Discus Hiding

[Zante]

I am starting to get seriously annoyed with my discus.

They have been in that tank since the beginning of April and they are still hiding behind the bogwood.

They do come out, occasionally, and when they're hungry, but if anything moves in the room they dash for cover.

If the lights are off they come out more readily, but again, they will dash for cover at the slightest move.

I cannot keep the lights off because the aquarium is planted, and anyway the aquarium is quite dark, with the lights off the tank is completely unviewable, and what's the point of having discus out if you cannot see them.

 

[mattlee]

what else is in the tank mate?

if you dont have any dithers then get some as this will relax them and give them the thought that there are no predators about. i have a group of 13 rosy tetra and loads of cardinals in with my wild angels and they are out all of the time which is great as they are wild caught and would normally be more skittish than tank bred fish.if you do have dithers then maybe add a few more.

the tank position may have something to do with it also. if its in a cove out of the way then the fish will be use to a quiet life and approaching people etc will scare them. if the tank is in a busy part of the house then they are more likely to get use to people and a more active out of tank life.

 

[Zante]

I have as well as the 6 discus
17 rummynoses
13 cardinals
9 otos
3 rams
11 corys

The rams are quite happy to come to the front when I approach the tank. The tetras too swim about and are quite unphased by goings-on in the room. But the discus... you'd think I don't have any for all you see them.

I am seriously considering removing the rocks and the log, and just leaving the plants for them to hide.
I have one fairly big amazon sword, a patch of vallisneria tigris and an ozelot sword, a tiger lily and a few more plants irrelevant for this matter.

 

[Zante]

The tank position is in the office where I work. In the office there are only five of us and since we're all programmers there is not much movement going on. There is quite a bit of traffic noise coming through the windows when they're open, but I wouldn't think that would influence them much.

 

[mattlee]

They are hiding for a reason and to remove their wood and rocks may stress them more....

 

[Zante]

<sigh>

I guess I'll have to stock up on patience and expose them as much as possible to people slowly and calmly walking up to the tank when they're out.

When you move like a cat they back off, and stare at you wearily ready to bolt behind the trunk. I'd just like them to be out and about even with people walking about the room...

 

[mattlee]

i had a group of wild ornatum cichlids and they would hide constantly, it took months for them to accept me as a friend rather than a threat and plenty of dithers worked quite well too. so patience is the key i think here.

what size tank is it could you add any more dithers?

 

[Zante]

It's 400 litres, and I'm afraid it's fully stocked...

I know... I'm always telling others to be patient, but when it comes to me...

 

[DevotedToDiscus]

Hey mate, do they look healthy? When they do come out for food, are they feeding well?

 

[Zante]

Hey mate, do they look healthy? When they do come out for food, are they feeding well?

They look nice and colourful. This evening after work I stayed a bit later, and they were out to eat the live brine shrimp. Occasionally they don't bolt away, but sedately swim to their hiding place.

A couple of them seem to be less afraid.

... come to think of it, they seem to be particularly jumpy when one particular person approaches the tank, but I know for sure he's done nothing, he's just particularly bulky (and new to the office)

... mmm... new to the office...

Could it be that simple? He's been with the company for three months, and now there are five of us in that office.

 

[DevotedToDiscus]

Could be. I have notice mine get jumpy if I am wearing a white shirt, where as all other times they are silly tame. I only really approach my tank when I feed them, so they associate movement with food. Being as yours are in an office I would guess they get stared at a lot?

Just one other thing to check is the water flow. They hate too much water flow and will find a dead spot in the tank and stay there if you have a lot of water movement.

 

[Zante]

Could be. I have notice mine get jumpy if I am wearing a white shirt, where as all other times they are silly tame. I only really approach my tank when I feed them, so they associate movement with food. Being as yours are in an office I would guess they get stared at a lot?

Not really. The office isn't open to the public, it's the detached tech office of an online sales firm, and there are only five of us that don't do much moving about. They have learnt to associate me with food though...

Just one other thing to check is the water flow. They hate too much water flow and will find a dead spot in the tank and stay there if you have a lot of water movement.

Ah... Yes, I have 10x circulation. It is very gentle because it is emanated from a panel that it 2'x6", so it's not a harsh current, but a gentle flow in the whole cross-section of the tank. I will try switching one of the pumps in the sump off and bring it down to about 4x

 

[DevotedToDiscus]

Give it a go mate, and kill the flow for a bit and see how they react. If nothing changes then that's obviously not the issue, and it may just take time for them to settle. They are generally more nervous than most other species. Like I said, mine are really tame, and will readily eat from my hand, but when I do a tank scrub and start poking around in their home they hate it, and will huddle together at the back of the tank for an hour or two after.

Don't get disheartened, as they are so majestic once settled, and have great character. I can watch them for hours

 

[Zante]

Well... I need to remove the log anyway, to give it a good scrub. It's literally covered with algae, which I don't really mind, but it's gone past looking like a fine lawn. It needs serious cleaning.

I'll see what's what this weekend while the thing is out.

 

[Zante]

Now I know why the discus are hiding, and why I have an algae explosion. Some idiot has been messing with the timer and the lights were on for 18 hours a day.

If I find out who I'm going to give him his own mahogany tank to sleep in!

Now it's back down to 8. I hope they'll recover soon.