Its been a long time since I put up a thread here so I thought I would jot down some things that I have been thinking. Some of you may have noticed I had been absent for a a few months. These have been trying times for me with several very sick family members that I am caregiver for. I needed to step back the forum and other things to deal with this and come to terms with my new reality. In doing so I have had to also look at my use of time and my role in the hobby, and think about things hard. Still working on all that stuff, and still thinking so no resolution there yet...but ah thats life I guess.
I have recently tried to take up some of my other things like the forum again and take my mind off things. While I was away I must have reset things because coming back made me see alot of things here that I was probably so used to I no longer thought about them. I started writing things down.. little notes to myself of things that I should post, suggestions, experiences. So here they are for your benefit or perhaps disagreement. They are my views and experiences..my thoughts and nothing more.
1) People really do need to quarantine and should have a hospitol tank if they want to be in the aquarium hobby. We spend hundreds to thousands on our fish, filtration, food, electricity, water and time...and skimp on what allows us to properly keep our new and existing fish safe. Do not skip it, do not trust the seller to do it for you, do not do it for some fish like your discus but not for non-discus in the tank (many pathogens are not species specific). YOu will be happy if you follow this advice. If you don't you, well, thats going to be one of those regrets,
2) Why must people make it so difficult? Yes there are many ways to successfully keep discus...at the basis though you just need decent filtration, good water quality( most easily achieved through water changes), good food, good healthy quarantined stock, appropriate temperature and some lighting. Put these together and Discus are not hard to keep and not hard to breed. If you want to spend thousands on various high tech lighting, filtration etc thats all well and good but you don't need it... you want it. Potential newcomers to the discus Hobby, take this to heart. Start with the basics, limit the parameters and build from there.
3) Why is it that some keepers preach one thing but do another? Probably because we are humans and make mistakes , and have short term memories. When you are reading posted advice on the forum, there is a neat feature that allows you to read the back posts of member. Just view their profile and read the back posts. Use it.You can get a good feel if someone is legit or full of it. I might add that though this function is one of the forums great aspects, it is mostly lacking on Facebook and other social media, so take what you read there with a large grain of salt,
4) If you see someone posting pictures of healthy fish, tanks of fry, spawn after spawn, sharing videos, and sharing what they do to achieve it odds are they know what they are doing and you should probably take notes. The proof is really in the pudding.. if a member talks about the recipe for the pudding but doesn't make it, find another recipe.
5) Take it slow. Get your fish all at once where you can...same seller , same time...Resist the urge to go on a buying spree from several sellers when you get the bug. Discus from multiple sources more often than not have issues when mixed. Quarantine.Quarantine, Q................................................. ........................
6) You aren't going to make money selling discus unless you really stink as an accountant and forget to take everything into account...The food, water, electricity, time all adds up. Most forget to consider the time aspect and time truly is money. I have seen so many sellers come and go, and very few make it more than a few years. Its hard work and customer loyalty is often as short lived as the list of new strains you carry. Even among hobbyists, if you spend some time thinking the costs...you might take up another hobby. Do it for the love and enjoyment of the fish.. As a recovering Discus addict that has fallen back on his old ways, I can attest to the costs everytime I get my electric bill!
7) Foods.. Discus are picky eaters at times, Whats the best food? Ask 10 people and they will give you multiple answers ..Live Blackworms, freeze dried blackworms, Homemade Beefheart or seafood mix, Turkey Breast, salmon, Hikari Blood worms, tetra color bits, etc.. We have so many choices...which is best, which to use? We all have our favourites that we think is the best because our fish seem to really like them or they are economical or clean foods. Most all probably work ok to some degree. If you ask me, Of course I am going to say the Freeze Dried Australian Blackworms I sell and personally use... Thats a no brainer.:):):):):), shameless I know.:evilgrin: But seriously how can a hobbyist know? Start by reading the label and comparing. If you can't pronounce the ingredients look them up. Look for good sources of protein and an a decent amount of fat.. Take some time understanding basic nutrition... Thats alot of work I know. Today we want it answered.. Alexa.. "whats the best discus food?" Alexa answers..."Freeze Dried Australian Blackworms,DUH!" okay so she probably won't have the answer unless she keeps discus or Jeff Bezos does. Heres a short cut to your answer, Don't just ask what food to feed, look at the results achieved feeding it.. Does this person have healthy fish? are they growing well? Do they Breed and fertilize eggs well? If so then odds are what they are feeding is probably adequate...
Think about that "proof is in the Pudding" thing. oh and by the way.. "Which is Better ?" is a pointless question by itself. It depends on your goals and your particular situation and economics.
8) Peoples fingers are undergoing evolution at a rapid pace and no longer are capable of typing and writing responses of any length. This has been linked to a shortening of attention span, and decrease in cognitive neuromotor skills. Its being studied by scientists at the NIH.. seriously, Im not joking.:alien::alien: Its thought its caused by either preservatives in the food we eat, Video games, Amazon, Ebay, and Facebook. Conspiracy theorists also believe its part of a martian attack plan to subjugate humanity. Though theres compelling evidence for that, my Guess is we are getting a tad lazy and over stimulated by all the external stimuli in our lives.,,In any case.. People still read here , so at least the damage to humanity hasn't gone that far.
I have more to add to this list, but its a start... Please do not be offended it by it.. its hardly worth it in the big scheme of things , however, I am sure there are some good nuggets of advice buried in this post somewhere.
Al
