Skittish new discus [Archive]

evenstarms

11-03-2011, 07:41 PM

I just received 6 discus from Hans this morning. They all seemed to do well and were swimming around right away after I put them in the tank. I understand they are still scared and need to get used to everything but I am afraid to get anywhere near the tank. The smallest movement or if you get within three feet of the tank they completely freak out and slam into the glass and the glass top. I want to switch out my air pump to a stronger one but am afraid they will really hurt themselves if I do anything like that. They are in our computer room across from the window. I have had the light on the tank off since i put them i there. I am wondering if it is the reflection of me sitting at my desk next to them that is scaring them so much. Would it be better if the tank light was on and the room light off? Of course I am scared to turn the light on because they will run around hitting the glass. Any advice would be appreciated. These are my first discus and I am not sure what to do.

Skip

11-03-2011, 08:23 PM

cover tank with a sheet..

ps.. what size tank.. what size fish?

evenstarms

11-03-2011, 08:50 PM

They are in a 55 gallon with two sponge filters. I have six 4 inch discus in there. I decided to turn the tank light on and they are actually a bit less freaked out but they still run for cover very quickly. Five are swimming together and then my Fire Red is hiding behind a sponge filter resting on the sand. I am a bit worried about him as he is not moving his pectoral fins much and is breathing slower than the rest.

Discus PB

11-03-2011, 09:35 PM

I just got 5 from Inland Empire Discus yesterday. I put them in the tank and left them alone and they were all hiding. Then today after they were all swimming around and I fed them and they all ate. Now they are all relaxed and calmly swimming around. I think it takes them about 24 hours to get adjusted and calm down. I think and could be wrong but I think that blue stuff in the shipping water effects them for a while after you get then in your tank. After its out of their system they should be better.

Discus-Hans

11-03-2011, 10:15 PM

Cindy, like I said on the phone this evening, give them some time, tomorrow it all will be different, let them get used to their new home and you,

Hans

Skip

11-03-2011, 10:21 PM

my hans fish took well over a week to settle in..

Discus-Hans

11-03-2011, 10:38 PM

my hans fish took well over a week to settle in..

Bro look in the mirror, that's what the Discus see, I think they did VERY well after ONLY 1 week lol lol

Hans

Skip

11-03-2011, 10:39 PM

Bro look in the mirror, that's what the Discus see, I think they did VERY well after ONLY 1 week lol lol

Hans

:laugh:

Bill63SG

11-03-2011, 11:25 PM

Personal burn from Hans.An honor.

Skip

11-03-2011, 11:26 PM

Personal burn from Hans.An honor.

i am Han's Ash Tray ;)

evenstarms

11-03-2011, 11:46 PM

Thanks Hans. I am sure they will be much better tomorrow. The Fire Red is swimming around again with everyone. They seem fine. I just have to get them used to me. They definitely do better with the tank light on because they do not see as many reflections I think. They look like they are begging right now but I will wait until tomorrow to try and feed them some. I will post some pics in a few days. Oh, this is a bit off topic but what is the most accurate thermometer? I have a Zoo Med digital one that reads 85.1 and then I just got some ATI thermometers that seem to say it is only 82. I have a new Eheim Jager in there that is set at 85 but may need to be calibrated a bit; I just do not know which thermometer to believe.

strawberryblonde

11-04-2011, 12:02 AM

I've found that no two thermometers are the same. LOL

I have a strip therm on my tank as well as a digital and I just keep it in the middle. The strip generally reads 82 and the dig reads 85. Discus are fine anywhere in that range, so long as it remains fairly stable.

Oh and hi! I know how scary the first few days are after your fish arrive. Just relax and trust me when I tell you that Hans fish are VERY hearty and healthy and will come around in their own time. Try not to tip toe too much around them or they'll start expecting it. Just go on about your regular routine for the next couple of weeks and they'll learn what to expect. Mine don't even startle when the dog licks the glass and barks at them to say hi!

As far as eating goes, mine took 3 days to really settle in and be willing to eat. I stuck to a few flakes for breakfast and then one cube of beefheart several hours later. On the third day they sucked up the flakes and begged for more, then tore the beefheart into shreds. =)

As far as lighting goes, I have a light on in the tank on and off during the day. Mine do get skittish if I leave the lights off for several days, so I now make it a practice to not do that.

Congrats on your news Hans discus. Relax and enjoy them...they'll soon be eating out of your hands.

Discus-Hans

11-04-2011, 12:02 AM

Thanks Hans. I am sure they will be much better tomorrow. The Fire Red is swimming around again with everyone. They seem fine. I just have to get them used to me. They definitely do better with the tank light on because they do not see as many reflections I think. They look like they are begging right now but I will wait until tomorrow to try and feed them some. I will post some pics in a few days. Oh, this is a bit off topic but what is the most accurate thermometer? I have a Zoo Med digital one that reads 85.1 and then I just got some ATI thermometers that seem to say it is only 82. I have a new Eheim Jager in there that is set at 85 but may need to be calibrated a bit; I just do not know which thermometer to believe.

Cindy,

You can try to feed them some, just small portions. Some eat in an hour, some take a little longer also depending how their trip was.

My best thermometer is my finger.

Hans

Thanks Toni !!!

Sean Buehrle

11-04-2011, 07:10 AM

Cindy,

You can try to feed them some, just small portions. Some eat in an hour, some take a little longer also depending how their trip was.

My best thermometer is my finger.

Hans

Thanks Toni !!!

LOL
So it's probably not a good idea to get sick around Hans and need your temp taken :)

Wes

11-04-2011, 11:01 AM

My best thermometer is my finger.

Hans

Hans, since you have a couple hands full of those finger thermometers, are you willing to sell me one?:thumbsup:

Discus-Hans

11-04-2011, 12:42 PM

LOL
So it's probably not a good idea to get sick around Hans and need your temp taken :)

Sean, I should have thought about that when I posted it lol lol

Hans, since you have a couple hands full of those finger thermometers, are you willing to sell me one?:thumbsup:

Wes, you can't afford those lol lol

evenstarms

11-06-2011, 06:12 PM

Well, the six discus have calmed down quite a bit now. They aren't quite as skittish and I am absolutely in love with them. They have eaten some blood worms. They do not seem interested in flakes. I have a bunch of frozen black worms in the freezer so will see if they will like those. I will get some pics posted tomorrow. They are hard to take pics of as if my camera gets too close to the tank they run away. I think soon they will realize that I am their friend and that I do not want to eat them! :0)