Beginner looking for someone with huge patience ;D

[Miyuusha]

Hello!
I've been a member for some time as I've been thinking about keeping Discus for a while and it's taken time to prepare. In the meantime I've been keeping freshwater Angelfish.

At the moment I have only one almost fully grown Angelfish (a female who spawns and parent raises with all her heart) alone in a tank and as of today a tiny little baby Discus.
I've read a lot but now that he's here I'm nervous and don't believe anything I know so I just want some reassurance. I want nothing but what's best for him.

I don't have much space where I live so the little one has been QT'd at the pro store only about a block away. We also use the exact same tap water, temperature and products to treat the water, it's always smooth to transfer fish I get there to my own tank.

Today the little one got to come home with me, before introducing him I cleaned out the tank so that he wouldn't get stressed by my weekly clean tomorrow and rearranged things in there, creating more hiding spaces with amazon swords so he'd get some privacy (my Angel does not care for any of this, she'd follow me around the house if she could) and also to throw my big Angel off a bit since she's the queen.

It's gone very well, my Angel couldn't care less about the grass camper and he's poked his nose out a few times to check things out. When first introducing him I kept the tank dark for a couple of hours but kept the lights in the room on so he wouldn't feel like he was on display.

What should I think about now with my new baby? How long is it normal for him to stay dark in color? I won't feed the fish today but should I expect him to eat tomorrow? I won't be able to let go of the thought of something being wrong until he's back to his pretty self and not hiding in the bushes, that's just my fish mommy nature and it's my first Discus, new Angels usually come out after a few hours.

I apologize for the long post but appreciate any thoughts or comments or advice! ;)

[Skip]

What should I think about now with my new baby?

what did you mean by qt'd at the store? how big is it?


How long is it normal for him to stay dark in color?

it takes a few days for discus to settle down.. but you only have one.. so it may never feel comfortable cuz they are schooling fish and like to be in groups of AT LEAST 6


I won't feed the fish today but should I expect him to eat tomorrow?

too many variables that would cause him not to eat today, tomorrow or day after.. lack of water changes, no qt, being alone, illness etc..


I won't be able to let go of the thought of something being wrong until he's back to his pretty self and not hiding in the bushes, that's just my fish mommy nature and it's my first Discus, new Angels usually come out after a few hours.


discus are different.. more sensitive.. the small discus are more prone to environmental issues and can die much easier then older fish..

how often do you plan to water change and how much.. do you have substrate..

[Miyuusha]

what did you mean by qt'd at the store? how big is it?
As in I didn't QT it at home but in a separate tank in the store, I'm friends with the owner.
Hm, it's hard to tell in the water but he's a baby, about 5 cm without the back fin.



it takes a few days for discus to settle down.. but you only have one.. so it may never feel comfortable cuz they are schooling fish and like to be in groups of AT LEAST 6
Yes I do know they are a schooling fish like Angels who are also recommended to be in a group of 6 but I'm not so sure if I buy into that anymore x.x
I'll keep an eye on him of course to see if it's affecting him more to be alone, he doesn't seem too picky though since I posted he's come out of his hiding to follow the Angel around and his color is almost completely back to normal.



too many variables that would cause him not to eat today, tomorrow or day after.. lack of water changes, no qt, being alone, illness etc..
I know that, I was just wondering when I should expect a healthy discus to eat. Perhaps they don't eat for a few days or they eat the next day like Angels.



discus are different.. more sensitive.. the small discus are more prone to environmental issues and can die much easier then older fish..

how often do you plan to water change and how much.. do you have substrate..
I figured as much, I thought his buddy was way too small to bring home. I would have loved to start out with a bigger one but it's hard to get a hold of them as it is where I live since I don't want to buy them online.
I was planning on staying with my normal schedule. I change the water once a week, 40%, after I spend some time getting rid of algae and trimming my plants etc. I do have substrate, dark brown aquarium soil and a filter that turns the water 10 times per hour.

[Skip]

good luck :)

keep us updated

[zchauvin]

Phew, I hope your ready to submit a disease questionaire in the next few weeks, or days for that matter.

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[Skip]

Phew, I hope your ready to submit a disease questionaire in the next few weeks, or days for that matter.


yep

[Wjmulder]

Way to show restraint warlock!!

[Skip]

Way to show restraint warlock!!

thanks :)

[shoveltrash]

patience....
well, Discus-keeping follows some pretty strict guidelines. warlock detailed a few to start. without following these guidelines, you may be in for disappointment.
a lone tiny juvie Discus, in a tank with one single Angelfish, with weekly cleanings?
my advice to you is read read read here on this forum. I too got Discus before acquiring the knowledge needed to keep healthy/happy fish. so you're not alone hon. and of course the first two LFS youngsters I got (plopped in my AF tank) didn't make it :(.
knowledge is power ;)
good luck!!!!!
and did I say "read"? LOL

[nabilbb]

so it may never feel comfortable cuz they are schooling fish and like to be in groups of AT LEAST 6


W,
I have a pair that I moved to 25G for breeding... will they be ok they are not atleast 6?

