WHAT TO DO WITH BULLY IN TANK

[BADGERBOY]

I have three 4 inch discus in a 40 breeder my rainbow dragon is smaller but bullys the other two there eating but hard to what should i do thanks.

[Skip]

nothing.. they grow out of it.. its normal

you should have got at least 6 fish.. they spread out aggression.. they are cichlids.. it is what they do

[Kevin C]

+ 1. They're just trying to establish pecking order. If the bullying gets too stressful for the other fish in there, to the point of not eating, then you may need to take the bully out and then reintroduce it back after a week or two. I had to do that couple of times and it worked.

[troysdiiscus]

++1 or if you have the room to put in a tank divider you can section him off and pull the divider later sometime that works as well...
+ 1. They're just trying to establish pecking order. If the bullying gets too stressful for the other fish in there, to the point of not eating, then you may need to take the bully out and then reintroduce it back after a week or two. I had to do that couple of times and it worked.

[John_Nicholson]

You can get more fish or leave it alone. Separating the fish will only work if you keep it that way forever. Even then one of the two that are left will take up the role. What you are seeing is perfectly normal with all animals.

-john

[Allwin]

How about a separator with in the tank for time being?

[John_Nicholson]

How about a separator with in the tank for time being?

Ok but what happens when you remove it? They just have to set the pecking order again. The 3 most nature things for any animal to do is ...eat, mate, and fight. The best option is a minimum of 6 fish.

-john

[Discus Ranz]

New here.... But gonna chime in anyway.
Pecking orders, as everyone has stated, is a natural process. I tried a few times removing all the fish from the tank, re-arrange the scape and return the fish. Sometimes it would work....sometimes not. And that wouldnt apply with a bare bottom. They "will" grow out of it though. And if not?......... the bully fish? Punch it in the face!

Heh heh heh........... kidding of course.

~Ranz~

[BADGERBOY]

Thanks everyone going to leave them alone and get more discus. He only bullys when i feed