Keeping discus :

Tank

As large as possible. Note: the rule for discus is ten gallons of tank per fish.

Water

Whereas most often soft water is recommended for discus, it is not necessarily required. So long as the tap water is not too extreme, it may still be acceptable. The advantage to an R/O unit is that the product water always comes out the same, and therefore there is less variability in mixing the water that has to be dealt with. So long as you use the same amounts of chemicals, the water will always come out the same. However you decide to go about preparing the water, you should adhere strictly to some values in the tank. The pH is best kept at 8 or below. Preferably at 7 if possible. PH 5.5-6.5 would be best. Temperatue 84-86 degrees Fahrenheit.

It is good to have a system worked out where you have a container in which to store water you are going to use before you use it for water changes. This allows you time to age the water, by aerating it, adjusting the pH, hardness, etc. I use plastic 55 gallon soda barrels for my water, but for significantly fewer and smaller tanks, other containers will suffice. I have used rubber maid trash cans and plain five gallon paint buckets (never used) as well.

Water changes

These should be the real filter for the tank. Water changes help keep the pH in check, disease low, nitrates low, and the fish happy. You should try to make a water change at least once as week, but preferably two or three times a week if at all possible. Your fish will thank you. The idea is to suck out the detritus before it has a chance to decompose and add to the nitrogen in the tank. Nitrates are lessened with water changes, but never completely removed, so it is better to start before the cycle begins for detritus.

Selecting Baby Discus

Without a doubt, everyone wants to buy quality fish. If at all possible, I start by taking a good look at the parents. Good parents generally produce good babies. I want babies that have been separated from their parents for at least a few days but preferably a few weeks. If they have been fed baby brine shrimp, the bright orange noses are normal. The next thing that I look for is any dark fish. A dark fish is a sick fish.

Next, I want to look at the shape of the fish. I want a round body with a tall upright dorsal fin. I look for smooth lines that are pleasing to the eye. If the fish looks longer than it is tall, I know that I can find other fish with better body shape elsewhere.

The body color of the young fish will give me great insight about whether or not the fish has been "hormoned." Some "Breeders" hormone fish to make them sterile. In other cases, the "wholesaler" treats the fish so that he can "get a better price" for his fish, because the colors will be so intense. Iin my opinion, a hormoned Discus is no longer of value to anyone who is interested in having the fish spawn.

The size of the eye is a good indicator of the general health of the fish and how well it has been fed. If the eye looks big and out of place, it has missed far too many meals for one reason or another. The damage is done; the fish is stunted. No matter what I have ever done to try to straighten out this problem, it's too late. Stunted fish may breed.

Genetic defects are hard to see on small fish, but they can be detected. First, I like to take my time and observe my prospective purchase. I look for defects in the face of the fish. I check for the following: one eye larger than the other, misshapen gills, or a face that is off center.

There are other signs of good health that I look for. Do the fish swim to the front of the tank as I view them? Do they feed aggressively? Do they look fat? Do the eyes look clear and bright? Is the tank housing the young Discus clean and the water clear? Is the water free of any foul odors? If the answers to all these questions are "yes," I mentally run through all the points that I raised earlier. These are very encouraging signs indicating that the young fish are well kept, quite healthy, of high quality, and that the transition from the point of purchase to your home will be a smooth one.

Feeding

Discus really need to be fed at least twice a day, and more if they are immature and still growing. Discus have very short gastrointestinal tracts, and the food does not spend long in their system. It is important therefore to ensure that the food they receive be often and very nutritious. A well balanced diet of both meaty and greeny foods is recommended. A mixture of shrimp, beef heart, and many other ingredients is a good way to get both. Also, frozen bloodworms, brine shrimp, glass worms, are good foods as well mysis shrimp. Live foods are discouraged, as things such as live tubifex, bloodworms, etc., have a tendency to carry harmful pathogens. A couple reliable live foods are brine shrimp and earth worms.

Sizes

It is recommended that if you are planning to set up a show tank, where the tank will have other inhabitants other than discus and the tank will be landscaped or planted, that you begin with adults or near adults. Buying adult discus ensures that the discus will not become stunted in time from being fed too little or not having the water changed often enough. Adults are also less likely to be effected by disease. As well, the color on the adult fish will already be apparent when you buy it as well, so no guessing will occur.

On the other hand, raising a group of juveniles together is an enjoyable experience. This is also the recommended way if you are planning to try your hand at breeding later. Buying a group of six to eight juveniles gives a good chance of having at least one pair. Also, if you buy from a breeder (which you should), buy two different but close sizes of fish, as males tend to grow faster than females when young, and the breeder will probably give you fish of the same color type all from the same spawn (i.e. of the same color type, get 3 large and 3 medium sized fish).

Breeding Discus Secrets

The pair cleans a usually vertical spawning site, perhaps an inverted flower pot. In typical cichlid fashion, the eggs are laid and fertilized.

If the parents repeatedly eat their eggs afterwards, they are given until they are eighteen months of age, and then re-mated with other Discus. Alternatively, a 'secret' method may be employed. A piece of mesh is put around the substrate the eggs are deposited on and is only removed when the eggs hatch, by which time (hopefully) the frustrated parents are too 'bonded' to the fry to eat them.

Discus eggs hatch on the third day after laying. If the parents eat them, let them spawn again, but remove the female afterwards. She is usually the culprit; as her ovaries swell with the next spawn she must 'clear the area' to make room for it. The male will raise them, another 'secret' unveiled.

In another two and half days of being tended to, moved around, blown around by the parents, the fry will become freeswimming and feed off the magical skin slime adult Discus produce at the time. At this stage, if you squirt newly-hatched Brine Shrimp at them, they will eat them. After 3 weeks you can feed them flakes or beefheart.

International Breeders

www.wattleydiscus.com
www.macsdiscus.com
www.takritdiscus.com
www.discushatchery.com

Medicine & Treatments

www.simplydiscus.com/library/
disease_medications/index.shtml

Discus Gallery

www.geocities.com/mydiscusfish/
discusgallery.html
www.geocities.com/kc_discus
www.simplydiscus.com/library/gallery.shtml