Reply template for people who ask how their fish look (when they look bad)

[yim11]

Figured we could use this with all the people posting about how their (usually sub-par) fish look. Grab any sponsor or hobbyist pic and attach then quote this:

Hello, new discus owner, look at your discus, now back to this one, now back at your discus, now back to this one. Sadly, he isn’t like this one, but if you bought from our quality sponsors and hobbyist, your fish could look like this one. Look down, back up, where are you? You’re still looking at those crappy fish. What’s in your hand, back at me. I have it, it’s a NADA discount for those two fish that you love. Look again, the discount is now an order. Anything is possible when you buy quality fish and not crap. I’m doing a water change.

:D

[shoveltrash]

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!


but hey, I love my crappy fish! http://cosgan.de/images/smilie/frech/s087.gif
(and suffer no delusions about them http://cosgan.de/images/smilie/frech/e015.gif )

[Skip]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owGykVbfgUE

[LizStreithorst]

The thing about being able to see what's good is that it takes TIME. When I first started in dogs, then in Dairy Goats, then in Discus all I could see was size and color. It took TIME.

What I don't like about the University is that the score card is not enough for most beginners. I'm no beginner, but verbal reasons make more sence to me than numbers on a score card. I asked Rod not long ago what the difference was betweem "shape" and "roundness". And I'm fixin' to take judges training! If an evaluator said to me that the fish had a poor shape because it had a head that was lumpy and stuck too far out, and the roundness was off because the dorsal didn't blend smoothly into the body, even as a beginner I'd have been able to see it. (I'm alluding to a specifc fish that only he has scored).

I know that this is off topic, but I would like to see more of that and see the fish evaluated by more than one person. Evaluating fish is difficult. I know. I was a member of the University at one time. People think that it's easy. IT IS NOT! Not only is your opinion valued, you have to deal with the fact that the person who presents it thinks very highly of it.

Livestock judging is good. The judges must justify their placements by giving reasons. They even have to find something good in the last place animal to complement. They have basic score card that they go by, but every judge is human and has his own opinion of what is more or less important.

My rant for the day.

[Skip]

well, i cant tell you that out of all my FISH my HANS fire Reds are by far the MOST STUNNING out of all of them.. :)

i will probably never buy anything smaller then 4" or from anybody other then sponsor..

well, except for the DFW crew ;)

[Rod]

Evaluating fish is difficult. I know. I was a member of the University at one time. People think that it's easy. IT IS NOT! Not only is your opinion valued, you have to deal with the fact that the person who presents it thinks very highly of it.



Whew, and here i thought i was alone in this. It is a tough gig, i don't want to insult anyone with a poor score. ( of course it is the fish being judged, and not the exhibitor, though it is difficult to seperate yourself from your pet , i know, yes i know) But i get excited when i see a nice discus there too, i'm looking forward to sitting down and critiqueing the nice specimen waiting in line at the Uni now. I can tell straight off this will get a good score from me, but i have had this backfire on me too. I have had people ask me in pvt message for clarrification re scores, even when i have given a 7. 7 is a very good discus imo, most champions in class at major shows wins with a 7, or gets a very high placing. Grand champs are rarely over an 8, and yet some feel they deserve more than they really do. As it is i feel i may over-score, but i don't think being overly judgemental serves the purpose of the section. It is used mainly by beginers and intermediate level discus keepers, those still working on the finer points to what constitutes a good discus. Those among us who are preparing show discus, well unfortunetly we don't see too many of those in the Uni.

[Sean Buehrle]

You guys/ girls that judge discus should make a thread and sticky it.

Post the most perfect discus you've ever seen in a good picture and mark the areas that you think are good and tell us why.
Show us in another picture a fish that is still a good fish but why and where it is lacking compared to your top pick .

I would like to see that.

