My First Discus

[04cobratorchred]

I bought some tanks from a guy on the Internet and when I went to pick them up he had these two discus and said I could have both of them for 10 bucks, because he was moving. Don't really know if that’s a good deal or not but they looked pretty cool. I have them in a 15g-planted tank with a gravel bottom. The temp is about 83. Anyone know what kind they are? Thank a lot.

First one
http://img460.imageshack.us/img460/2055/picture2373bo.th.jpg (http://img460.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture2373bo.jpg)

Second one
http://img473.imageshack.us/img473/9327/picture2396bw.th.jpg (http://img473.imageshack.us/my.php?image=picture2396bw.jpg)

[Dany]

They both look stunted and I think there is too much color for discus that size. The shape of the first one looks like a football. Please don’t take this the wrong way and I don’t mean to be rude or offend you in anyway. It’s just my honest opinion. But remember a discus is only as beautiful as what the owner makes them to be. I think the tank you have for them is too small and discus likes to be in schools of 6 or more, in at least a 55g tank. But I heard of a few people having success with an unorthodox way of taking care of their discus. If you don’t want to upgrade to a bigger tank and get more companions for them, I would suggest to raise the temp to 89 and feed them lots so they can grow!!!

Again, please don’t be offended by what I have said. I could be wrong as i am farily new to the discus hobby

Dany

[wheeler]

10 bucks for two discus, is pretty good deal. they are however not showstoppers. but hey, for your first experience with discus, they are just great. my first one was not that great looking either, but i think that he looks great, because he was my first.

the tank is a bit small for them. most recommend 10 gallons per discus. and dany was right they do prefer to be in numbers. helps spead out aggression, after all they are cichlids.

oh yeah, it only cost you 10 buck and now you are going to be addicted to them. next thing you know you will have a basement full of tanks and trying to breed the little beggars.

good luck with these guys and read a lot about them.

[Giniel]

I agree that 15 gallon tank is too small, but they are pretty for what they are. Even if they are stunted ,they will make great pets for you.I have a few myself that are stunted way worse and they are some of my favorites.

I would raise the heat to about 84 to 86 and feed them a lot and do large water changes on them .
Wheeler is right ::: you are now addicted and will end up with a lot more tanks of discus.(it happened to me)LOL
They do look healthy just a little small.
Good luck with the pretty little fish.
Debbie
Oh to answer your question. the 1st one is a pigeon blood of some kind and the 2nd one looks like maybe a red turquiose.

[goheel]

Both of them are stunted, football-shaped, low-quality fish. The first one is a pigeon blood and the second one looks like a red turquoise.

[wolfbane]

They are good starter discus, not good quality but fine for learning how to care for them. Lots of clean water, and meaty foods will give them a chance to fill out some. I think our first discus are our favorites for a long time!

Remember, LOTS of water changes!! Bring that temp up to 86 too!

[04cobratorchred]

Thanks a million for all the help guys i really appreciate it. I will move them in a 90G tank in a week or so i just wanted to QT them first incase they have anything i didn't want to add them to my 90G with my other fish just yet. i will turn the heat up to 86 or so. I have been feeding them flake food but they don't seem to want to eat it so i am going to try some brine shimp tomorrow. Also what does stunded mean i know they shouldn't look like a football but do they look that way because they were stunded? once again thanks a lot for the help.

[pcsb23]

Firstly, I'd qt them a bit longer yet, 4 to 6 weeks before moving them would be my recommendation. Look for any signs of illness, eg, excess slime, cloudy eyes darkened colour etc..

Stunted means they are under developed. One way to think about it is they have grown to their full size potential during the early years when most of their growing is done. Two things lead to this normally, one is poor care or environment - poor food and water quality - the other is they were at the bottom of the pecking order so were denied food by the other tankmates (some would say this is poor care too!). Generally a stunted fish will not reach its potential, ie they will always be too small.

Does your 90 have discus in it?

Temperature range should be 84 - 86f and I would recommend frozen blood worm over frozen brine shrimp. With good food and good water you will get the best out of them, either way they won't win any shows but thats no reason not to enjoy them.

[04cobratorchred]

Thanks a lot PCS. My 90 has two angels, some rummy nose tetras, neon tetras and some black tetras.

[Dany]

Be carefull when raising the temp. to 86F or so because from my own experience, neon tetras will not live for long in that temp. They lasted about a week, then they started to die off one by one.

[pcsb23]

Be carefull when raising the temp. to 86F or so because from my own experience neon tetras will not live for long in that temp. They lasted about a week, then they started to die off one by one.
This can certainly be the case, they can be acclimated but it takes time. Increas the temp a tiny bit at a time and raise to 84F hold it there for a while and see how the discus do. I aim for 84-86F unless treating.