Growing out discus... with company?

[kris2341]

Hey guys, I am wondering about growing out discus in a sand or barebottom tank with other species of fish like say... cardinals with the young discus?

Given that they are disease free, I do not see much issue with that but are there any other concerns people may have or known problems other than the higher bioload and higher feeding requirement to feed everyone?

[Second Hand Pat]

Since you recently acquired a group of fairly small discus I would suggest leaving the tank bare bottom and not adding anymore fish. You will find that young discus feed properly do create a lot of waste and many of us do daily 100% WCs. It is way easier to clean the tank and do WCs with at few things in the tank as possible. Once the discus are nearing adult size then consider adding some tankmates with proper QT. :D

[miguelnight]

Bare bottom--nuff said!


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[kris2341]

Nah this isnt something I plan to do, I was just wondering what are the potential risks of a mixed species grow out.

But so far the only thing I can think of is just pathogens getting other fish sick, so I guess there is no risk as long as all fish are healthy, but that is also the hardest thing to confirm.

Thanks guys!

[DISCUS STU]

If the tank mates like Cardinals are clean, no disease, then there shouldn't be an issue. How large are your Discus? I'm growing out some young Discus right now with Cardinals and some other tank compatible mates. See the tankmates section of this site also.

The important thing is that the other fish won't make the Discus sick and are compatible in temperment, not aggressive, and won't out compete or bully the young Discus during feeding. Bare bottom is best, after that sand. Gravel not at all.

[kris2341]

my discus are little critters, 2 inches and under, they are growing though!. I was mainly curious because I recall someone on the forums had a bare bottom tank with a large group of discus of varying sizes from tiny to 4 inches or so... with tetras and otos.

I generally wouldn't mix my fish in the grow out stage if i have vacant tanks, but i was mainly curious if it could be done if the need arose.

Thanks for your input Stu!

[Ryan]

As long as the tankmates are healthy and the discus are not being outcompeted for food, it's a non-issue. Discus are not isolated from other fish in nature. They live alongside thousands of species in South America. The only reason people choose to avoid tankmates with discus in aquariums are because of disease issues and ease of maintenance, IMO. It's easier to control a discus environment when you remove as many variables as possible. But I think once you're comfortable with discus husbandry it's entirely possible to mix them into communities with success.