Aggression in the Discus Tank

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for Aggression in the Discus Tank

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headz hntr - 7 years ago

nice video but to bad the qaulity is not that high

RezidentZombie - 7 years ago

I just bought a new little discus. I put him in my tank and he is being terrorized. I hope like you say it goes away or calms down. Feel bad for him.

RezidentZombie - 7 years ago

AquaWoman it has already calmed down. The little guy is now standing up for himself and is now chasing some of them around. So pecking order is getting established now.

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

RezidentZombie it can be hard to watch. If he's much smaller, I'd get something that he can hide behind. Plastic bamboo leaves like the one in my tank work good. Mine still fight, but they don't really hurt each other.

Kiran Patil - 7 years ago

How do i minimise discus aggression in my tank. My blue turquoise is very aggressive. Plz suggest

Jay Virdee - 7 years ago

The problem in my tank was that one of the juvenile discus got isolated to one corner of the tank - it stopped eating as a result and eventually died.

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

Kiran Patil You can increase the number of Discus which can sometimes change the group dynamic but you really don't need to do anything. As I say in the video, this is normal behavior. Discus can often be very aggressive. It's their nature. I still have a very aggressive male in my Discus tank. What do I do about it? Nothing. I enjoy their natural behavior. They settle down at times too. Good luck! Hope that helps. If you want super docile fish, I highly recommend gold fish.

silkfan - 7 years ago

AquaWoman, I own one pegion blood and one strawberry discuss. They are in 44 gallon tank that is really tall. the medium size pigeon blood is chasing the little one non stop :( what is your opinion on requarantine them both re arrange the decoration and introduce them to the tank again?Also will have a blue ram make them more calm? How often do you change water and how many percent? I do 10 percent everyday with gravel vacuuming . Your discus are so pretty and dreamlike :)

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

silkfan hi again, with five Discus in a 44 gallon tank you may want to change your water by 50% to reduce the ammonia. Once your bio-filtration is better established you might be able to do water changes less frequently. I'm happy to hear your testing the water. That's the best way to keep on top of water parameters until your tank gets well established. When my Discus were juveniles I was doing 50 to 75% water changes every other day. That kept the water nice and clean and the Discus were happy and healthy. Ammonia can also come from leftover food so watch how much you feed. Think small amounts but 4 times a day. I fed mine a varied diet of beef heart, blood worms, spirolina and Cobalt flakes and occasionally pellets. But only feed an amount they can eat up with three minutes. If any food stays on the bottom vacuum it up. It's work growing out these Gorgeous fish, but it's worth it and it does get easier when they become adults. Have Fun too!

silkfan - 7 years ago

AquaWoman sorry for the late response , I was preparing for the nursing school entrance exam. By the way I got three more discus and now they get along just fine . I also tried to arrange some decorations around and that seem to help with the aggression. By the way , saw a pigeon blood with yellow color just like yours and you are so right . They do look like giraffe. I was going to get one but when I brought my water to be tested , they seller refuse to sell me more fish before the ammonia level was too high and I am having an ammonia spike . I am still trying to change the water out every other two day for 20 percent . I am really stress out now I even do the gravel vac as well . Any tips on how to lower ammonia efficiently ? Thank you again . You rock !:)

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

silkfan I'm glad you put them back together. They like to be in groups even with the aggression. I hope you can get more Discus because that will be what really makes a difference. Keep in mind though that these fish are not as peaceful as people generally think they are. Aggression is part and parcel to their very nature. Try to see the aggressive behavior as natural and know that very rarely do they do any real damage to each other. Nipped fins grow back and damaged scales fall off and new ones grow in. Trust Mother Nature , she's got them all worked out. It is hard to watch if you want a peaceful tank. My tank is rarely peaceful and that's just the way it is. The fish establish their pecking order and some fish are always trying to move up or keep others down. If you want pure peace try Goldfish. They are like peaceful little puppies.

silkfan - 7 years ago

AquaWoman thank very much for the fast response . I am so confuse on what to do now . I put the smaller one in the smaller tank and reintroduced it to the bigger tank again . The big one still going after the small one from time to time. I changed the decoration around to see if that will reduce the aggression and that did not really end well. Now the big one is hiding in the corner. I will change water like the way you suggest :) thank you

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

silkfan Thank you silk fan. You really should consider keeping Discus in a group of at least 5, six is even better and more is best. You only have two so one will always be dominant over the other. It is natural for these fish to be somewhat aggressive but with a larger group you'd very likely see less of it. Also, if you do get more fish get a larger tank too. I'd recommend at least a 65 gallon for five fish but the bigger the tank the easier it is to maintain. Adding other species like Rams etc. will have no effect on the Discus aggression. Discus live within a pecking order with the most dominant (aggressive) fish being at the top. Males compete for females, food, and territory within the tank. Females can also be aggressive and even be at the top of the hierarchy. In my tank the largest female is the top fish. When growing out Discus its best to do daily or at least every other day water changes. I would do more than 10 % though. They really do need that clean water to be healthy and grow to their optimal potential. Now that mine are adults and my tank is well established, I only do weekly water changes(about 75%) I'll do a new video so you can see how mine are doing. I just got a bunch of new fish that are in a quarantine tank so I'll show those too. Best of luck with your Discus and keep me posted to how they are doing! Happy Fishkeeping!

bob allison - 7 years ago

Some pairs just eat their first few hatches.

