Started from the Bottom... off to the PENTHOUSE...???!!!

[Kyla]

It sounds like you are in the mode of changing things up a bunch... I'd say the less u change, the better. I'd also recommend not adding more discus because having a bit of buffer between the # of discus and the size of the tank is a good thing. I just passed up a whole slew of new discus a friend is selling (using ALL my Will Power!!). I've technically got room for 7 more in my tank, but my guys finally seem happy and I don't feel like watching them battle new discus for a month. Plus if I skip a day or two for wc, a lighter stock level is more forgiving. It can take weeks for them to settle after a change, so just hang in there.

I can't believe those threadfins! All the ones I've seen for sale are tiny delicate things lol

[Phillydubs]

If one or more of the dominate fish are showing the middle bar and the one directly behind it and a halo then that could be an indicator.
Pat

Pat, one fish does show this at times, always had, I saw it as a more dominant thing...?

[Phillydubs]

It sounds like you are in the mode of changing things up a bunch... I'd say the less u change, the better. I'd also recommend not adding more discus because having a bit of buffer between the # of discus and the size of the tank is a good thing. I just passed up a whole slew of new discus a friend is selling (using ALL my Will Power!!). I've technically got room for 7 more in my tank, but my guys finally seem happy and I don't feel like watching them battle new discus for a month. Plus if I skip a day or two for wc, a lighter stock level is more forgiving. It can take weeks for them to settle after a change, so just hang in there.

I can't believe those threadfins! All the ones I've seen for sale are tiny delicate things lol

Kyla, thank you so much for the words of encouragement and inspiration! You are spot on, I am taking the less is more approach and giving things a chance to settle down because I don't want to throw too much at them and cause more harm then good!

I'm going to give it time and clean water and see where it goes. Right now they all seem happy and eating and just sorting out the order.

Also, your spot on with the water change comment, I used to be that way with my overstocked 55, my life like revolved around water changes. If I missed a day due to work, home kids whatever, I was a mess...

I have so much flexibility now it is freeing and has allowed me to enjoy the hobby more and I needed to remember that part to aide in my decisions.

Thanks again

[Kyla]

Lol I just went a bit further back in your post string and I see your "threadfins" were not the ones I was picturing... http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species...erina-werneri/

I was wondering about that "bass" feeding comparison!!! lol

Anyway, while reading further back I came across your issue with the discus not top-feeding the remainder of their food. Is this still an issue? Cuz my discus were the same way, real slow to finish off floating FDBW. However, this has all changed since I added the eheim auto-feeder. I have set it to drop a tiny bit of loose FDBW into the tank 4x per day, and now ALL the discus are aggressive top feeders (even my 2 shy ones). They seem to have learned to expect it now, and the regularity/consistency of it also seems to have actually increased their food drive when I feed other foods (eg frozen foods or home made foods or even pellets and flakes). I've seen a noticeable improvement in their overall feeding behaviour. Just something to consider if u continue to have issues with top feeding.

[Phillydubs]

Lol I just went a bit further back in your post string and I see your "threadfins" were not the ones I was picturing... http://www.seriouslyfish.com/species...erina-werneri/

I was wondering about that "bass" feeding comparison!!! lol

Anyway, while reading further back I came across your issue with the discus not top-feeding the remainder of their food. Is this still an issue? Cuz my discus were the same way, real slow to finish off floating FDBW. However, this has all changed since I added the eheim auto-feeder. I have set it to drop a tiny bit of loose FDBW into the tank 4x per day, and now ALL the discus are aggressive top feeders (even my 2 shy ones). They seem to have learned to expect it now, and the regularity/consistency of it also seems to have actually increased their food drive when I feed other foods (eg frozen foods or home made foods or even pellets and flakes). I've seen a noticeable improvement in their overall feeding behaviour. Just something to consider if u continue to have issues with top feeding.

Hahahah, yea my threadfins are hecekli acara type... well they used to be mine they are gone now...

They seem to be a bit better about feeding off the top. I also just stick the worms to the glass and not many seem to float as often... Or sometimes the full cube pulls from the wall and then they all grab and chase which can be rather anooying, especially if i try and split a cube. For whatever reason the whole cube sticks to the glass nicely, the half cubes just get pulled off...

