Hello...

[Twinkle]

I'm new here, and completely new to Discus keeping, though I have been keeping tropicals for the past few years now.
I have set my heart on keeping Discus, and currently along with other tanks have a 60gal that houses a Sydontis catfish, 2 Golden Plecs, a small Albino Plec and 2 "Shark Catfish" {unsure of scientific name, and have been unable to find any more info about them other than what the LFS gave me when I bought them about a year ago.}
My first question is this - would it be possible for me to keep maybe four discus in the tank with these cats?
I have tried looking everywhere for reliable information on Discus but havn't really been able to find anything to helpful.
What is the best age/size to buy Discus at?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Twinkle xx

[Merrilyn]

Welcome to the forum Twinkle. Glad you found us.

They don't call plecs "sucking catfish" for nothing, and unfortunately, they will suck on the sides of your discus. They are very attracted to the unique slime coating that discus have. Lots of us have tried to keep the two species together, and although they may be okay for a short time, it always ends up the same.

Sorry, but I can't recommend putting discus in your tank at the moment

[Twinkle]

Oh, I never knew that. If I moved all the catfish to another tank so that there would just be the Discus, would this be ok? In this size tank etc..?

[Merrilyn]

The size of the tank is fine. It will allow you to keep 6 adult fish in there.

If you're new to discus, then the easiest fish to raise are mid size to adults. Juvenile discus are the most difficult, and the smaller they are, the more difficult they will be to raise.

With half grown fish, they're over their most difficult period, and you'll have a much better chance of growing them to adulthood.

Read through some of the posts in Discus 101 and you'll find lots of information directed at newcomers to discus. They do have fairly stringent water requirements, but other than that, they are pretty tough fish. If you've been successful with other tropical fish, then Discus shouldn't present too much of a problem for you.

Feel free to ask lots of questions. We were all newcomers once.

[Twinkle]

Thanks Merrilyn!!
Wow, 6 is more than I had expected to be able to keep in that tank!
Ok, thanks alot I will browse through the previous posts on here.

Thanks again! :D