Hello from Europe

[brewmaster15]

Little update:

Discus are eating since yesterday , only frozen food for now.
They are still holding in a tight group always , far more exploring and active without hardscape.
I saw some behavior of picking one on another, only at feeding time.
What I saw is some of them "scratch" their bodies on Microsorum leaves.
Should I be worried , or monitor them for a few days now and see what happens.
They are still shy , but they dont get scared so easily as last 10 days , they just stop , back up a little bit but dont flee around in shock.

Excellent news! Thats a huge improvement. The slight aggression at feeding is a great sign too.

At this point I would not change or do anything. That flashing off leaves could be many things .. for now I would just watch them and get them eating. Keep track of the flashing and watch their gills for labored breath. Im not saying they have gill flukes but it would be a good idea to check with the seller if they ever had them and were treated... stress can allow a low level parasite to increase as the fishes immune system doesnt work as well.
Al

[KikiSt]

Little update again

They are still shy but big progress is seen.They tend to hold in group but there is time when they are all around aquarium.
Still eating frozen food like crazy , didnt try yet to introduce dry food.
Biggest problem is I see them flickering fins , scratch on leaves or sand , I dont see anything on gills , fast breathing or any other visible problem besides scratching and flickering their fins ocassionaly.
Would like to start with some gill flukes treatment , what do you suggest?
Prazi pro is not avaliable in Eu , I looked for seachem paraguard but with my big tank and 14 day treatment I would need few hundred euros which I think is too much.
I ran into NT labs Anti fluke & wormer , maybe I try that one or you have some better solution?

[Bart_NL]

Be patient, I agree with Al at some point you should let them be and stop changing their environment. Here's my setup:

IMG_20231223_131145_HDR.jpg

The discus will always be a bit more shy, make sure you move slowly coming near to them.

I also have a (breeding) tank at my desk, where I frequently make eye contact with them, and sometimes they are observing me, it is different....

[brewmaster15]

Little update again

They are still shy but big progress is seen.They tend to hold in group but there is time when they are all around aquarium.
Still eating frozen food like crazy , didnt try yet to introduce dry food.
Biggest problem is I see them flickering fins , scratch on leaves or sand , I dont see anything on gills , fast breathing or any other visible problem besides scratching and flickering their fins ocassionaly.
Would like to start with some gill flukes treatment , what do you suggest?
Prazi pro is not avaliable in Eu , I looked for seachem paraguard but with my big tank and 14 day treatment I would need few hundred euros which I think is too much.
I ran into NT labs Anti fluke & wormer , maybe I try that one or you have some better solution?

Look for products with flubendazole in it. As far as I know that dewormer is still available to the EU. Its a good dewormer and treats flukes. But its not without risks. I do think that what you are dealing with could be other than flukes..your fish are fairly large and flukes do not usually cause that much discomfort to adult discus unless its a very bad infestation. It really would be a good idea to talk to the former owner and get a list of anything they have had for illnesses or any medications they used.


Risks..https://forum.simplydiscus.com/showt...le-side-effect

[fljones3]

I must have missed this, although I skimmed through the thread. How often are you doing WC?
I think I would do a 30-50% water change. I have seen a lack of consistent WC provide opportunities for scratching/flashing.
Once WC are done, the scratching goes away.

[KikiSt]

Be patient, I agree with Al at some point you should let them be and stop changing their environment. Here's my setup:

IMG_20231223_131145_HDR.jpg

The discus will always be a bit more shy, make sure you move slowly coming near to them.

I also have a (breeding) tank at my desk, where I frequently make eye contact with them, and sometimes they are observing me, it is different....

Yes i took everything out , they are now only fed and doing waterchanges.
We have very similar setup, I agree they will always be shy , we take care when approaching tank , they get used to feeding a little bit , still they dont run in front of aquarium but they all eat and dont hide in corner.

[KikiSt]

Look for products with flubendazole in it. As far as I know that dewormer is still available to the EU. Its a good dewormer and treats flukes. But its not without risks. I do think that what you are dealing with could be other than flukes..your fish are fairly large and flukes do not usually cause that much discomfort to adult discus unless its a very bad infestation. It really would be a good idea to talk to the former owner and get a list of anything they have had for illnesses or any medications they used.


Risks..https://forum.simplydiscus.com/showt...le-side-effect

I will look now and read all in the link you sent.
I dont know how to describe It properly.
What I saw is scratching on a leaf , and at bottom on a sand.
They dont have any visual signs of any disease.
They dont do It constantly , few times a day I saw them.
But what is unusual to me is anal fins "flickering" , moving quickly , sometimes dorsal fin also , but again not all the time , few times a day.
They started to fight a little bit , just pushing each other , probably establishing order between themselves.

[KikiSt]

I must have missed this, although I skimmed through the thread. How often are you doing WC?
I think I would do a 30-50% water change. I have seen a lack of consistent WC provide opportunities for scratching/flashing.
Once WC are done, the scratching goes away.

I do 50% wc every 3 days , will try to do It daily 30/40% and watch for behavior.

[brewmaster15]

There is a critter called a copepod.. they are tiny white arthropods that look like specs of dust. They are common in aquariums and though they are not a discus parasite .. they can be an irritant in high numbers.. they are best seen using a flashlight on the tank walls... often they gather at the upper few inches of the tank. If you shut the filter off and look closely you can see them moving around. If you see alot clean out your filters well and wipe down the tank walls..then do a large water change...

[KikiSt]

There is a critter called a copepod.. they are tiny white arthropods that look like specs of dust. They are common in aquariums and though they are not a discus parasite .. they can be an irritant in high numbers.. they are best seen using a flashlight on the tank walls... often they gather at the upper few inches of the tank. If you shut the filter off and look closely you can see them moving around. If you see alot clean out your filters well and wipe down the tank walls..then do a large water change...

Interesting , didnt know that.
Definitely will check and probably do a filter maintenance on next water change.

[Kingdom Come Discus]

Welcome! Best wishes to you and your fish!

[KikiSt]

After long time , a big update.
Discus are all well and healthy.
They eat frozen foods like pigs.
No more scratching after nt labs medicine.
They are swimming and enjoying and they got used to us and movement in a room so no more hiding or crazy swimming in s glass.
What I now struggle is getting them used to eat dry food like pellets and flake food.
Does anyone have some tips and tricks how to get them to eat dry food.
Tried to investigate over internet but would like some expert first hand advices.

[brewmaster15]

After long time , a big update.
Discus are all well and healthy.
They eat frozen foods like pigs.
No more scratching after nt labs medicine.
They are swimming and enjoying and they got used to us and movement in a room so no more hiding or crazy swimming in s glass.
What I now struggle is getting them used to eat dry food like pellets and flake food.
Does anyone have some tips and tricks how to get them to eat dry food.
Tried to investigate over internet but would like some expert first hand advices.

Flakes can be challenging for discus. I have not had great luck with Adults but juveniles can be trained to take them. Pellets are generally not a problem if you are persistent and the pellet is palatable. Try keeping the pellet size to about 1mm. Feed only that one food daily for several days. Offer small amounts several times a day. Do not feed any other foods when introducing new foods.. be patient.. it can take days. If it fails then. Mix a little of their regular food with their new food.. feed that for av few days and try feeding just the new food. Most of the time people give up and stop too soon.

You can also try soaking the pellet in garlic juice to enhance its appeal.

Hth,
Al

[KikiSt]

Thank you very much for help.
As of today I will start feeding only dry pellet and I hope next time I post again some good news.

[brewmaster15]

Best of luck!