New discus will not eat!

[Kindredspirit]

I am womdering if I should have waited before trying discus. What was I thinking??

aww.. dont say that! One thing you will learn tho is Patience! Of which I have none Learn the basics and there are many here to help you with the rest ~ trust me ~


Hang In There Ladies


Marie ~

[Marinemom]

So far I have not tried the blackworms. This afternoon I got really sick with what I think is some kind of mild food poisoning from eating some leftovers from a chinese restaurant. That will teach me. I'm not doing that again. Because of this I did not get the bigger water change done either. I guess these things are going to wait until tomorrow. I did however over the last two days raise the temperature in the tank to 88 degrees. They seem more active than before so maybe(I'm keeping my fingers crossed) they will start to eat for me. I hope so. I'm really starting to worry that if they do not eat thier immune system will be comprimised and they could get sick. Of course, I don't want that.

Hopefully I will be feeling better tomnorrow so I can do the water change and continue trying to get them to eat.

Marinemom

[White Worm]

Marinemom....did you try feeding yours blackworms? I am just anxious to know how that worked.

My new guy is still hiding. The plants are fake. The new guy comes out here and there, but he is hiding at least every other time Ive checked in on him. The other two keep checking on him, from what it looks like, they are still swimming around tho.

I am womdering if I should have waited before trying discus. What was I thinking??

Its a numbers game with discus. They just feel more secure in a group. Be patient, it may just take longer for them to settle in, especially if they are very young. i have had some the pouted for weeks and then all of a sudden, they were fine. I have had some that didnt eat for long periods of time and then they were fine. Dont worry. Its all a learning curve.

[White Worm]

So far I have not tried the blackworms. This afternoon I got really sick with what I think is some kind of mild food poisoning from eating some leftovers from a chinese restaurant. That will teach me. I'm not doing that again. Because of this I did not get the bigger water change done either. I guess these things are going to wait until tomorrow. I did however over the last two days raise the temperature in the tank to 88 degrees. They seem more active than before so maybe(I'm keeping my fingers crossed) they will start to eat for me. I hope so. I'm really starting to worry that if they do not eat thier immune system will be comprimised and they could get sick. Of course, I don't want that.

Hopefully I will be feeling better tomnorrow so I can do the water change and continue trying to get them to eat.

Marinemom

keeping the water clean will help with the immune system and keep the environment healthy until they come around.

[Dood Lee]

When I got my discus, only one of them started eating immediately. Two more eventually started eating after a week. The last one didn't start eating until after I had it for two months.

Definitely try out the blackworms though. My discus really love frozen bloodworms. Also, invest in one or two of the cone feeders. Once the discus learn to eat from the cone, the bottom of the tank stays really clean.

Edit: Forgot to add, my tank is at 84-86 degrees.

[swinters66]

I noticed too that my guys seem more active since Ive raised the water temp. I havent raised it by much...it was 87.8 this morning. The third guy was out swimming this morning, but went and hid when I approached.

I didnt do my water change either....I was too concerned for the new guy and didnt want any added stress for him. So, tonight I am getting home and doing that water change!! Its not as difficult as I thought!

I wanted to ask about live brine shrimp...we have other tanks and the fish in those love brine shrimp...so if I got some and put a few in the discus tank....I am hoping theyll eat those. But at the same time, what if they dont eat them and then I have some small brine shrimp swimming around my tank?

[Marinemom]

Finally, a little success! I'm sill holding out and not giving them the california blackworms. Tonight, I put a cube of brine shrimp in the tank without dissolving it first. I just threw it in and sat back to see what would happen. The cube bounced around for a few seconds before it started to dissolve on it's own and WOW! They all came running. I know that two out of the five ate some of it and the others were definetly interested. Maybe they are finally getting hungry enough to call off the boycott. I know that brine shrimp is not the most nutritional food for them but at least it is something.I'm not going to push my luck with this. That's all the food I'm giving them tonight.

