Multiple Discus Questions

[kiwdahc]

Hey Guys I just got my discus 12 days ago and things are going good. I have noticed some behavior that I have questions about. I have been doing daily 50% water changes. I have 5 discus total, one 3 inch, two 3.5 inch, one 4 inch, and one 4.5 inch.

I have been feeding a frozen beef heart from a LFS which comes in cubes, I am sure you guys are familiar with the cube sizes. I was giving half a cube 3 times a day at 9AM 1-2PM and around 7PM. The problem is I noticed the discus will NEVER eat at 7PM. At first I thought it was a water quality thing that was making them unhappy, because around 7PM they will start losing their color not coming up to the glass when I enter and just don't care if I try to feed them. This was debunked when I left the same water overnight and came back in the morning and they were very colorful and happy and came right up to me and ate from my hand. Is this a common thing for them to get sad at night?

I have gone up to feeding a whole cube at 9AM and a whole cube at 1-2PM because they never eat at night. Is this the right amount for this many fish?

Also the 4.5" Neon Sapphire is a complete bully, when I put the food in they all get to eat for about 30 seconds but after the food dissipates around to the ground the sapphire will guard it and swim back and forth over it and if any other fish comes close to it he charges them, he does this while slowly eating it. Should I siphon the dissipated food immediately to try to curb this behavior? Or is this normal and okay.

Thanks in advance for any answers sorry if these questions are basic I just want to make sure I am doing everything right.

[Dudley Eirich]

You will need to provide more information about your set-up. Size of tank, bare-bottom? Do you age your water? When do you do water changes? pH of your water? What are your levels of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?

[Lighthouse7]

Do you only feed beefheart? - Lighthouse

[Phillydubs]

Do you keep the tank dark at night or as the sun sets does it go dark?

[kiwdahc]

0 ammonia 0 nitrite 5ppm nitrate, 90 gallon tank filled to 60-70 gallons, bare bottom 50-70% water change daily. Yes I only feed beef heart atm. I never really use the light as there is a window which lights the tank from the sun, therefore if I do turn on the tank light the fish really don't like it so I just leave it off for now.

[Filip]

My opinion is that your discus just needs more time to adjust to the new surroundings and your feeding schedule/ frequency.
In a BB tank I turn off filters during feeding , let them eat for 30 min. Then siphon leftovers and poop out , refill and turn on filters again.

Good luck .

[Akili]

Looks like you are off with a good start, water parameters are okay. your water changing schedule is fine too.When it come to food, try adding someting else like freeze dried blackworms or pellets.Getting frozen beef heart from a Local Fish Store is expensive in the long run.Look into making your own mix,there are a lot of recipes in this Forum's Foods and Nutrition section.Finally Good Luck with your Discus.

[Phillydubs]

I am thinking that your fish are going into "sleep or night" mode hence their lax aggression for food towards the end of the day...

You may want to keep a room light on or something so they stay active and out until its all lights out and bed time...

Just a thought

[kiwdahc]

^ the sleep theory sounds perfect. I started turning on the light yesterday which scares them to death and makes them all huddle up behind the sponge filter all day, only turning it off at night or when I feed or so they will come out and get the food. This way I can control when they wake up and when they go to sleep.

Thanks,

Chad