If you are considering attending the nearest pet store to purchase your next discuss fish, then I would consider a few pointers that I'm about to share with you. Discus fish are very delicate and sensitive to food so you need to know how to take care of one before spending the money. They do cost a small fortune so I would hope you would feel more comfortable spending if you were confident in your care procedures.
Now, if you feel or if you have heard that discus fish are for only advanced fish owners, I feel that it is not true. You can easily do this task if you know in advanced of what to look for. You may feel challenged and overwhelmed in the beginning but that's nothing a little practice can fix.
Please consider their living space. Their aquarium must be the right size as they need deep water. I would consider getting a large enough tank both deep and wide so they have plenty of room to grow. Discus fish can grow 6 or 7 inches and they need their living space.
Now if you choose to keep them in an open tank that is still o.k., but I would consider a tank with some plants or rocks inside it. This can give them somewhere to hide when they want to be alone and help them feel more comfortable. Not to mention it will help with the looks of the aquarium.
You also don't want the possibility of the discuss fish to hurt itself if it gets frightened and has nowhere to hide. It can rapidly race around inside the tank and hit the glass and cause serious damage to itself.
The water is also an important factor. Make sure that you keep the pH level of the water at 6 and also the temperature at a constant 82 to 86 degrees F. Now I know you may want other species of fish to be included in the tank so just make sure you try adding catfish, plecs, small tetras, and other gently and slow moving fish from South America. Just make sure that the discus fish are the largest fish in the tank.
When it comes to feeding the discuss fish, you will be able to use aquarium foods. You can feed the discus fish with frozen blood worms and brine shrimp. Adult discus fish can be fed once a day but juvenile ones should be fed at least 3 times a day.
These are some of the factors that you need to know when you plan on caring for discus fish. By following these tips, you can be sure that you will be able to properly raise discus fish and get them to thrive in your aquarium. If you do it right, you may even get your discus fish to breed and never worry about buying another group of discus fish ever again.
With these tips, you will be able to have a guide on how to properly take care of discus fish in an aquarium.