Jose Orozco - 7 years ago

Where did you buy your yellow discus?

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

Jose Orozco these are pigeon bloods which I think he still sells. Mine are likely more yellow than orange because I make my own food and they don't get anything with red dye in it. Most fish food sold has stuff in it that affects color. Most go for red enhancement which make yellow fish more orange. These weren't always this yellow. They were more orange when I got them.

Jose Orozco - 7 years ago

AquaWoman Oh yeah I know who he is, I ordered two fish from him and I am getting them tomarrow, on his website there are no yellow Discus :/

AquaWoman - 7 years ago

Jose Orozco all of these Discus are Stendkers imported by Hans. Thanks for the question and Thanks for watching.

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

They look so Small here! New video coming soon and wait until you see how big and Fat they got! Thanks for watching!

Old School Fish Guy - 8 years ago

I always figure that even if the fry don't live, I'm OK with that but breeding fish means they're happy fish and healthy fish!!

Mark Roe - 8 years ago

How many gallons are in this tank please?

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

+AquaWoman *autocorrect sucks! Lol it's supposed to say they are SHOALING fish.

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

+Mark Roe no not at all. Three could work in a 55 but it's actually easier to have a min. Of 6 fish in a larger tank. Remember these are who align fish so they do better in groups. Also, some use the rule that you should have at least 10 gallons of water for every one fish.

Mark Roe - 8 years ago

+AquaWoman Ahh ok. I have a 55 gallon aquarium with one Discus and I was a bit confused about how many I could get into it without causing an ammonia problem. Do you think 3 Discus would be too many for 55 gallons?

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

65 gallons.

10. comment for Aggression in the Discus Tank

Sebas Gaming - 8 years ago

My problem is that I have 2 heckles discus size 2-3 inch I introduced the new discus yesterday and the old fish attacked it immediately then the new one turned around and now the old one is stuck hiding at the back of my pump. And he is really damaged I am afraid because is fins are not straight up but are down and he is scared. It looks to me that he has white spot but I am treating it.But white spot is a fungi that tends to spread with shock and they are the only 2 in my tank

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

If he was damaged, his scales can look white. Damaged tissue can be white and fluffy or fungus looking. I would bet he's healing. Aggression can be ugly but it will settle down eventually. My tank is now a peaceful paradise and every fish knows it's place in the pecking order. Keep your water pristine and give them time.

Aquarium Boy123 - 8 years ago

He looks awesome! Also loves those neons :) got some myself

Aquarium Boy123 - 8 years ago

+AquaWoman awesome!

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

Thanks! It's hard to see but if you look close you can see I actually have two different types of neons in this tank. Some are standard and some are Cardinal Neons.

T Holz - 8 years ago

Those fish look great! Aggression is a problem for sure. The more fish you get the better depending on the size of your tank.

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

Thanks! Good advice too.

Chicagofishkeeper - 8 years ago

great tank, they look amazing, just subscribed

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

Thank You! :)

DEA- Exotics - 8 years ago

great video but when you move them into the new tank again you need to paint the sides bottom and back of the tank because the see their own reflection and get stressed . and you have a beautiful tank

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

+Dakota Aquatics Thanks for the kudos! You too!

DEA- Exotics - 8 years ago

okay i could not tell from your video and keep the great videos coming

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

It's hard to see because the lighting is bad but my breeder tank has white paper taped to all sides except the front. I have it underneath too. The female was really bothered by the bare bottom though so I added a sprinkling of gravel and that did the trick. Great tips to point out though! Thanks! Also Thanks for Subbing!

AquaWoman - 8 years ago

Thanks! That's an excellent point about the number of tank mates! Wish I had brought that up! I had six but lost one in the great disease disaster. I'd love to add a Red Melon to this group but the thought of a lengthy quarantine and caring for another tank is making me stall. Maybe someday. Better yet, maybe my pair will spawn and give me some free fish! Hahahahah "Free Fish" !!! As if THAT existed! ;)

Jose Luis Carbajal-Carbajal - 8 years ago

If they have any fry can i buy or have some plz!!! Your tank looks amazing by the way :)

Scuba Steve - 8 years ago

They look amazing! I agree, they have to work it out. There's a lot to say about the subject. I like to add 6 or more to the community to spread out the aggression. That's about the only way I've seen to curb the aggression. Great video!