My first discus

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WarrendaFish

Gambusia
MFK Member
Apr 23, 2009
766
2
18
Massachusetts, U.S.A.
I just recently purchased 2 half-dollar sized blue discus. So far they have been excellent in the grow tank. I was worried they werent even going to make the trip from the store to my home, but they've done just fine.
However, one of the discus has like an "extension" of fin on the top or back of his/her dorsil fin. It'ls about an inch long and kind of looks like an angler. At first I just thought he was dropping a deuce, but after closer examination at the store where I bought it I noticed it was a part of him... Any I deas what it may be?? It doesnt seem to effect his daily life.. Just a birth defect? the difference between male and female?
Like I said, they're are my first discus. They're both beautiful and personable.. I love cichlids! I'll get you some pics by tonight when I get outta work. There are a couple in my gallery...

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Keep on Monster Keeping On
 
A few things.

1. Nice quality video
2. The extension on the dorsal is not always a sure sign of male or female. Some strain has it more than others.

The bad.. just my opinion

1. The dorsal extension should not be pronounce (if exists) on discus that is half dollar size. This may be a sign that these discus are stunted and much older than their size.
2. I would not call this a grow tank as it's not the recommended setup for trying to grow little discus into big discus. Not sure the size of the tank but this is the type of setup that I would put 5"+ discus in.
3. Overall, the one discus that I see in the video seems active, that's always a good sign.

There is nothing wrong with your setup as long as you like it and is not looking into growing big discus. In the future, the formula for getting small discus to grow in is.

1. Get young discus from a reputable source. (less than 3 months old)
2. Feed it a lot and keeping the water and tank clean. This is much more difficult to do with your setup.
 
Thank you for the input. It's much appreciated. I only call it a grow tank because basically all the fish in there are very young... the extension of the dorsal fin is quite pronounced but only on one of the two. Being a taller tank it is a little more difficult to clean but, I am religious with my water changes and the quality of the water in all my tanks.. I will, eventually, get bigger tanks for whatever fish may need it. And had planned on getting more discus once they grew a little.. It's a nice community of different less aggresive fish. I did do research on each type of fish in there to make sure they would get along well. Maybe I should have done a little more... Thank you for your help and I will definitely post more in the future as they continue to grow. I have a few more videos if you are interested. I will upload them tonight and post them in the morning... Thanks again!
 
It is not so much of the height of the tank that makes it harder to clean. It's the gravel that un-eaten food could get in between and create problems in the long run. When I try to grow discus, I only go with bare-bottom tank. I'ts not a good sight to look at in the beginning but I did get used to it. I've started out with gravel when I first started out with discus but I don't do that any more.
 
Discus like to leisurely pick their food off the bottom. They are going to have a very hard time doing that with those rocks in there, as well as it being virtually impossible to clean their poop from in between and under all those rocks. Looks good, but not a healthy environment for growing discus.
 
I have to agree, that tank will be difficult to maintain. My thinking on the discus is that it has been hormone treated. In my opinion it has far too much color for a fish that size not to have been treated. Hormones would also perhaps explain the extension on the fin.
 
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