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Thread: All Discus Stopped Eating...

  1. #16
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by Iminit View Post
    Ok the discus look great in those pictures. But those are before pics. Can we see what they look like now? Who is your supplier? These 3 new discus may have entered your tank with something and are now causing a cross contamination. Hans the main supplier has been having problems and Stendker themselves have closed shop.
    How do you not know these are current photos lol? They are current as of the 8th and their appearance has not changed. I have heard he has closed shop. My supplier is Discus Paradise in Canada. He has been very helpful with everything. I do not believe the three fish I received after the fact had anything wrong with them and had a good quarantine time. They all ate fine for 2 months then all stopped at the exact same time. Not much has changed other than what I have all ready described above... I do think the water is the main concern but maybe somehow they all got sick at the same time. But they are not showing any signs of sickness other than the recently noticed translucent poops which may be something internal? Just weird for this to hit them all at the exact time, have none of them changing color or personality, and have normal engagement throughout the tank with each other...

  2. #17
    Homesteader jwcarlson's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Ethan, I don't think Tom was trying to put words in your mouth or anything. Some of the earlier posts make it a bit difficult to know if the photos were current or like the day you got them.

    Hans isn't out of business, but he has moved shop (twice)... the first move was to a building that was pretty much falling down. He is getting discus from a new supplier (DiscusX) and no longer sells Stendker, but not much of anyone is going to be selling Stendker here shortly.

    I'm 10 months into a Stendker grow out. The good news is your supplier is on the Stendker website, so you should be pretty safe in knowing you actually got the fish you think you did. I'm a bit concerned that there's going to be some shady stuff going on once Stendker kind of slips away... But that isn't likely at all to be an issue here.

    I don't know if you've done this already or not, but I think I would make sure to do a course of levamisole and also a course of metro. I cannot tell you which would be best to do first. But if you're already at 93*F, a 12 day course of metro probably isn't a bad idea. I never had all my fish stop eating, but I had a couple of them that would go back and forth for awhile and I wasn't experienced enough with discus to know what was happening. It was tricky because they were mouthing food, but always spitting it out. I am 99% positive that one of the fish I lost was to hexamita (or complications from). Unfortunately it didn't make the 12 day treatment. Got to day 10 and died. The other with the same symptoms (not eating) started eating and has nearly caught up to fish he was at least 1.5" smaller than. The levamisole - I currently have one that wasn't eating, isolated him and found worm eggs in his white poop. I did three 24 hour treatments on day 1, 5, and 13 to the whole tank (after adding him back in). Wiping sides and bottom after each treatment and doing my normal 90% nightly water changes. This fish seems to be in the process of recovering.

    What I'm getting at is, I wish I would have been a bit more strict in my adherence to the QT procedures (outlined in Al's QT post)... I let a couple of people kind of talk me out of it on the facebook group and I sent my fish into a spiral and lost one using one of the bacteria starter things (Fritzyme). However, I also feel that that QT procedure could use a refresh to include a course of metro as one of the suggested things. If/when I get more discus to grow out, I will absolutely be doing 93*/metro for 12 days and then after a rest... three rounds of levamisole. The only wrinkle would be if I got them from a smaller breeder that I trusted. I just think there's a bigger chance of having a perfect storm of stress/parasites/disease when you're talking about a bigger operation/importer. The fish I bought were shipped from Germany to Maryland. I have no idea what that process looks like, but it's certainly got to be stressful, which can give hex a foothold. Compare that to someone who is pulling fish from the only tank they've really ever lived in on the morning they're shipping them. That's not to say that there aren't great importers and suppliers, because there absolutely are... and I'm extremely happy with Hans' fish in my case.

    There's analogs to the honey bee keeping world that I won't get to far into it here.

    The great news is your fish still look good and should have a great chance at bouncing right back once you get the issue figured out and resolved.
    Last edited by jwcarlson; 12-14-2022 at 11:27 PM.

  3. #18
    Administrator jeep's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by EthanG View Post
    I think I may of found a supplier. I am in Canada
    Yes, Canada Aqua Farm (or something like that) sells them.

  4. #19
    Silver Member Iminit's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Ok the reason I brought this up was in post #5 you say you’ve removed the background and mat. In the pics they’re all still showing. So I was just asking for new pics to see what they look like now. Because it could be a cross contamination. Being a lps they more them likely sell other discus. These discus or any other fish in the store could have had something that is now being transferred to the old discus.