I did a water change today of about 40% which they were really happy about and I'm keeping the tank at 88 degrees which they seem to prefer.Tonight they are more active and seem happier in thier new home.

Swinter 66-Try the brine shrimp. Mine ate some of it and this makes me very happy. If they don't eat it at least your cories will like it.

Now, If I can just get them to eat something that is a little more healthy.

Marinemom

[White Worm]

Could you try and have someone else feed them bloodworms and see if they respond? Sorry if someone already asked.

[Marinemom]

Bloodworms are an absolute no in this house. If some of it should become airbourne or if I come in contact with it in any way(I do not have to touch them to react), my reaction is so severe that it can be deadly with me. I have been stubborn with this in the past and would feed it to my cichlids in spite of my reactions which are severe, and the last time I did this I went into anaphalactic shock and could not breathe. I didn't even touch it. I was wearing gloves and punched out the cubes directly in the water and my reaction was so severe that I had to be taken to the hospital because of the anaphalatic shock and my eyes had swelled up so bad that they completely sealed shut and of course I could not see. Because of what happened and the fact that I have a serious heart condition and asthma I had to spend the night in the hospital. This all happened just days before I was leaving on my vacation to the Carribean Islands. To me it is just not worth it to even have the bloodworms in the house.

That being said, I know that bloodworms are healthy for them but there are many other things I can feed them without risking my own well being. That is just the way it has to be for me and my fish.

Do you have any other suggestions on what to feed them that has a lot of nutritional value but is not live food? I just do not want to risk parasites that can be brought in with live food.

Marinemom

[Dood Lee]

Some people have their doubts, but I have heard that live California Blackworms are highly nutritious. Otherwise, try some Hikari brand frozen Mysis shrimp. The pieces are bigger than the brine, and Mysis has better nutritional content.

You could also go and check in the Foods and Nutrition section of these forums. Many people post on foods that their discus love to eat.

[Marinemom]

Thanks, I'll try that.

Marinemom

[Apistomaster]

That allergic reaction is unfortunate because it's severe. I became sensitized
to the real Tubifex not the Black worms. A drop of there water would be enough to raise a welt on my skin.
Larry

[White Worm]

Bloodworms are an absolute no in this house. If some of it should become airbourne or if I come in contact with it in any way(I do not have to touch them to react), my reaction is so severe that it can be deadly with me. I have been stubborn with this in the past and would feed it to my cichlids in spite of my reactions which are severe, and the last time I did this I went into anaphalactic shock and could not breathe. I didn't even touch it. I was wearing gloves and punched out the cubes directly in the water and my reaction was so severe that I had to be taken to the hospital because of the anaphalatic shock and my eyes had swelled up so bad that they completely sealed shut and of course I could not see. Because of what happened and the fact that I have a serious heart condition and asthma I had to spend the night in the hospital. This all happened just days before I was leaving on my vacation to the Carribean Islands. To me it is just not worth it to even have the bloodworms in the house.

That being said, I know that bloodworms are healthy for them but there are many other things I can feed them without risking my own well being. That is just the way it has to be for me and my fish.

Do you have any other suggestions on what to feed them that has a lot of nutritional value but is not live food? I just do not want to risk parasites that can be brought in with live food.

Marinemom

OK

[swinters66]

Well I am glad to hear that marinemom!! I dont know if I had any success last night or I just want them to eat so bad I'm seeing things.....but I added some of the frozen Emerald Entree (there's krill, mysis, artemia (sp), spinach, romaine lettuce,spirulina, things like that) and one of them ate a small piece. Mind you it was a small piece and the other 2 didnt eat (at least I didnt see them eat anything)

So, I will try the brine shrimp. This is the most fustrating thing Ive had to deal with regarding fish.

[wolfbane]

Patience friends, they will eat! As long as they are healthy, they will give in and eat when they are ready. You are doing the right thing, WCs and small amounts of food to try, just hang on!!
I also had some fish last year that wouldn't eat for 3 weeks, then,BAM! like tigers on the food!