Lone discus hiding, won’t eat

[MNGuy]

I have one lone wild discus who hides all of the time and I’m worried it’s not getting enough food. I know discus are group fish. I had a group and unfortunately ended up with one.

For background, here is how I ended up with one discus only: http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...iscus-Now-what

I don’t plan to get more discus anytime soon because it’s now too cold in my area to trust delivery, and if I get more I plan to order domestic wild types vs buying local fish (only morphs available).

I added a school of lemon tetras (13) in hopes they would draw out the lone discus, but it’s not working.

The lone discus is not on a hunger strike—it’ll come out once in a while and chase after scraps, but it’s not getting enough food. Many times it won’t come out as the other fish eat.

What should I do? Should I move it into a 20 high by itself? It’s in a 55 bare bottom tank and hides in the back behind the big sponge filter. Should I take out the sponge filter?

[brewmaster15]

Honestly I would rehome it.. Start fresh with your next batch of discus. The pic you posted didn't look bad and I think with the right tank and care the fish will be a good one for someone.

I would also get in touch with Willie in your area.. He offered help in that thread. He knows the discus scene best out there and incidentally he looks like he may have fry soon.

I'm not sure what you mean by "domestic wild types"? No one I know is breeding wild types in a reliable fashion stateside... even overseas its the exception, not the norm, so theres not alot of offerings.

al

[brewmaster15]

Conversely,

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showth...in-Pickup-Only if not too far, Last I checked he still had some.
al

[MNGuy]

Honestly I would rehome it.. Start fresh with your next batch of discus. The pic you posted didn't look bad and I think with the right tank and care the fish will be a good one for someone.

I would also get in touch with Willie in your area.. He offered help in that thread. He knows the discus scene best out there and incidentally he looks like he may have fry soon.

I'm not sure what you mean by "domestic wild types"? No one I know is breeding wild types in a reliable fashion stateside... even overseas its the exception, not the norm, so theres not alot of offerings.

al

I thought about rehoming it and that might have to be the answer, but I hate the idea given how much work I poured into it.

What rehoming fee is fair, you think?

Would it school with angelfish?

Myrtle Beach has some domestic wild types/wild crosses. I’ve also considered trying wilds again, but I’m going to think about it more.

[brewmaster15]

I can't help you on the rehoming fee.. my goal would be a good home and move on..

I would not put it with angels... the fish is already stressed and hiding.

Mixing it with any new discus puts you back on square one..its really easier to just start over and learn from your past mistakes.

al

[MNGuy]

Any other opinions on this situation? Would love to hear more thoughts.

[jpm995]

Have you tried varying its diet? Try frozen bloodworms, beefheart, discus mix. Has he ever eaten well for you? What size tank is he in? Does he have natural hiding places to feel safe? How big is the fish, does it look thin? Sometimes live foods like blackworms and brine shrimp can entice fish to eat. Is the lighting subdued enough to make him feel comfortable?

[jwcarlson]

I had a couple fish in my growout that would ping pong back and forth with eating and not eating. They'd eat when I increased the temp to 93, but as soon as I started bringing it down they'd stop. I ended up treating with metro and one of them died, but the other survived (but I had a group of 9, so there's still 8). During part of trying to get that sorted out, I had one of them isolated and it would not eat. Had a "tank emergency" and had to move the other discus into the tank with the one in the hospital tank and he started eating immediately. Now, it's unlikely that your fish is not eating just because it is alone... but it could be possible. I've also had to do a levamisole treatment basically every time I've added fish in with my discus even when QTing (and worming) the fish before they go in with the discus.

I agree with Al, though. At some point the best thing for the fish and for you is to 'let go' and regroup. That's what I would do in your situation. Regarding rehoming fees, I think that's a silly name for the price of the fish. And to be frank, I don't think I'd feel OK charging someone money for the lone survivor.

[Iminit]

Well if you set up the 20g you can work with it there. Now you can restart with the 55. Maybe just add a couple of corys to the 20 with it. Thing is there is no fee for the fish. Most want it for free and than add it to their goldfish tank. At least with you it can live out its life.