  5. #20
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by Iminit View Post
    Ok the reason I brought this up was in post #5 you say you’ve removed the background and mat. In the pics they’re all still showing. So I was just asking for new pics to see what they look like now. Because it could be a cross contamination. Being a lps they more them likely sell other discus. These discus or any other fish in the store could have had something that is now being transferred to the old discus.
    Sorry, yes I understand the confusion now. I removed that stuff that night, right after I took the photos. Thank you for your suggestion.

  6. #21
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by jwcarlson View Post
    Ethan, I don't think Tom was trying to put words in your mouth or anything. Some of the earlier posts make it a bit difficult to know if the photos were current or like the day you got them.

    Hans isn't out of business, but he has moved shop (twice)... the first move was to a building that was pretty much falling down. He is getting discus from a new supplier (DiscusX) and no longer sells Stendker, but not much of anyone is going to be selling Stendker here shortly.

    I'm 10 months into a Stendker grow out. The good news is your supplier is on the Stendker website, so you should be pretty safe in knowing you actually got the fish you think you did. I'm a bit concerned that there's going to be some shady stuff going on once Stendker kind of slips away... But that isn't likely at all to be an issue here.

    I don't know if you've done this already or not, but I think I would make sure to do a course of levamisole and also a course of metro. I cannot tell you which would be best to do first. But if you're already at 93*F, a 12 day course of metro probably isn't a bad idea. I never had all my fish stop eating, but I had a couple of them that would go back and forth for awhile and I wasn't experienced enough with discus to know what was happening. It was tricky because they were mouthing food, but always spitting it out. I am 99% positive that one of the fish I lost was to hexamita (or complications from). Unfortunately it didn't make the 12 day treatment. Got to day 10 and died. The other with the same symptoms (not eating) started eating and has nearly caught up to fish he was at least 1.5" smaller than. The levamisole - I currently have one that wasn't eating, isolated him and found worm eggs in his white poop. I did three 24 hour treatments on day 1, 5, and 13 to the whole tank (after adding him back in). Wiping sides and bottom after each treatment and doing my normal 90% nightly water changes. This fish seems to be in the process of recovering.

    What I'm getting at is, I wish I would have been a bit more strict in my adherence to the QT procedures (outlined in Al's QT post)... I let a couple of people kind of talk me out of it on the facebook group and I sent my fish into a spiral and lost one using one of the bacteria starter things (Fritzyme). However, I also feel that that QT procedure could use a refresh to include a course of metro as one of the suggested things. If/when I get more discus to grow out, I will absolutely be doing 93*/metro for 12 days and then after a rest... three rounds of levamisole. The only wrinkle would be if I got them from a smaller breeder that I trusted. I just think there's a bigger chance of having a perfect storm of stress/parasites/disease when you're talking about a bigger operation/importer. The fish I bought were shipped from Germany to Maryland. I have no idea what that process looks like, but it's certainly got to be stressful, which can give hex a foothold. Compare that to someone who is pulling fish from the only tank they've really ever lived in on the morning they're shipping them. That's not to say that there aren't great importers and suppliers, because there absolutely are... and I'm extremely happy with Hans' fish in my case.

    There's analogs to the honey bee keeping world that I won't get to far into it here.

    The great news is your fish still look good and should have a great chance at bouncing right back once you get the issue figured out and resolved.
    Ok thank you for your experience you have shared. I have some metro so I will try running a course of that. Also do you have a suggested place to purchase levamisole as a backup?

  7. #22
    Registered Member seanyuki's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    For Levamisole contact Dena @ Everything Aquatics

    https://everythingaquatic.net/product-category/meds/
    Grasshopper
    Francis

  8. #23
    Silver Member Iminit's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Well your discus look great! They may be a little off because of the removing of the background and the red enhancer you added to the beef heart but not sick. It’s tough now to guess. I like the raise the temp and add salt before you start medicating. It sounds like it not something that’s been added to the tank but something in them is affecting them. May have been brought on by stress. The salt and heat may be all that’s needed.

  9. #24
    Homesteader jwcarlson's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    I did the heat and salt routine on mine and they would start to improve and then as soon as I started dropping the temp from 93 they would revert back to being sick. Not saying that will be the case here, but I did like three rounds of heat and salt before medication. Should have probably just done one.

  10. #25
    Administrator jeep's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by jwcarlson View Post
    I did the heat and salt routine on mine and they would start to improve and then as soon as I started dropping the temp from 93 they would revert back to being sick. Not saying that will be the case here, but I did like three rounds of heat and salt before medication. Should have probably just done one.
    True. If the heat and salt don't work after at 2 treatments, it's time to look for another cause. Hopefully, you have discovered yours...

  11. #26
    Registered Member seanyuki's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Heat treatment by Hans

    Just wanted to share my experiences using heat treatment to deal with internal issues for discus.

    I've always had at least one picky eater in my tank that eventually stops eating and dies over a period of several months. Last year, one of wilds I got from Han earlier that spring started to lose its appetite and eventually stopped eating. He went on almost two months without eating. I tried metro and levamisole treatment, but no improvement. I talked to Hans and he recommended heat treatment for the fish.

    Slowly bring up the temp to at least 96 to 98, leave the fish in the tank for 5 days, bring the temp down slowly, and put it back in the main tank. I tried this method on the sick fish and it regained it's appetite and now eating like it never did. It's been over six months since the treatment, and he is doing very well.

    Since then, I tried the same method on three more fish. I lost one fish because I only left the fish in the heated tank for barely three days. Hans told me the fish must be in the tank for at least four days and really five days to be safe. When fish is in the heated tank, the fish gets weaker, and when you stop the heat treatment and parasites/worms are not completed dead, they will attack the fish in weakened state and fish could suffer from it. Two other fish have completely recovered and eating really well. Now, I don't even bother with the medication when I am dealing with issues that appear to be internal parasites/worms.

    If you have treated your fish with medication and didn't work, might as well try the heat treatment and see how it goes.


    http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...te-Worm-Issues
    Grasshopper
    Francis

  12. #27
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Thank you everyone for your responses. I will try the heat and salt method first before going through a metro treatment. I really appreciate all of the feedback seems like there is a couple different methods that prove effective. Keep you all posted.

  13. #28
    Administrator jeep's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    FYI, metro works best with high heat.

  14. #29
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    Quote Originally Posted by seanyuki View Post
    Heat treatment by Hans

    Just wanted to share my experiences using heat treatment to deal with internal issues for discus.

    I've always had at least one picky eater in my tank that eventually stops eating and dies over a period of several months. Last year, one of wilds I got from Han earlier that spring started to lose its appetite and eventually stopped eating. He went on almost two months without eating. I tried metro and levamisole treatment, but no improvement. I talked to Hans and he recommended heat treatment for the fish.

    Slowly bring up the temp to at least 96 to 98, leave the fish in the tank for 5 days, bring the temp down slowly, and put it back in the main tank. I tried this method on the sick fish and it regained it's appetite and now eating like it never did. It's been over six months since the treatment, and he is doing very well.

    Since then, I tried the same method on three more fish. I lost one fish because I only left the fish in the heated tank for barely three days. Hans told me the fish must be in the tank for at least four days and really five days to be safe. When fish is in the heated tank, the fish gets weaker, and when you stop the heat treatment and parasites/worms are not completed dead, they will attack the fish in weakened state and fish could suffer from it. Two other fish have completely recovered and eating really well. Now, I don't even bother with the medication when I am dealing with issues that appear to be internal parasites/worms.

    If you have treated your fish with medication and didn't work, might as well try the heat treatment and see how it goes.


    http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...te-Worm-Issues
    Just curious how you managed to get the temperature up that high. I have got them at 92/93 but that's my heaters max.

    Also I have noticed them starting to pick at the food a little more. Passing more clear/white waste. Not super stringy but is longer than normal.

  15. #30
    Registered Member seanyuki's Avatar
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    Default Re: All Discus Stopped Eating...

    There are some heaters with thermostat that go above 95 Fahrenheit.

    Controller Specifications

    Voltage: 100-120V
    Range: 0-99°F
    Accuracy: ±2°F
    Max Load: 800 Watts
    Overload Fuse: 10A
    Memory: Yes


    https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/800w-...fault_products
    Grasshopper
    Francis

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