[ghurlag]

I can add nothing to the original post, except my approval :)

[YSS]

7 is a very good discus imo, most champions in class at major shows wins with a 7, or gets a very high placing. Grand champs are rarely over an 8, and yet some feel they deserve more than they really do. As it is i feel i may over-score, but i don't think being overly judgemental serves the purpose of the section. It is used mainly by beginers and intermediate level discus keepers, those still working on the finer points to what constitutes a good discus. Those among us who are preparing show discus, well unfortunetly we don't see too many of those in the Uni.

If a grand champ is an 8, what is a 10? One in a billion type of fish? That doesn't make sense to me. In my opinion, a grand champ from any major competition shouldn't be less than 9.5. 7 should be slightly better than average, not a very good discus. Scale needs to move.

[LizStreithorst]

Do the math. 5 is the average between 0 and 10. So a 5 fish is an average fish. That makes a 7 fish a good fish. A 9.5 fish would be a once in a life time fish.

For my own enjoyment, I looked at winners of the Singapore show and faulted every one although I loved them all. EVERY fish has something that could be a little better than it is. I generally agreed with the judging, but not in every case. (I saw just 1 photo. The judges studied the fish).

BTW, I'm not a judge. I'm a wannabe.

[kent1963]

If a grand champ is an 8, what is a 10? One in a billion type of fish? That doesn't make sense to me. In my opinion, a grand champ from any major competition shouldn't be less than 9.5. 7 should be slightly better than average, not a very good discus. Scale needs to move. Simply put yes! A 10 is PERFECTION a once in a lifetime fish, if your lucky. You can't judge livestock on a curve. Ive owned some fantastic fish over the years and never had one I would rate over 7 .

[YSS]

Man, you guys are tough. Hope you guys never get to performance appraisal for anyone. If you get a 50 on a test, you fail. That's my scale. In my opinion, 10 should not be a once in a lifetime fish. Once in a lifetime should be off the charts.

[nc0gnet0]

Raising a nice discus is not to hard....taking a good picture of a nice discus is dam near impossible for people like me (camera challenged). I understand the need for good pictures to addequately judge a discus, however I feel the current rating system is too weighted in the presentation department.

[yim11]

Damnit! Y'all made my [supposed to be] funny post and made it serious. LOL

I think it's difficult to say the grand champ in any major competition should be a 9+ score because some shows have better fish than others. Obviously the bigger shows should have winners with scores closer to 9 than smaller shows, but it all depends on what is brought.

The scoring standard (IMO) is very similar to a scoring standard for a beauty contest, there are multiple scoring categories that add up for a total score. I don't think anyone has ever won all points in every category for beauty contest but the scoring method is well accepted. We may never see a discus score 100% in all categories, but many that score 100% in some of the individual categories.

At work our employee performance appraisal has multiple categories with a rating from 0-4 (4 being best). You can talk to 10 different managers, and I have, to ask if an employee can ever get all 4's. 5 will say yes, 5 will say no - that there is no perfect employee. I don't think a perfect 10 discus exists, just as I don't think a perfect 10 beauty contestant exists, but I think the scale works fairly.

It was funny...damnit...

[LizStreithorst]

My fault. Sorry...

[ghurlag]

I still think it's funny :)

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk

[Keith Perkins]

And here all this time I thought the problem was that Al had hired judges from former Soviet block countries to judge mostly American discus.

[seanyuki]

Judging a discus at a show and a photo makes a big different............ie a discus at a show poise for cameras will get extra points from the judges and discus of the same caliber & hiding at the corner gets lower points.......at shows sizes matters too.....slightly bigger discus may get more points being the same strain/class......then come to eyes and body ratio,shape,fins,health and standard pattern for each strain/class........imo most contestants at show are happy when they score 8- 9 points from judges .

[YSS]

just as I don't think a perfect 10 beauty contestant exists,
It was funny...damnit...

I can give you plenty of 10's out there. :-)

[seanyuki]

lol provided no plastic surgery for the contestants......let's talk discus not humans lah.



I can give you plenty of 10's out there. :-)