[Skip]

W,
I have a pair that I moved to 25G for breeding... will they be ok they are not atleast 6?

pairs are cool with each other..

however, sometimes they do have disagreements.. and may need to be moved.. since breeding tanks are kind of small.. and not really anywhere to hide..

just keep eye on them and keep up water changes.. you should be fine :)

[LizStreithorst]

I actually know someone on another fourm that has raised one sole Discus in a planted tank with fast moving fish. If I'm not mistaken, he does one WC daily. He posted pics of the fish. It is healthy. Contrary to what I've been let to believe it CAN be done. I wouldn't want to try it myself.

I worry about what your Angel's reaction to the Discus might be when she lays again.

[ktm4us6]

Hi I'm new to this also, and from what i have seen on this site almost all your answers on how to raise discus are in discus basics for beginners. Start reading, also search this forum about juvenile care. Hope this helps.

[Miyuusha]

Thought I should come in for an update and say thank you for the support (not).

I'm sad to disappoint you all first by saying that the Discus is still alive. He is also doing great, he even got bigger (and bluer!)? I know this must be hard to hear but he is. He also got a friend a week later, who is also doing great, I know it's a tragedy really. It's almost as if I'm capable of taking care of them despite having some specific questions at the very beginning. Insane I know!

[aalbina]

Thought I should come in for an update and say thank you for the support (not).

I'm sad to disappoint you all first by saying that the Discus is still alive. He is also doing great, he even got bigger (and bluer!)? I know this must be hard to hear but he is. He also got a friend a week later, who is also doing great, I know it's a tragedy really. It's almost as if I'm capable of taking care of them despite having some specific questions at the very beginning. Insane I know!

Well - I know it's tough going against established proven convention here Miyuusha - and that often times people here can be overly harsh with newbies who do just that. Please understand that you are one of hundreds of new discus keepers who have done the same thing and most of them end up killing their fish or severely stunting their growth (meaning they stay 2, 3, or 4 inches big forever). The knee jerk reactions you got are a reaction to "another person who disregards the conventions that have been proven to work in growing and keeping discus for the last 30 years". If you had done a lot of reading here as your initial post states - you would have known that you were going to hear pretty much everything you heard prior to posting. Juvenile discus, substrate, no real QT, plants, tank mates etc.

I assure you that no one here is dissappointed that your discus are still alive. No one here would be happy if they died or fell ill. In fact, almost everyone here would be replying to you in the disease forum if you asked for help. The recommendations, minus the sarcasm, are solid proven recommendations - following them will keep you out of the disease forum. Not following them might work or might not.

I understand that the sarcasm in your post is in direct response to the ribbing you got when you posted initially - so I guess I can't blame you for venting on us a bit. I hope folks just leave your post alone - but I'm not too hopeful.

I hope we hear more from you and maybe get some pictures posted of your discus. Good luck!

Adam


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[triplecrown333]

:p:p:ppost pics or your discus are are :angel: jkjkjk

[dghby]

Wow, Sarcasm not expected after I thought Warlock was very good about his responses. I will say i did not follow the rules and suggestions my first time around ( about 2 years ago) my Discus were fine after a month as well. all 6 of them. But, they are all dead now ( didn't survive the year, except one who made it about 16 months) i hope it works out for you.
I am following the guidelines layed out for newbies now, much more enjoyable.

[mmorris]

I broke all the rules when I was new but that was because I hadn't done my homework in advance. I bought one little juvie and put him in a 20 gallon planted tank. He was fine for two or three weeks and then he stopped eating, hiding all the time. The lfs sold me this med, then that med. Then I ran across Simply and learned the basics. I bought a 55 gallon and five more discus. My original fish was delighted. He grew up (although by this point a bit stunted), spawned,raised little ones and lived for years. I keep my tanks barebottom, I feed juvies heavily and I do substantial water changes.

[strawberryblonde]

I broke all the rules when I was new but that was because I hadn't done my homework in advance. I bought one little juvie and put him in a 20 gallon planted tank. He was fine for two or three weeks and then he stopped eating, hiding all the time. The lfs sold me this med, then that med. Then I ran across Simply and learned the basics. I bought a 55 gallon and five more discus. My original fish was delighted. He grew up (although by this point a bit stunted), spawned,raised little ones and lived for years. I keep my tanks barebottom, I feed juvies heavily and I do substantial water changes.

+1

I raised a single little discus in a community tank back in the 80's because I didn't know any better. I was VERY fortunate to have chosen peaceful tankmates and even back then I was a nut for water changes so even though he didn't get daily WC's, he got twice a week 90% ones and, because he seemed to always be hungry, I fed him 4-5 times a day, making sure that he got plenty of food each time. Of course, he was raised on the food I gave all the other fish... Tetra flakes. Poor guy managed to stay healthy and grew to a smallish/normal size of about 6".

So yes, it "can" be done in other ways than those most often recommended on these forums. Would I ever do it that way again? NO! This time around I read, asked questions, then bought from a reputable sponsor (thank you Hans!), raised 5 of them with daily water changes and lots of good quality food and moved them to a bigger home when it became apparent that they weren't going to stop growing at 6".

I feel really bad for my lonely little discus of the 80's when I compare him to the ones I've raised for the last year. He never did reach his full potential and that was my fault.