[Kyla]

Yah I noticed that too, with the half VS whole cube, whole cubes stick better. Good to hear they are finishing up the food! All that competition for food forced them to step up their game at dinner time

[Phillydubs]

Yea, spreading the food out totally helps out and getting rid of the thread-fin gobllers as well...

I am still seeing the herding so to speak from the 2 bosses vs the other 6...

Call me crazy, but part of me also feels like they know when I am around or in the office and they hang in that corner hoping to see me come in and out of my office or feed them...

Maybe they just heart me so hard they huddle there vying for my love back?

[Kyla]

I'll be under the tank or at the side/back of the tank doing something with cords or organizing supplies etc and when I look up BAM they are all right there, creepily watching!! Kinda like how the dog will follow us from room to room... little pack of puppy discus.

[Phillydubs]

So these guys are a rare sight in my tank, especially to capture a decent pic of them... I catch glimpses and they are out and about during water changes as I dump their port-o-potties out, aka my cichlid stones that are always filled with their gnarly poop, I guess it makes it better and easier they are usually contained to the rocks so it isn't unsightly and makes cleaning it that much easier, I just dump the rocks out into a bucket once a week during a WC...

Anywayyyyyssss... These are my Inspector pleccos' well one of them, I have 3... One looks just like this one, the other is smaller and has these more brownish patches, not sure if that tells sex?

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[farebox]

Hello my friend, I would just leave the tank the way it is for now, no new discus or other fish. I just gone through what you have going on too, I also used Quick Cure, Metro, and dosed two times of an dewormer. After a week of daily WC's and all those meds added, still had two discharing white feces. So yesterday moved the heaters from the sump to the main tank and added a sponge filter. Today all 12 discus are swimming around the whole tank. Something was stressing them out I now assumed. Maybe the temp changes during feeding times while I would turn off the return pump. Keeping these guys keeps you on your fish keeping toes all the time if you make any changes to the tank. I've started to leave things alone, don't change anything. Just wipe down the tank and do my WC's 3x week now. Good luck with the fish, peace out my friend.....

[Phillydubs]

Roland my good pal, always nice to hear from you and thank you for the advice and chiming in with first hand experience, good to hear you had success and they bounced back...!

I need to just remind myself that patience is truly a virtue in this hobby, especially with these fish. My awful luck that the man upstairs didn't bless me with much in the way of the patience department so I am doing my best. I also have to remind myself that these are fish and wild animals and they do things their way and they can't tell time! So no one is saying, ok guys, you have been beefin for a week, knock it off...

Im going to put my faith in time and letting it sort and just closely monitoring their behavior and making sure it stays minimal...

I type this as I watch my alpha thwart off another roamer back to the corner :/ . . . .

I have to remember, this is all new and coming off a lot of change and will just remind myself that and keep the fingers crossed!

[Phillydubs]

This is what these jerks are up to... still bullying and aggressive mostly during food time...

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[Second Hand Pat]

Phil, would you like to see some real aggression?
Pat

[Phillydubs]

I am really trying to resist the urge to add something to deter...

I was thinking a few more branches or something to break things up. My tank is rather open with some low level branches almost like bare little trees. Although I enjoy the look I think maybe a change is needed to help the atmosphere.

I'm also tempted to add something or other to mix things up because I felt like for a while the tank was at its best until the threadfins got bigger and more aggressive. Maybe a lesser aggressive geo? A read head of sorts ? Or maybe some keyhole cichlids ? Open to ideas. I just feel something needs to be done.

Maybe they are just maturing or coming in to their own. The bullying isn't bad it's more of a chase back and a nudge and it's spread between the 6. I just see it becoming more of an issue. The bully's are even doing the screw food we are gonna harass them each take a cube and sit down here and watch you cower. Annnnoooying asf

The colors they are displaying are outrageous they are my best fish if you like red.

I'm going to go back to the als fdbw snow globe method and soak the worms in water loose and broken up and dish it out that way so the worms are all over. Any one have anything working for them tonget the worms into the water column better ? Mine tend to float to the top and they are hesitant to go for them.

[Phillydubs]

Phil, would you like to see some real aggression?
Pat

I don't know if I have the stomach for it tonight pat! Lol ������