New Discus

[Nap1611]

I bought my first 2 discus just under 2 weeks ago... so far they seem relatively happy except that when the food comes along the larger of the 2 gets a bit territorial and chases the other away... now when I feed the tank the smaller discus just hides behind some rocks and I am not sure if it is eating? they are fairly small (about 4-5cm) and I am not sure if this is normal behaviour?

Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks,
Nap

[Hollowman]

You said it yourself, 'territorial' !!

To be honest, you have made the classic mistake that many new to discus keeping make. Now please bear with me, this is no reflection on your fish keeping skills.
But discus are a shoaling fish, that do better in groups, just buying 2 fish means that one will always overpower the other, and this can lead to disease and death. I have heard this so many times over the years. :(

If you have the room, get yourself another 3 to 4 fish of the same size, from the same source, this will pretty much eliminate the bullying that is going on at the moment and a real pecking order will be established. Being Cichlids, they will be aggressive to the lowest in the group order, and sometimes this changes with time.
Post up some photos if you can too. In the meantime, try feeding at different ends of your tank, this will give the lower one a chance to eat his own food without being chased away.

hth

Hollowman :wink: