So , THinking of another Discus Challenge here at Simply...PLEASE READ!!

Hi all,
Those that have been here awhile will remember the several discus challenges we have had here over the years...When we started doing them I had envisioned a yearly thing, but that was not practical and a bit costly...So its been awhile since we have had one..

I'm kicking around an idea for one thats a bit different than we have had in the past.. In the past we gave out a group of fish in the 2" size range and followed these fish for a year to see who could raise the biggest and best . These fish were donated in the first contest from my own Hobby raised stock, and the second contest they came from Kenny and Forrest's stock.. These contests worked great but to do them well we need about 75-100 fish. That gives us enough for 8-10 hobbyists. Its a big commitment on the part of the suppliers...and then we have to ship the fish which makes it costly. The nice thing is all the stock comes from one place and can be compared to each other easier.

So here is what I am thinking....A Hobby breeder contest where in the breeder sets aside 20 fry to raise out... and we follow these for the year. WE could open it to all Hobbyists breeders around the world that way..... I suppose we could also include hobbyists in the local vicinity of the breeder that can get some of these fry to raise. There would be no imported fish though. ..just tank bred locallly... People would register to participate...and I would assign them a forum sub-board where they would give us updates on the fish development, foods being fed etc. Since we don't have the same starting point in size as we did in the first two contests...I would propose that we have a window of registration of 2 months... June and July... The fish would have to go free swimming in that window, documented by photos... we would then know the exact age of the fish and can follow that fish out for a full year from the registration date.

Breeding Discus is often pretty easy, the pair does the work... but to actually raise a group out for a year...that is a challenge and commitment... I think alot of people here could benefit by watching a contest like this, and I think it would also give people a clear cut picture of what works best in raising discus... often the topic of great disputes here.

So... my next question is, who here would be interested in a contest such as this? I don't have all the details worked out, but I may have a small registration fee for participating and would try to provide trophies, awards and prizes as we have done in the past.

All thoughts are welcome...This is the developmental stage and I really would like everyone's input.

What I really like about this idea is that it would literally be a world wide event... since we aren't shipping fish there are no constraints on who can enter.


thanks,
al

man Al, I would love to participate but the likeihood of getting a wild spawn in the June/July timeframe is small :(

I have set my breeding tanks to tap with high TDS they continue to spawn but only a few eggs hatch.. I have been doing this until I return from my vacation at the end of June.. SO with some luck I will get some free swimmers in July.. That means.. I am interested.

This sounds like a great idea and lots of fun to maybe participate in or even just follow!


---
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?zmmxye
-Brandon

I am interested for contest for raising discus.

Al

Interesting idea and I would be interested in participating. I am not sure how it would work out with different strains so you may need to do sub-categories.

I would probably participate with PE and or PB. If mine doesn't want to breed, I'll just call Hans up for a pair. LOL

Van

I like the idea but I don't do any breeding so I guess I can't join in :(

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by ZX10R

I like the idea but I don't do any breeding so I guess I can't join in :(

---

+3

I think it is a great idea Al and would certainly consider it. I have a concern though. Raising 20 fry to adult is really a huge committment. Instead of having them all in one tank like the first contest this would require several tanks to house 20 sub adult/ adults. If you are considering allowing others that live close to a local breeder to join the contest then purchasing 20 could be pretty expensive or if the breeder donated then 20 really limits the number of people the breeder could donate to. Is there a reason for 20? Would this be the final number to be judged or could we start with 15 to 20 with the idea to end up with 6 to be judged? Since we would be starting with fry there would certainly need to be some culling along the way. At what point would a non breeder need to procure the discus? 2 weeks free swimming, 1 month, 2 months?

All that said, I am working on fairly new pairs so it would be hit or miss as to whether or not I have a spawn in June/July, but definitely interested.

I would be willing to give it a try provided I could find some qualifying fry in the SE Wisconsin/Northern IL region to work on.

Looks like it would be a lot of fun!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bugman

I think it is a great idea Al and would certainly consider it. I have a concern though. Raising 20 fry to adult is really a huge committment. Instead of having them all in one tank like the first contest this would require several tanks to house 20 sub adult/ adults. If you are considering allowing others that live close to a local breeder to join the contest then purchasing 20 could be pretty expensive or if the breeder donated then 20 really limits the number of people the breeder could donate to. Is there a reason for 20? Would this be the final number to be judged or could we start with 15 to 20 with the idea to end up with 6 to be judged? Since we would be starting with fry there would certainly need to be some culling along the way. At what point would a non breeder need to procure the discus? 2 weeks free swimming, 1 month, 2 months?

All that said, I am working on fairly new pairs so it would be hit or miss as to whether or not I have a spawn in June/July, but definitely interested.

---

Hi Larry,
Yes thats it exactly...I just threw out the number of 20 figuring there would be culling and mishaps along the way... plus, 20 is a good number of fry to start out with in maybe a 30 gal tank...then move on to a 55 as they get bigger and start culling down any runts and slow growers...Ideally I think by 2" a participant should have a group of 6-8 juvies to focus on raising to adults.

Thanks for the feedback and questions everyone....keep them coming.

I would add that the members here that want to participate but are not breeding ...find a breeder near you....rope them into this. Alls you need is to document the pair and frys age... Since the fry would not be shipped, if you are careful you should be able to transport a group of 20-30 dime size fry (several weeks old) without too much problem....I've had them shipped to me at that size with few problems...so a short travel should be okay.

-al

ps..
Van's idea is a great one.. Get a pair from Hans....problem solved!:D

oh yeah.. I just threw out the months of June and July....I am not fixed on this period, we could easily make it 3 months as well... JUne July and August... Heck we could make it a 6 month window... the only thing there is , the longer the enrollment...The greater amount of time we will have to wait to judge the fish as they will all need to be a year old.. but hey... theres no rush...I'd rather have many many participants in this...It could easily be a major, major discus project!:D

This sounds very interesting. I don't breed fish but it's kind of a motivation to maybe start trying. I don't have any pairs and have just started with discus, getting my 6 from Kenny last month. So maybe not participate this time, but would be very interested in watching it all unfold. I know I'd get some valuable information if I ever did get a breeding pair.

I don't know any breeders closer to me or I would opt to try for the 20 fry. Any breeders close to Minneapolis?

So would you guys be game to allowing me to start this like now. The Tefe pair have a set of wigglers now which should go free swimming today or tomorrow. If they successfully attach could this spawn be part of this contest? Wouldn't it be cool to track a spawn of F1 Tefe from wild parents :)

I do have a short video of this spawn.

I may be in on the RT/SS end, but I'm off for six weeks in that window, so there wouldn't be anyone to tend the fry..I'll see what gives..still interested...

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Teshi

Any breeders close to Minneapolis?

---

Ha My favorite city. Even though I live in Europe now for 2 yrs I still consider Mpls My home.