Starting again!

[BlueTurquoise]

Hi guys!

I have not asked these questions in a long time. It is bitter sweet that I am asking them again as I have come full circle with my fish.

I can't decide on what to do! I will start from the beginning with around 8 new juveniles. What i can't decide is the number of them and what strain! Ok I have will set up my 4ft, 55 gal tank as a primary grow out. I would like to stock these with juveniles about the 3 inch mark, no larger. Maybe even smaller if the price is right and the quality is good. I can afford to have a few more fish than just 8 but I plan for the long term here (ie grow till adult). I can get 8-10 and sell the few that are not so good later on when they are larger but if the past is a good indication they will grow fast. Remember I am only a hobbyist and I am limited by my wife's constant nagging ;D .

I can't decide on whether to go a single strain and get 8 red alenquers or 8 rsg or 8 wild greens, or even 8 white swans or something along those lines. That way I can then start a reasonable breeding population of the same strain later on in a few years time.

Everytime I think in that line of thought I look at how many strains there are today and my head spins! there are so many pretty fish out there that one strain just isn't enough! I want a fish room so badly it's not funny *sulk* :-[ :'( *ahem* sorry... Yes so what would you do in my case? go for the one strain? go for 4 of 1 type and 4 of another? is 10 too many?

I want to wait until the Discus show in March where I can talk up a deal with many breeders there. Rod seems also to have something coming up in march (woops i hope that wasn't supposed to be a secret Rod!). :-\

Chong

chong,
I had upwards of 25 discus at one time...Every time I saw a new strain I had to have some...I now have 4 adults, 3 mid-sized fish, and two different sizes of fry(my own, and a friend's) that will hopefully grow into something someday...I ended up selling off most of my fish and concentrating on just a few that could be interchanged with each other and not spawn "3 eyed excorcist discus" ::) My reasoning behind this was: what on earth am I gonna do when everything starts to breed??!! I would need so many tanks!! As it is I have 9 tanks and I will still run out of space fast...but it's still small enough that my basement doesn't look like an LFS...
So, to make a long story short, if I were you, and I was going to buy 8-10 discus, I would probably pick a favorite strain and buy 4-5 of those, and then see if I could find some nice wilds, and buy 4-5 of those....and then start sweet-talking the wife for your fish room... ;) ;)

[BlueTurquoise]

That's a good idea. I had not thought of that. Wilds to try to add wild strain back into my favourite strains?... hmmm...

I like red alenquers. Henry(Aussie breeder) can get me some very nice ones...

Yes must avoid house looking like LFS! doesn't suit decor or wife! lol

Chong

[Lynn]

Its very hard to decide when you want them all!!
Go with only 2 strains max.If you can get 10, get 6 of your favorite type and 4 of the other. RSG and wild greens would be a nice looking tank of fish!
Have fun! ;D

[BlueTurquoise]

Ahh yes RSG! there is a good breeder here that has a soft spot for RSG. He has only RSG breeding pairs...hmmm :)

Wild greens are harder, I have never heard of Aussie breeders or suplliers that can get wild green. Also I would REALLY like Tefe Greens. Oh man that would be the bomb. I would pay top dollar for a few Tefe's. My chances are extremely slim for those though...

Thanks Lynn it is sooo hard! That is why I asked for help!!! ;D

Chong

[Carol_Roberts]

Personally, if they are all going to be in one tank, I'd get 6 or 8 from one spawn. They will all be the same age, used to being together, the pecking order will be pretty much established, they will be eating the same foods and have the same germs.

Pick one color/strain you like, raise them up, keep the best pair, sell the rest. If you want another color get another tank ;)

Carol :heart1:

[BlueTurquoise]

Thanks Carol. I was wondering about the disease factor. It's not totally out of hope, I do have other tanks that I can setup like a 2fter for QT.

My question is then Carol, if I do decide to get lets say 6 of the same brood and 2-3 of a different brood but of same size/age, what should I do to minimize disease transmission? full qt with medication? What would you do?

Chong

[BlueTurquoise]

So much to choose from! So many biudiful fishies!

http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=11;action=display;threadid=6319

:o http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=11;action=display;threadid=6144

http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=11;action=display;threadid=6159

:o http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=11;action=display;threadid=5992

http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=11;action=display;threadid=5451

and that's just to name a few!!!

[April]

Chong...heres a hint...if you have say 4 of one strain..and 4 of the other strain....believe it or not..they usually choose their own strain to pair up with!!
oh...yeah....the ones Rod has coming up...would be fantastic....as you can make your own strain out of them . and get a few variations....and be creative. ;)
and...if their the ones i m thinking of..they have rsg f2 in them. and very nice ones at that!!!
if you get all your fish from one breeder...your ok. but if two breeders..then yes quarantine and run two tanks for awhile.
i agree though..you cant have all of them..and you cant have a tank and a pair for every strain. think of it this way...most of the big breeders work about 20 pairs. and its a full time job and they have thousands of growing out fry!!! so...one or two nice pairs and a few grow out tanks will do you. and even then..you might have to find yourself a "fishroom"!!! me...personally...am finding one batch to grow out is plenty for me right now with all the feedings and wc.

[nalah]

Chong -
you have a 4ft standard tank right?..thats only around 48 gallons. 8 may be pushing it.... they grow real fast.

buying RSG's in sydney... be v. careful who you by from.IM me for details.

You are restricted for space and only have one tank (the other small one of yours is only good for one or two fish. its only a 12 gallon) - thats the rule of thumb.. one fish / 10 gallons remember. far too small for a Q tank.

not an easy thing to do for a discus hobbyist,but you have to decide how far you can go in the hobby. how many tanks you have room for. and what your partner will put up with..LOL
6-8 fish max. watch them grow.... sit back and enjoy.cram them and you will have problems my friend.

[BlueTurquoise]

Yes Ma'am!!! *salute*

My plan is just not to lose my 2inch juveniles in such a large tank. When they grow out and things get crowded in 6 months/1 years time then yeah I will do something about it.

I think 8 is right and I will sell/give away/cull 2-3 of them and keep only the best pair(s). Once you've done it the first time, it gets easier. Anyway Pascale we will talk more this weekend (good to have you so close to me! ;D )

Chong

[DarkDiscus]

Chong,

IMHO, I would suggest going with the same strain for all the fish. I just think it looks better when all the fish are similar.

If I had it to do over, I would go that route.

John

[paulmat]

Chong
Here's another route to take.
Get rid of the wife,and you can have all the colors that are out there,and your fish room lol;D ;D ;D ;D :P

Paul :guitarist:

[BlueTurquoise]

LOL Paul! LOL

Here's the big secret Paul, she is the best fish out there! hehe

John noted. I will look at red alenquer babies, or some RSG. I like wild greens and tefe's and will search VERY hard for a whole tank of those!

:thumbsup:
Chong

[April]

but...chong...if you want to try breeding...wilds are not the easiest to start out with. females seldom lay..
id go with f1 or f2.
or...get some nice alencers. or...hmmm...or....how about some nice rsg x fishies....?