troubled discus

[Abercrombie6202]

well i recently just added one of my pairs to the main tank, but the female has turned really dark, her eyes are dark as well, and she has stress bars. I really do not want to lose her as she is my favorite discus, it has been about 2 days that she has been like this, she doesn't eat much and her boyfriend/mate really doesn't stay with ehr anymore. In the tank they are in currently there is another pair, and 2 other discus. 6 discus total, 75 gallon tank? What should i do?

[DarkDiscus]

I'd think she was used to the solitude with her boyfriend and being placed in with the other fish may be stressing her. She may not be used to the competition or may be being picked on.

Or the stress of the transfer or the stress of being picked on has made her susceptible to a bug she had been carrying but had been resisting.

Solutions?
1.) Wait and monitor the situation.
2.) If there is any decor, change it around and try to change the dynamic of the group and make it easier on her.
3.) Put her back in her own tank (with or without Mr. Right) and see if that helps.

I'll leave any other suggestions to the others.

Good luck!

John

[Ryan]

Are all of the other discus acting normally? Have you had all these fish for a while?

Ryan

[Abercrombie6202]

Well i have had 2 of the fish since september 2003 and i have 4 of the fish since Jan or Feb 2004?

Nobody is picking on her, she is one of the biggest in the tank...today she has become less dark and is showing color, but still has the stress bars

[Ryan]

If she's eating and she's not huddled in a corner or hiding, I would just watch her for the next few days. It could just be that she didn't appreciate the move. Sometimes when you mix discus together from two existing tanks, it takes a while before everyone is comfortable and gets along. It's this way with a lot of cichlids. Adults take a little more time to adjust normally.

Hopefully in a few days she will be settled and she'll get her color back. Until then, just keep an eye on her.

Ryan

[Cosmo]

I've had occassion where moving a pair from one tank to another distressed one or both, even to the point of the effected one appearing to become extremely sick. Moving them back to familiar surroundings instantly solved the problem the the apparent sick fish became instantly healthy and happy again. Haven't observed this with non-paired fish, only established spawning pairs.

Try moving her back and see what happens.

good luck
Jim