Hello guys,
I recently got hooked into discus fish, thanks to some bros in the forum that gave away a pair of their discus to me. They are lovely, amazing and majestic
Coincidentally, i'm into planted tanks and with the same water parameter (at least mostly) requirements for aquatic plants and discus fish, i was able to acclimate them in my tank smoothly.
Also, after a few weeks, I was able to make them switch to eating pellets. I believe the folks who originally owned them raised them with frozen blood worm. Now they are eating pellets actively and getting fat with it. I feed them with Sera Discus granules and Tetra Bits Complete. I mix them up.
Also recently, I managed to convince my wife to allow me to keep a small pack of frozen blood worm in the freezer so I tried to feed them with it. Although I only do that the day before water change because I noticed it fouls the water easily. My tank, as it's planted, I allow a small build up of allanids (detritus worms) but usually control them with fish feed reduction or vermex when there's an outbreak. They are generally harmless but what about on discus? Are they harmless to them as well? I read stuff about the nematodes which is another type of worm and may look like detritus worms as well. These I believe are the dangerous ones.
As for feeding them frozen bloodworms, is there something I should be concerned about? Is there some sort of medication I should do regularly if I add this food in their staple to prevent any infections or diseases?
As for medication, any advise on what should I invest? I checked Seachem Paraguard and it seems like a good general purpose preventive medication that can be dosed regularly. Or is there a better brand for preventive medication out there?
What about beefheart? I read somewhere that this is the best source of protein for discus. How do you prepare this food? Or is there a packed ready to feed beefheart that can be bought off the shelf like frozen blood worms? What are the things that I should be concerned about when feeding them with beefheart?
Many thanks in advance for replies.
Hi Allan Asis, Beef heart is good for discus as it buildup their body mass n size .like those from the competition.
but you need to change their water after feeding as beefheart fouled up the water very fast if let inside the tank. some Lfs do sell prepared beefheart like Y618 ,C328 etc.
Discus are big fish s , they do well if you change their water every day. i use to change water every day.
Discus in planted tank is a bit tricky . Feed in moderation for fear of over loading of nutrients and other elements such as nitrate
colin | The Wilderness and Forest | FTS
Sorry to hijack your thread, can blue turquoise discus kept with angel fish and gourami? Any recommended place to get it with reasonable price?
Get the stronger ones to give yourself a head start
Blue turquoise discus , please go to http://www.chaidiscus.com.sg/contact.htm
colin | The Wilderness and Forest | FTS
Guys, thanks for the feedbackit's been a while since I posted this enquiry.
So the discus I adopted several months ago are doing very well and very fat now. In fact they eat like pigs
I found a source for pork and beef heart so that's not an issue anymore. I find they like pork heart more because probably it's softer.
I also mix pellet in their meal to ensure they have all the nutrients they need that may not be present in pork/beef heart.
I didn't bother to get a heater. They seem to do well with the temp ranging from 27-33C. I also don't use fan or chiller in my planted tank.
A couple of months ago I added a small angel fish. Initially it was getting bullied by the discus fishes but it's smart enough to still be able to feed with the same food as the discus eat and is now getting very fat as well. They now seem to be getting along although the angel fish knows its place and who is the boss.
As for nutrients in water column, since i'm following EI method, I don't mind excessive nutrients. In fact i'm deliberately doing that. 30+ppm K, 5ppm PO4, 20ppm NO3 total weekly dosing and 60-70% water change on a weekend. the discus fishes don't seem to be affected by the fertilizers in the water column.
The only thing that i'm concerned is their occasional skirmish but I guess that's better than them just moping in the corner. At least I can tell they are healthy that way
So far so good and will post some pics in a couple of days.
Discus seem like quite demand in water quality. Hmm...
My tank's water quality is fine I guess haha!Originally Posted by Dscheng
But really I'm not doing anything spectacular.
I just use tap water and a little bit of prime to remove chlorine.
I don't really bother doing water change or clean the tank after feeding them those pork/beef heart. it's a messy food though but they seem fine with it.
They also don't seem to be scared with high light. I have 6 T5HO lights right now in the tank. I guess they just got used to it.
They also act like dogs. Once I'm around, they get giddy in front of the glass and acting like they are screaming for food lol!
I also don't put any of those discus conditioning chemical. Seachem seem to have lots of those but expensive!
The water flow in my tank is mild which is probably to their preference.
temperature as I mentioned is not controlled. they don't seem to care too. they just eat and grow.
I just make sure to to WC every week for at least 50% and this is also for the benefit of the plants.
That's it really. I guess forcing them to live in the environment that my tank was currently in ended up working well for them. The tank which is already stable, didn't have to adjust to parameter change.
Wow.. Weekly WC 50%.. guess they really need good water. How big is your tank? If 60L, so weekly 50% is 30L water wor, haha.
65L (2ft). water change at 50% is quick though. Takes me 15 minutes. I fill tub with water and condition it. then use a very long hose (cheap ones from hardware) and a water pump. drain and refill very quickly. Usually I go 70% actually. Plants grow very well with consistent water changes. That probably benefits the discus too.
2ft can keep discus? I always thought they are big fishes.
3 of them fit into my tank hehe, with plants
This post is useless without a picture . Discus please : )
colin | The Wilderness and Forest | FTS
Took a quick one tonight. sorry for the picture quality, I have no idea how to take a good one using an Iphone. The red one is the big bully. All 3 of them were from fellow hobbyists in AQ
072_.jpg72__.jpg
Looks beautiful and settling well. Don't change anything !
colin | The Wilderness and Forest | FTS
Discus is the ultimate fish to breed, as good quality specimens can command good prices.
People easily fall in love with good quality specimens.
LIFE IS UNBEARABLE WITHOUT A FISH TANK!!!
Is it blue turquoise discus? Where to get this type? Hopefully juveniles type.
Thanks Barmby!
Is it blue turquoise discus? Where to get this type? Hopefully juveniles type.
my discus actually had 1 angel fish with them in tank before. He was small so he gets bullied by the boss discus (red) all the time. But he is quite smart. once he tried fighting back and nip the discus eye, the discus retreated. since then he became the bully. so I have to remove him already from the tank.
Guys, what is the idea water parameter for discus? I know the temperature must be 28~32 right? How about 6.0PH? Can discus take it?
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