BD is ill, not sure with what?

[Sea Hag]

I have a 5" BD that I've had for a year. I treated him on 6/9 for a bout of constipation w/ Epsom Salt and he recovered nicely.
Today when feeding the tank I saw him poo. This is hard to describe but it came out looking like liquid and a tad milky, and then "hardened", turning white, once it was free floating. It looked very much like when you drop egg whites into hot water. Just as quickly as he had expelled it began falling apart into very fine pieces and eventually "disappeared" right in front of me. These free floating "pieces" were no thicker than a piece of very fine hair.
I sat myself in front of the tank and saw him poo like this three different times in an hour.

The BD is eating just as well as he always has. He has always been the big bully of the tank and still is, just not quite as "nasty" as usual. He hasn't been doing as much chasing as he usually does.

What the heck is this and how do I treat it?
Thanks in advance for any help anyone can give me.

[Eddie]

Doesn't sound like an issue to me. What foods do you feed? If he is feeding, then he should be alright. Is any of the food you are feeding spoiled possibly?

[Sea Hag]

Unfortunately all six of my discus are very picky eaters, so I have CBW delivered weekly fresh off the farm via overnight service to my front door. It's the one thing they will all readily eat. The BD is not as picky as the rest and will eat Tetra Colored Bits, Omega One Flakes, BH and Mysis. Because the BD is also a huge pig, I target feed my fish to make sure everyone gets their fair share. The liklihood of any of the food I'm serving being spoiled is very slim. (I have five tanks up and run out of food before it ever has a chance to spoil, lol)
I know my discus should be getting a more varied diet but I'm not sure how I'd go about that. One person's suggestion of "starving" them until they ate what was offered didn't sound like a good idea to me. Is it ok to continue feeding as I am or should I insist they take other foods?

I'm glad you didn't think it sounded like an issue. I've never seen anything like that come out of a fish before. :shocked2:

[Eddie]

Yup, CBW are the culprit in this case. Thats why I asked what you feed. Feeding only CBWs can cause problems.

[Sea Hag]

Can you (or anyone else reading this thread) direct me to a thread/sticky or link that will instruct me on how to wean discus off of a CBW diet to a more healthy varied diet? My discus are 5" a piece so I don't know how many meals they can miss because they turn their noses up at, before it starts effecting their health?? Do I just withhold the CBW and start feeding other foods and hope they eventually get hungry enough to eat what is offered?
A local breeder had given me his special homemade BH recipe but they wouldn't touch it. Maybe I didn't give it enough time? After a few days of them not eating I panick and go back to the worms.

[Eddie]

Really hard to do!

If the fish are 5"s, they can go a while without eating. My suggestion is to bring the temp up a bit, maybe around 86-88F and don't feed tham ANYTHING. If you have other species or live plants in the tank, they may not tolerate the high temps. Just don't feed them for 3 or 4 days and then try a small amount of the new food. If they don't take it, no worries, DO NOT feed them. I'd fast them up to 2 weeks if need be. They should be fine if they are healthy.

Alot of people frown on fasting fish but it happens ALL the time, especially when shipping fish long distances.

Eddie

[Sea Hag]

Thanks for the advice, Eddie! If you tell me they can go that long without food I believe you.
The tank is heavily planted but if I lose some plants, big deal. I can always buy new ones. I have two rams, a school of cardinals and a herd of loaches in there with the discus so everyone else should be ok with the temp adjustment.
My red turk and pigeon mated up about two months ago and have been actively spawning ever since. Nothing will ever come of it due to the hardness of my water but I sure enjoy watching these two when they go about laying their eggs. I'm assuming since they are spawning they are healthy, and my other discus look to be in equal health also.
Wish me luck, I'm going to need it. When I walk up to the tank they all charge up to greet me and you know they only want thing....worms! It's going to be hard for me to deny them, but I'll do it.

[Eddie]

Keep us updated on the transition to the new food. Also, don't transition to Frozen Blood Worms, those would be an issue also. Try a pellet, flake or good mix.


Eddie

[Sea Hag]

Well, it's been 10 days and so far only three of my eight discus will accept all foods offered. The three that are eating are eating well. The other five take a hit and then immediately spit it out. So disappointing. Four more days marks the end of a two week period. If the remaining five still won't eat what is offered do I go back to the CBWs when I hit the two week mark?

Just out of curiousity, what exactly are the adverse long term effects of feeding only CBW to an adult discus? They aren't quite adults (5") but neither are they "babies". Not sure how much longer I can go without having them eat...:(

[Disgirl]

Discus can go a loooong time without eating. I have one that hasn't eaten in 3 months and still looks and acts just fine. Can't treat it since it has no symptoms of anything at all. Eddie thinks the high mineral content of our water is keeping it going. Hope yours comes around.
Barb

[Eddie]

Well, it's been 10 days and so far only three of my eight discus will accept all foods offered. The three that are eating are eating well. The other five take a hit and then immediately spit it out. So disappointing. Four more days marks the end of a two week period. If the remaining five still won't eat what is offered do I go back to the CBWs when I hit the two week mark?

Just out of curiousity, what exactly are the adverse long term effects of feeding only CBW to an adult discus? They aren't quite adults (5") but neither are they "babies". Not sure how much longer I can go without having them eat...:(

Its probably never been tested but there was a test done on fish fed only bloodworms and the results were pretty substantial. My advice to anyone is that if they are going to feed only 1 type of food, I'd use a good pellet or flake as they have been engineered to meet the requirements of the fish to include essential vitamins and minerals.

[Sea Hag]

Discus can go a loooong time without eating. I have one that hasn't eaten in 3 months and still looks and acts just fine. Can't treat it since it has no symptoms of anything at all. Eddie thinks the high mineral content of our water is keeping it going. Hope yours comes around.
Barb

3 months? That's such a long time. Yikes.
I wonder if soaking CBW in a vitamin/mineral supplement would be effective?
I don't know how long I can hold out not feeding them. I come to the tank and they all charge up to greet me and it's so disheartening to see the five refuse any food offered. Eddie, how long should I keep going with the fast? You mentioned two weeks. After two weeks then what do I do?? You'd think eventually these guys would break down and eat something other than CBW.
Thanks for your help!!

[Jennie]

looks like theyre holding out on you. Comes down to a battle of the wills. :) I think you will be fine

[Eddie]

looks like theyre holding out on you. Comes down to a battle of the wills. :) I think you will be fine

As mentioned, battle of the wills. If you want them to get a better source of nutrients, hold out for as long as you can. CBW addicted fish are tough to crack, probably the hardest. :o

[Sea Hag]

Thanks for the encouragement. It's harder on me than it is on them. And we all know who got them addicted to the "crack".... me. :wasntme: