# Update on my discus



## Troy McClure (Aug 3, 2005)

I thought I would take some pictures of my Lake Tefe Greens that will be going into my 50gal in a month or so. I absolutely love the wild/old strains and have had the pleasure of raising these buggers since they were only an 1.5" big. This was my first foray into discus and I know they weren't able to reach their fullest potential, but I still think they're beautiful. They will get a little bigger but they'll never be 7" dinner plates, which is perfectly fine for me. I got a bit lax with my water changes due to long hours at work, general laziness, etc. It's all a learning experience and I certainly have learned a lot. For a while the smallest of the bunch wasn't eating anything but as soon as I got back on track of doing daily 50% water changes, everybody has been super happy and pigging out again. If I had a chance to do things over again, I would start with a 55gal, still barebottom, and use an XP2 or XP3 cannister filter jammed with filter floss, ceramic rings, and Purigen. I am very happy with my feeding habits, so I wouldn't change anything there. They get a very diverse diet and are fed five times a day. I wish I could be fed five times a day!


















I hope you enjoy the pictures....it's time for their water change!


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## bristles (Mar 7, 2006)

Hey Troy,
Nice photos, I to have just started with Discus. A friend at the local aquarium gardeners club gave me 4 of his runts. Your's are way cool ! red eyes and all. I wish mine were good eaters (I'm used to angels that eat like pigs) Mine eat but are very fussy puffing every bite,


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## molurus73 (Apr 15, 2005)

Wow! I remember them when they were just itty bitties. VERY nice job Erik. rayer:


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## 04cobratorchred (Oct 22, 2006)

Very nice!!! They have great color. I gave discus a shot one time but they were not for me. i am going to give them another shot in my 90 gallon C02 tank if i come across them sometime soon. I am going to look for bigger ones this time, last time i had them they were only a inch and i could never keep up with them.


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## Troy McClure (Aug 3, 2005)

bristles said:


> Hey Troy,
> Nice photos, I to have just started with Discus. A friend at the local aquarium gardeners club gave me 4 of his runts. Your's are way cool ! red eyes and all. I wish mine were good eaters (I'm used to angels that eat like pigs) Mine eat but are very fussy puffing every bite,


Thanks bristiles! Those are definitely runts...they have the same exact shape as my runt. If you look at the first pic, you can see him in the back left. My girlfriend doesn't like my discus - she says they're evil. When I ask her why, she says some crap like, "They have red eyes!" She doesn't know what she's talking about (no surprise there.) I think I've put more time into my discus than I have with her!  OK, maybe not, but if she can't appreciate them, too bad for her! As for food, mine were picky for a while, and the runt still is. I don't see him going after the flakes much, but then again, I'm usually at work when those are fed from the autofeeder. I think one of the main advantages I had was buying from a local shop that specialized in discus. They had TONS of discus, big and small, they made their own beefheart, etc. So even though these guys were in a new environment, they were still getting the same BH and FBW they were used to. Consistency is essential.


molurus73 said:


> Wow! I remember them when they were just itty bitties. VERY nice job Erik. rayer:


Thanks Jim! I have to say I owe a lot of my success to your advice and encouragement. I still remember our trips to Cincy Discus. Too bad they aren't still around - I really need _good_ homemade beefheart! The San Francisco Bay beefheart seems like it has a lot of useless garbage and byproduct waste. The Cincy Discus BH mix was good stuff. Know anybody else that rolls their own?  Oh, and I thought you might be happy to hear they've laid eggs twice! I'm not exactly sure who the pair is, nor do I have any intentions of raising fry, I just thought it was great they were happy enough to get busy!


04cobratorchred said:


> Very nice!!! They have great color. I gave discus a shot one time but they were not for me. i am going to give them another shot in my 90 gallon C02 tank if i come across them sometime soon. I am going to look for bigger ones this time, last time i had them they were only a inch and i could never keep up with them.


Much appreciated, Mark. There's nothing better than a nicely planted tank with discus...I prefer just one strain, but mixes can be nice too. A 90gal would be a great tank and I would suggest getting some larger adults, 4" or so. Even though it's more money initially, I've spent a lot of money on packs of FBW and BH, time on water changes, frustration, etc. I think I wanted the challenge of raising juvies since it's supposedly one of the hardest things to do in freshwater aquatics...aside from an algae-free planted tank, but I already accomplished that.

As for these guys going into the 50gal, my only concern is the rocks I have in there. The discus still spook like horses and I'm concerned they might hit the rocks and get cut up. There isn't much I can do about it at this point. If that becomes a problem I'll just have to cover the rocks with moss and move on...


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## JRJ (Feb 9, 2005)

Hi Erik,

Those are gourgeous fish. I especially like wild type, Tefe greens and some of the redish browns. It looks like you've done it right. You must have a lot of patience.rayer: 

Russ


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## JRJ (Feb 9, 2005)

04cobratorchred said:


> i am going to give them another shot in my 90 gallon C02 tank if i come across them sometime soon. I am going to look for bigger ones this time, last time i had them they were only a inch and i could never keep up with them.


Mark, I sent you a PM.


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## MrSanders (Mar 5, 2006)

> my only concern is the rocks I have in there. The discus still spook like horses and I'm concerned they might hit the rocks and get cut up.


 You should probably just get used to it... though they do settle down a bit more once out of bare bottoms and into a planted tank with hiding places. Still, they seem to spook very easily, more so than any other fish I have kept. I often times walk into my room quickly forgetting and they freak out. My biggest just jumped out a few day ago and smashed his head on the glass cover leaving a nice cut across his head. They heal quick though if they are healthy.... just hope they dont get any scars


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## Troy McClure (Aug 3, 2005)

I did some sizing with one of my discus... came out to slightly smaller than 1/5th.










It's a bit on the big side. No matter, I still love their markings and they're healthy


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