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Thread: Discus behavior

  1. #1
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    Default Discus behavior

    well my discus are acting strange again. i have a 4-5" discus that i believe to be a female. she has been guarding the food that drops into the tank. i drop the food into the same side of the tank every time i feed them. she darts over there and chases off all the others. the tank holds 7 discus. 3-4 of them stay on the opposite side of the tank, after they get a bite or 2. the female stays with the food, and 2 others try to snack but she wont let them. they do get food but dont get to spend too much time eating b4 she chases them off again. she seems to be more tolerant of a smaller of the 2 discus that keep trying to get food.

    why are they doing this and what do i do ?

    this female isnt the biggest one in the tank. there is one bigger then her and one that is the same size. both those 2 stay on the other side of the tank.

  2. #2
    Registered Member chrisb01's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    I'll take a stab at it, from my experience in keeping fish.
    I think they are trying to establish an order, who's the captain, the sergeant and so on. Who's the boss?
    It's normal behavior, once they establish that, everything will be OK. Just leave them, don't do anything.

    That's my take, lets wait for the experts.
    Chris Baez, Jr.

    "The problem with Christianity is not that it has been tried and found wanting, but that it has been found difficult and left untried" GK Chesterton

  3. #3
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    well its been 5-6 months. why now is this happening. the newest fish in the tank isnt involved in all this.

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    Registered Member lane mechtel's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    I agree with chris, Its normal as long as there the aggression is not causing injury, I have only seen this happen once and I mean scales flying. The pecking order can change for many reasons like a new fish, one not feeling well, breeding, sometimes when I move the wood around all of a sudden one will get very protective of an area of the tank. I think these behaviors are what make discus keeping fun and other fish boring. If you want you can move your decor around or feed in a different area of the tank.

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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    ok that makes since. i took out 4 bricks. since then they have been doing this.

  6. #6
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    The problem is the pecking order as Chris summarized, and is pretty much normal behavior for discus. Some fish are more peaceful than others. Behavior of the dominate fish may change or maybe not over time. Some fish are more peaceful than others. The first thing I do whenever I have a problem of any type is to check the water parameters. Fish can become more agitated if the water conditions are not perfect. Try making a large water exchange. I can offer a couple of other things you might be able to try, depending on your tank size and setup. First, you can try to feed them in two areas of the tank at the same time. Second, perhaps if you introduce some decorations or plants into the tank that can separate the tank into two feeding areas. Hope this helps. Good luck.

    Paul

  7. #7
    Registered Member lane mechtel's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    By the way, My avatar photo is two of my fish fighting right after a water change with driftwood in a different location.LOL -lane

  8. #8
    Registered Member Sean Buehrle's Avatar
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    Default

    It's completely normal. Like another poster suggested just drop food in a few areas so they can all get some.

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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    well they all get to eat. just this female seems to guard most of it when the majority of the fish stop eating.

  10. #10
    Registered Member chrisb01's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    Quote Originally Posted by afriend View Post
    Some fish are more peaceful than others.
    Especially Discus. Even if they are siblings, they each have his/her own personality, I have noticed.
    Chris Baez, Jr.

    "The problem with Christianity is not that it has been tried and found wanting, but that it has been found difficult and left untried" GK Chesterton

  11. #11
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    well the female still does it dont matter where i feed them. she isnt hurting the other fish. she just chases them off. then comes right back to where the food is. i would like to pair her up with a male and have her in her own tank with her mate. she is very pretty and id love to have more baby fry with her colors.

  12. #12
    SimplyDiscus Sponsor and Homesteader TNT77's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    I have taken really bad bullies and separated them into their own tank for 2-3 weeks then added them back in. Works most of the time with me. Worth a try if nothing has changed in 6 months for you.
    I have at worst case scenario..I had a horrible bully that would corner everything in the tank...I tried separating 3 times didn't work...sounds mean but I finally just tossed him in with a breeding pair for a couple hours...he was quite a different fish after that lol.

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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    i dont have a breeding pair at the moment but i plan to get this female a mate so it wont be a problem in the future. she is one of my best lookin fish i currently have

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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    Quote Originally Posted by TNT77 View Post
    I have taken really bad bullies and separated them into their own tank for 2-3 weeks then added them back in. Works most of the time with me. Worth a try if nothing has changed in 6 months for you.
    I have at worst case scenario..I had a horrible bully that would corner everything in the tank...I tried separating 3 times didn't work...sounds mean but I finally just tossed him in with a breeding pair for a couple hours...he was quite a different fish after that lol.
    Sounds like a really great idea if it's effective. Can you please tell me how many times you have separated them into their own tank (for 2-3 weeks) and how many times this has solved the agression problem. Just give me some kind of idea how effective this method is. Also, does it solve the aggression problem even after a month or two has passed after they have been introduced?

    Thanks for posting this. Depending on how severe the agression becomes, it can be a real problem and take the joy out of raising them.

  15. #15
    SimplyDiscus Sponsor and Homesteader TNT77's Avatar
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    Default Re: Discus behavior

    Normally all I have to do is seperate once. It allows the tank to establish a new pecking order. Then introduce the problem fish back into the tank. Normally works. As I said I have had 1 that I let a breeding pair beat the heck out of for a couple hours. That worked like a miracle. It still is top of the totem pole but its not even close to aggresive as it used to be and several months have passed since its attitude adjustment.

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