Individual discus hiding and not eating

[Ithuriel]

Hello everyone.

I have recently run into some issues with my group of discus that I got in April. These were the 3 month old fry that Al was selling at the time so currently they are about 7 months old. I had them about two months and I noticed that one of the smallest was hiding behind the sponge filter in the tank and not eating when I fed. His body had turned a darker shade as well and lost most of his coloring. I tried separating him into my 10 gallon hospital tank and tried to get him eating again, but with no luck. After about a week and a half he was gone. I put the beginning down to a pecking order being established, and was hoping that his removal from the tank would assist in his rehab. After he passed, everything went back to normal for a week or two before I noticed the same symptoms in a second fish, again one of the smaller fish in the group. This ended in the same results as the first. I then went through a good month without any issues and hoped it was just a spell that happened real quick. However, I noticed the same symptoms again about two days ago, this time in one of my larger fish of the group. I come to you all hoping to get some pointers on what might be occurring and any way to treat the issues.

Tank- 72 Gallon Bowfront bare bottom with an FX4 cannister filter as well as a sponge filter
75% water changes every day with 24 hour aged water PH goes from about 7.4 to 8.2 after aging
Fed 2-3 times per day with HBH Seafood Lovers as well as Aquatic Foods Beef Heart Mix Flakes. The also receive FDBW on occasion as a treat
Water Temp 84*F
PH 8.2
Ammonia 0
Nitrites 0
Nitrates 5-10
100% small village tap water

[danotaylor]

G'day Kellin,

You have a bit of a mystery going on there by the looks. Your WC schedule is good, as are your numbers...and your choice of foods...are the discus the only inhabitants?

Prior to introducing the discus to your 72gal, did it house other fish? Did you do a fishless cycle or use mature media from another tank? Have you noticed any stringy white poop at any time?

Since you are not seeing slime coat issues my guess would be something internal, like Hex. I am far from an expert, but I have fry from the same pair as you. I successfully treated them for Hex with pure metro 500mg/10 for 10 days after moving them from the their previous owner to my tank. Sometimes fish carry pathogens and are resistant to them until a season of stress, then the pathogen can create sickness.

I am sure someone with more experience here will chime in with an answer, or more questions to move towards and answer, but in the meantime I would add salt at 3-5 tbsp/10gal. I have recently had a great experience using double that dose for a mystery sickness during the hero fish strategy. It is stressful at that concentration so I am not recommending it for your juvies, but in smaller doses has a soothing effect and may hinder the multiplication of whatever pathogen you're experiencing.

[Ithuriel]

The tank did house other fish, but sat dry for two weeks before going through almost a month of a fishless cycle before I even thought about introducing the discus. I havent tried any medications yet, but I have tried salt, although only at about 1tbsp per 10 gallons so far. I may up it a little and see if there are any benefits. Maybe the metro wouldn't be a bad choice either. Thanks!

[slicksta]

Sounds like a tough one. . .
How many fish are in the group?
Do you see any aggression? Size isn't always an indicator of pecking order.
Any torn fins?
You can definitely up the salt a little to start with.
Try and post a pic of the group.

[Ithuriel]

There are currently 9 in the group There is some aggression during feeding time, but otherwise very rarely. I don't see any torn fins on anyone, including the sick one. I will try to post a pic when I am able.

[LizStreithorst]

Sounds like a classic case of hex to me. Treat the entire tank as Daniel suggested. Please post a pic.

[Ithuriel]

Hey all,

Sorry it took so long to reply. I have been busy and have been trying to figure out how to get my photos to post.

I started a metro regiment on Tuesday, but, unfortunately, I lost my sick discus yesterday. He seemed to be laboring in his breathing and was not eating at all. I did see him poop, and it looked normal to me, but I didnt get a picture because he swam off before I could get my phone out and it got sucked into the filter.

I am going to finish a 10 day metro regiment and hope I don't see any more issues. I will try to keep a more current update. Thanks for the help.

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First photo is the group after deceased fish is removed. Second two photos are of the deceased fish. The white area on the second pic was not visible until the fish had passed.

Any identifying help would be appreciated. Also apologies for the poor pics as I am a poor photographer and am using my phone.

Thanks!