Very scared/timid discus

[KJoFan]

I got 5 3" or so Leopards back in mid October and ever since they have been the most scared discus I've ever had. I never see them come out to eat, they just huddle together in a back corner. They do eat because they are growing and looking fine. But when I do water changes at least one is always lying completely flat on the bottom of the tank the entire time. They will do the same occasionally even if I am just in the room. Anyone know what the deal is? I would have thought after over 2 months here they'd have come around by now. They aren't sick and I can't think of anything that would be affecting them because all my tanks get the same treatment and same water and no one else is acting that way. I got other fish at the same time and they're doing great, good eaters and social. It's a painted tank so I wouldn't think they'd feel insecure.

Anyone have any suggestions or theories? I'm getting quite tired of their behavior. :)

[brewmaster15]

Karen,
Sometimes the tank location can affect behavior... where is this tank located..top of the rack or bottom? Hows the traffic around it?

-al

[KJoFan]

I thought of that, but they're in a top tier tank. I'd say they get just as much traffic as any of the other tanks. When I walk into the room I'm facing the full wall of tanks on the other side of the room, so they are about 12 feet away. But as soon as I walk into the room, even if I don't walk by their tank directly, they will be huddled and lying down. The tank they are in is painted a darker blue than I prefer but I wouldn't think that would have an affect on their psyche? Do you have any suggestions for changes to try to snap them out of it?

[troyclark]

How big is their tank ?? You might add more discus with them. Mine really like being part of a bigger group.

[KJoFan]

The tank is a 40 breeder and there's 5 in there so I don't think I want to be adding more to that since these are probably about 4" discus or so.

[crazie.eddie]

Is the light on in the room. Mine do not like when the room light is on. If the tank lights are the only lights on, they will come out when they see me and are not shy about getting hand fed. Once the room lights are on, they hide in the corner and do not even approach me.

[RyanH]

A few things to check and rule out:

I've found that tanks facing a window can freak out Discus. Only seeing your shadow can make them nervous.

You may also want to check your water. Large fluctuations in pH can cause skittishness.

Finally, stray voltage can freak fish out. Make sure your heater is working properly and not giving off current.

[KJoFan]

Ok let's see. I think I can rule out the window theory. They aren't facing a window or really near one. The only windows are small ones at the top of the wall as the tanks are in the basement. So I wouldn't think that would be the problem.

As for room lights, I don't generally have them on even. These fish are in a top tier tank and I just have shop lights hanging above the tanks which keep it light enough in there.

I don't think it's a pH problem, but I will check to make sure. I would think that would affect them all but maybe not?

I thought of stray voltage, how can I check that for sure?

The only other thing I can really think of is I don't treat my water with anything before water changing. It doesn't have chloramines in so aging and gassing off is enough. But again i would think if something is wrong there it would show in more than just that tank?

[RyanH]

I thought of stray voltage, how can I check that for sure?



Use different heaters and see if your fish calm down.

[mikesmac]

Hi Karen,

Sometimes discus are just funny that way. I had a 125 with about 20 discus in it that I was trying to grow out and a pair formed between what was the most aggressive one in the tank (a female it turned out) and another. I didn't want them breeding because they usually stop growing when that happens so I pulled the female out and put her in a different tank... well she must have been the boss of the tank or something and the whole tank went into spooked mode. Where they would previously all eat from my hand and be waiting for food... they then did the group huddle / dart and hide when I walked near them. I had apparently upset the dynamics of the tank and they stayed that way for a while. I tried not feeding them to get them hungry, moving things around in the tank....nothing worked until I shuffled them around ....I moved some out, some in, others out, others in..... and finally upset the dynamics of the tank enough to where they (as a group) apparently forgot about it and all started acting normal again.

Mike

[KJoFan]

Alright, so I've switched out the heater and it hasn't helped. The only other thing (besides the fact they are just weird) I can think of is there is possibly something in the water they don't like. I just age the water and don't treat before water changes as I don't have chloramines in my water, but it is a municipal supply. So, I'm going to try treating with Prime for awhile to see if that makes a difference. Maybe there is a metal in there they aren't liking. If that doesn't help, then I really am at a loss.

[Greg Richardson]

Anything you can do right in front of the tank? Do it at least once a day. Read a book? Have movement. If you can bring something right in front of the tank and clean it or what ever. Just be in front of them to the point they understand you are ok. Make noise.
Bring anything you can do and do it in front of the tank and eventually they will be ok. Remember if your old heater was bad it can take weeks sometimes before they are adjusted to the fact they don't have to worry about being tazed anymore. Just because they act the same doesn't mean it wasn't your heater.

[Dying for Discus]

Greg's got the right idea.

I bought one of those inflatable pilates balls, and I would just sit in front of my tank for an hour or two everyday on it. I would even do some exercises on the ball and bounce a little so they would get used to movement. It's great if you want to get in shape and watch your discus at the same time!!

It took two months, but they finally chilled out and ended up loving my husband and I. Towards the end of about three or four months, they would come up my hand, let me touch them, and feed them. But they always hated sudden changes in light. They never cared if the room lights were on or off. I had gravel and lots of driftwood in my tank too.

[Discus_adictus]

Hi sir, have you tried rock salt after each water change? I understand they minimizes osmoregulatory stress and may be used to control methemoglobinemia (nitrite toxicity) in some freshwater fish like discus.