted )
490 pointy nose--possible short gill plate on white fish
strange coloration on reddish fish looks unnatural according to my estimate on size.
491 same fish as in 490???
The one's I had not commented on, I could not see very well. I hope this critique is helpful to you and in no way was meant viciously. Joe
Thanks Joe, that is exactly what I wanted. Now I can express my concerns to the breeder and know for next time I buy.
thanks, KC
vBulletin® v3.6.10, Copyright ©2000-2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.