Okay so we don't have that big of a timeline for owning discus, but a lot has been learned. Also let me start by saying that none of our discus are "show quality" and most of them were purchased at the LFS and a couple of them from a local hobbyist off of craigslist. I know that a lot of members here won't be too happy to hear that, but we love our fish all the same and we think we've done a pretty good job of selecting some healthy specimens.
So about 9 months ago when we moved into our condo, my fiance got the idea of getting a fish tank. She wanted to see some "prrreetty fishies" and after a little bit of research on the internet and some books she decided on Discus. I had never kept Discus in my years of fishkeeping, but I was up to the challenge. I researched a bit online and read some books before picking up a nice budget tank on craigslist. A 55 gallon acrylic tank. We started off with 5 Discus to start: 2 Red Melons, 1 Wild Brown, 1 High Body Blue Diamond, 1 Snakeskin? Please correct me if I am not ID'ng these fish correctly.
Thought these fish were going to die by the end of the week. They were dark, constantly hiding, and did not eat.
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After about a week and a half I finally got all of them feeding on frozen bloodworms. Here they are emerging from their shell.
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This guy did not make it. He ended up with a cloudy eye so I quarantined and treated him in a separate tank. Eventually stopped feeding and died. Too bad because I think he could grown into a nice fish. :(
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Later added this guy to the tank. One of our "nicer" discus.
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Finally acclimated! The gang out in full force waiting to be fed. :D
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One night during dinner my fiance noticed the melons huddled in the corner. Upon closer inspection we noticed eggs!. Woo hoo! We have a pair! They've bred about 10 times since then and the eggs always get eaten. :(
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I was originally going for a low tech plant setup, but that didn't work out too well with the fish growing out and all the water changes. Plants started dying off, so I did away with a few things to create more space.
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On my birthday I made an impulse buy. ;)
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More fish, more tank space! Picked up another craigslist bargain buy. Traded in my 55 and 50 bucks for this 90gal. Needed a lot of work though.
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I need WOOD!
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Picked up a few pieces in the hills. Glad I know where this stuff grows. :)
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Some steel wool did an excellent job of cleaning the pieces.
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Another addition and our biggest discus in the tank. He's a gentle giant.
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Fully furnished and enjoying their new home.
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The lone loach. Don't know what kind he is.
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Up until last week, we thought our melons were lemons lol, until I woke up one morning to see this. Eggs with dark centers, and i do believe I see one wiggler emerging. But the eggs ended up disappearing somehow. Not sure if they got eaten or fell off. Hoping to move these guys into their own tank soon so they can do their thing without any interruptions. Our next chapter in fishkeeping. ;)
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Feeding Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfkrP...ature=youtu.be
Well that's our voyage so far. I'll try to keep SD updated with any changes or additons. Hope you've all enjoyed. Comments and feedback are welcome.
Jason