Jaspre
09-02-2008, 02:32 PM
I have just wound up with four discus (three pigeon blood and one blue and green) who are more or less rescue fish along with their buddies - two Siamese Algae Eaters and three Cories. They were the babies of an elderly lady who couldn't keep up with the tank any more. From the state of it, it hadn't been cleaned in months, and she said the last water change had been six weeks before I tore it down and moved it (I only saved 15- 20 gallons of the original water, and I poured it through cheese cloth to try to get rid of the amazing amount of skulch.
I've thrown away all the plants (infested with blue-green algae so badly I didn't even want to dip them) and I do intend to plant the tank again with Amazon swords, anubias and java fern which should be all right at 82 degrees - the temp the fish have been kept at, and low light levels.
Thus far the discus are proving FAR tougher than I had reason to hope. After four hours in a pair of pails at about 65-70 degrees, a nearly complete change in water conditions, I can't tell you how impressed I am with their sheer will to live.
Concerns of the moment -
One of the pigeon blood is piteously thin (far worse than the 'what not to buy' fish), and I'm trying every kind of food I've ever even heard of to try to tempt the poor thing to eat.
The blue and green has some nasty scrapes. I treated the new water and the transfer pails with Stress Coat in an attempt to help. It also has what looks almost like a small pimple on his side. The scrapes are almost certainly damage from the move. The other I'm worried is a parasite having been reading so much about problems with discus and parasites.
Any help or suggestion is eagerly encouraged!
I've thrown away all the plants (infested with blue-green algae so badly I didn't even want to dip them) and I do intend to plant the tank again with Amazon swords, anubias and java fern which should be all right at 82 degrees - the temp the fish have been kept at, and low light levels.
Thus far the discus are proving FAR tougher than I had reason to hope. After four hours in a pair of pails at about 65-70 degrees, a nearly complete change in water conditions, I can't tell you how impressed I am with their sheer will to live.
Concerns of the moment -
One of the pigeon blood is piteously thin (far worse than the 'what not to buy' fish), and I'm trying every kind of food I've ever even heard of to try to tempt the poor thing to eat.
The blue and green has some nasty scrapes. I treated the new water and the transfer pails with Stress Coat in an attempt to help. It also has what looks almost like a small pimple on his side. The scrapes are almost certainly damage from the move. The other I'm worried is a parasite having been reading so much about problems with discus and parasites.
Any help or suggestion is eagerly encouraged!