If you saw these discus...

[Tshethar]

...what would your reaction be?

(They are not mine.)

Clearly the fins stand out... Is there active fin rot going on or do these fish look to have largely recovered?

If they were yours (hypothetically), what would you do for them, if anything?

(Sorry for poor quality quick cell phone pics.)

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[jmf3460]

dear lord. I would not purchase if that is what you are considering.

[Tshethar]

No, definitely not considering purchasing. I saw these and was a little shocked myself as it was my first opportunity to see some larger Stendkers in person after deciding I wanted to do discus. Assuming I go this route, I will get fish directly from Hans. But I thought this would give me a chance to see some larger fish in person, get some inspiration, and think further about variety I most wanted.

Instead, the experience was kind of a bummer. Guess it goes to show that even large, excellent quality fish can go downhill pretty fast if not cared for well. While I would not get involved in discus rescues as a neophyte, I wonder if people think these guys can come back or not.

[jmf3460]

I would say yes those can come back. fins grow back in most cases. maybe not to their original beauty but fin rot is a bacterial infection that is easily treated I believe.

[Tshethar]

Here's hoping they do come back. Honestly, I wonder if any of the most experienced, well-connected folks on here, perhaps with the right sort of credentials, might feel like following up with the appropriate people, as I took these pictures yesterday at Atlanta's Georgia Aquarium.

Pretty sure I was looking at fish Hans sent them within the last month:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obL9JROi0UY

I'm guessing folks who looked at the first shots would have guessed this was from my local LFS or a newbie hobbyist tank, not a place purported to be the best aquarium in the Southeast... :confused:

Had a great visit there with my family, but really was shocked and disappointed when I saw the discus. I would have thought they could do better.

[warblad79]

They are new strain of Discus, Crown tail Discus.

[dghby]

unfortunately this is what can happen. my wife and I recently visited the national Aquarium in Baltimore. the Discus in their tanks looked like this. very disappointing to see
In an establishment called "The National Aquarium" .

[Tshethar]

They are new strain of Discus, Crown tail Discus.

:p Ha! Yeah, right... Maybe someone will have some of these we can get at a special holiday price. Do you think they come in a bulldog variety? :crazy:

[Keith Perkins]

I seriously doubt those fish were in Hans possession 30 days ago. Those fish look like they were mistreated for a lot longer than a month.

[Jack L]

What causes this?

[ericNH]

Those photos make me sad. Shame!

[Tshethar]

unfortunately this is what can happen. my wife and I recently visited the national Aquarium in Baltimore. the Discus in their tanks looked like this. very disappointing to see
In an establishment called "The National Aquarium" .

Agreed. Feels to me as those the public relations/marketing side of these organizations may have more to do with the husbandry than I would have imagined. While the message one hears at things like the dolphin shows promote conservation, responsible stewardship, partnerships with research-based projects involving environmental interventions, etc.--and it may be that revenue generated supports such things--unfortunately it also seems to be the case that the exhibits are more about the "customer experience" than they are about other things, including in this case the care of the animals or even ecologically appropriate displays for educational purposes. (E.g., it was a little weird to find a large tank full of rift lake mbuna cichlids in the "River Scout" exhibit, which also housed the discus.)


I seriously doubt those fish were in Hans possession 30 days ago. Those fish look like they were mistreated for a lot longer than a month.

Good point. I think you're right. It also occurs to me that there was a size variance among those I saw, with the largest probably more like adult jumbos rather than 4" fish. Maybe they are QTing replacements for these...

It seemed to me that several or most of the large fish with the terrible fin damage may have recovered from what I imagined was a bad case of bacterial fin rot. They could have been there for a while for sure, and probably have been. Now I see why Al talked about trimming fins in the talk he gave--if any fish needed cosmetic trimming, these would be the candidates.

There were also a couple of fish, including the smaller, dark fish in the middle photo, that was still obviously infected, as he had white edges on his fins plus some white on his darkened body. Sad and surprising for sure, as he clearly belonged in a hospital tank.

One more shot that I couldn't load earlier:
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