Discus with Cardinals

[crazydiscus]

Hey guys, I've seen some pics of tanks with cardinals and discus. Is there any downsides to it and would you recommend it? Thanks

[cobaltblue]

I love discus and cardinals together. Cardinals look better than neons imo,
the only downside is a few may get eaten by hungry discus, but ive never lost any. Cardinals take the warmer water better than neons do.

[PJs]

I have cardinals and rummy-noses, they all look great together. I've heard too active fish can unnerve discus and angels, but mine don't seem to mind these.

[tpl*co]

Thinking about adding some to my tank, how do you quarantine them though? What size tank would be good to quarantine about 12? Should I just medicate them in case they are carrying something?

[Bainbridge Mike]

I would put them in a 20g with a couple of big sponge filters and would not medicate them (except maybe add salt and keep the water at about 88 for the first week). If you have a couple of plastic plants to throw in the tank the cardinals will be more comfortable. I would keep them in the 20g for at least a month before adding them to your discus tank. Good luck,

Mike

[Mughal]

On the same note:

Are there types of plecos which can withstand the higher tamperatures Discus require? The regular pleco doesn't seem to do so well, any suggestions?

[tpl*co]

Bristlenoses do well, word of caution though, quarantine and DEWORM! Found this out the hard way .

[gators111]

I've got 14 cardinals in with my new discus from Ryan. They do great at eating the little suspended bits of food in the water column. Also they are good dithering fish and make the discus less nervous. Incidently, I also have one long-finned zebra danio in there that keeps on going that was the first resident while I set up the tank, and the discus don't mind him either.

[Willie]

When you buy cardinals or import, best approach is to quarantine them with high aeration and feed with bbs for a week. Most of the loss comes from starvation.

I've treated all corys with 6 - 8 drops/gal of formalin for 2 hours to get rid of flukes. Never did that with bushy nose. Does anyone know if they can handle the medication?

Willie

[Alight]

Bristlenose Plecos can handle full doses of Prazi or Prazipro and Levamisole. I did a search before I tried it and found some info on the catfish site. I then used them on my BN and had no problems at all. Same with loaches. They can handle at least these two medications. Neither of these fish showed any effects from the treatments at all. What seemed to help my BN to acclimitize was feeding him slices of frozen zuchinni. It seemed to help alot to get her through the first few days.

The biggest problem with Cardinal Tetras will be getting ones that are big enough to not be considered food by the Discus. If they come in small, you can grow them larger for a few months in a 20 or 30 gallon tank. I also highly recommend feeding them heavily on live bbs for the first few weeks after you get them.

The other thing to look out for is Neon Disease. It's a little different in Cardinal Tetras, and not as virulent, and sometimes fatal only after long periods of time. Look for pustules, or brown spots that seem to be deep in the tissue of the back tail and sides. If any fish have these, discard them.

It's not particularly transmissible in Cardinals, so you just need to watch the others for signs for a couple of months or so (unlike with Neons where it's best to toss the whole bunch if one is infected). After than, you're probably in the clear.

[tpl*co]

Bristlenose Plecos can handle full doses of Prazi or Prazipro and Levamisole. I did a search before I tried it and found some info on the catfish site. I then used them on my BN and had no problems at all. Same with loaches. They can handle at least these two medications. Neither of these fish showed any effects from the treatments at all. What seemed to help my BN to acclimitize was feeding him slices of frozen zuchinni. It seemed to help alot to get her through the first few days.

I've dewormed with these products too with no problems, in fact the bristlenoses were even better and ate better afterwards (I lost quite a few wondering why until I saw worms hanging out of one and figured out what was going on!). I feed mine spinich and wafers too.

[PJs]

Rummy noses work well too. At the shop it's good to look carefully for any fish that seem emaciated, and if the back half looks whitish. That's neon disease. If all look good, I still ask how long they've been at the shop. Problem is if they've added new more recently.

They don't all come down with it - I've tossed some that showed it in my tank in my rummies, none others came down. But it is contagious. So I guess quarantining is the best insurance.

Maybe someone else can say, but I've heard this can pass on to angels, so I assume discus also?