Strange form (photos)

[Nexplay]

Hello to Al!!

I have been having for 2 month 12 pigeon blood discus ( Malboro x Pigeon). Now they are 4 months and 10. I think they are growing to very good rate. But I am worried about its form. I believe that it is possible that they have some type of the malformation. It seems that they have the short gills (or nutgalls, I don’t know what is the most correct word). What do you think?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/Defecto4.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/Defecto5.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/Defecto1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/Defecto3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/Defecto6.jpg


Thanks to all. I request pardon by my badly English

[Carol_Roberts]

Yes, gill plates are short. May be caused from enviornmental factors - heavy feeding, too rapid growth, heavy bioload (due to heavy feeding). Nice shape otherwise. I would try the pairing again and pay close attention to the water quality/feeding regimen and see if gill plates are normal in next batch. Do all the youngsters have short gill plates or just the biggest ones?

[GulfCoastDiscus]

How many times a day do you feed? I see this from over feeding. The bones grows slower than the muscle. You should only feed 3x a day.

[jimmyhat]

Tank looks really dirty and one of the pictures look like food floating everywhere? Overfeeding would most likely be the case. I never let food sit in my tank after 30- mins they eat and if they don't then they wait.. Makes them not be so picky on food. If one is not getting enough food he goes to another tank tobe sperated till he gets back to health.. Nice looking fish though they need a diet :D

[Nexplay]

In the first place thank you very much by the fast answers.

I believe that it can be due to overfeeding. I feed 6x day, although I give little amount simultaneously them in order to avoid the effects of the possible contamination, so I am not very surely either.
It is possible that smallest show the defect less that the greater ones. But what it confuses to me it is that the greater one of all is the one that seems to be better ¿?¿?.

They are exactly 4 months and 11 and measure between 7-8cm.

These are the parents... (They are property of Tony Glez (INSU), a lover of discs, and the wilds mainly)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/IMG_6159.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v416/Nexplay/Defectos/IMG_6131.jpg

Jimmyhat you are mistaken, the tank is very clean. If you see food floating everywhere it is because I toke the photos while it fed them. I change a 30% of the water all the days. I clean the bottom 2 times to the day. And clean thorough the crystals of the seaweed (I don’t know the correct word, sorry) 1 time to the week. It is possible that also the floating plants have confused you (second photo). The conditions of the water are very good always.

Therefore, what think that I must do? Less feeding perhaps?

And in case of being a sobregrowth problem, it will be corrected in the future?

The truth is that I am worried, because I believe that they have good genetics. This he is one of the grandparents...

http://photobucket.com/albums/v89/Antonio_Glez/pigeon/th_red_disburg02.jpg

Very many thanks to all!

[GulfCoastDiscus]

Sorry Nextplay but once they develope short gill plate, it will permanent. They will still be able to breed though.

dan

[jeep]

By my experience I believe this to definately be envirommental. I have a batch that went over crowded at a very early stage of development and they all turned out just like yours. I think the over crowding led to a lack of minerals and nutrients in the water supply, which led to the overall deformities. I plan to cull them all today..