Discus pair for critique

[carolerex]

Would somebody please critique this pair for me? I would like you to be brutal I can asure you I wont be offended. I have lots to learn. (also not sure what to call the male. I am not even sure if this is the correct area for this type of post, please advise me if so.
I would also be grateful for any advise on how to get this batch of babies to attach to the parents as they are now day two free swimming and only some are feeding from the parents, Most are skimming around on the bottom of the tank or collecting in groups in the corners. The parents are trying to do the right thing by presenting themselves calmly close to the babies. We have removed the spawning cone and reduced the water to just clear the parents dorsal fin. We also removed the sponge filter and therefore are not feeding the parents just yet, as it is too hard to clean the bottom of the tank without syphoning up the babies. The PH is 6.

[lpiasente]

Hi Carol there isn't any pics on here. There is a critique area on the forum.

[Goerge_of_the_Jungle]

How long have they been free swimming for? Also do you leave the lights on?

[Goerge_of_the_Jungle]

and by the way, is that your discus in your DP? If its one of the pair, i think its a pigeon blood. this strain of discus, so ive read, can sometimes have trouble producing the Membrane/slime that the babies feed off. If this is the case, i would wait a couple more days and see what happens. Feed the parents only enough that they can eat so they can product the slime.

again im only new, so i would like some one with more experience to say if im right or wrong please?

[carolerex]

Sorry I am working on the photo at this minute. Where is the section for critique I cant find it.

[lpiasente]

In the main forum index under general it is actually called discus critique

[carolerex]

Missing photo I must be doing something wrong as my photo will not attach. I will keep trying. To answer some of George of the jungle's questions, The fish in my avatar is not one of the pair it is a fish I have bred.
Yes we provide a dim night light as soon as they spawn through till when they have been free swimming for a few days. It is still on at night as they have not attached properly yet.
The parents have been fed sparingly from when they spawned up until the fry left the cone. We are reluctant to feed at all now as there is no filter and as the babies are skimming around on the bottom we canot syphon for fear of sucking up the fry.

[carolerex]

Here is a cool picture taken by my daughter with her new wizbang camera of the wrigglers from this pair before they left the cone.

[mistakes r crucial]

Hi Carole,

Exciting isn't it, seeing wrigglers develop and grow with the parents. It's something I will never, ever get tired of seeing.

Before I forget, how are you filtering and oxygenating your water in your breeding tank, you mentioned you'd taken the sponge out?

You've done just about all of the things you should by the sound of it but one other thing I used to do is feed the fry with a micro food. It saved me hundreds and hundreds of fry.

Get yourself a turkey baster and some micro food from your LFS, there are a few different brands and types but the one I used was a paste called Liquifry or something similar. I think Wardleys made it from memory. Not sure if it's one of the better ones or not but it worked for me.

I used an old coffee jar, half filled it with tank water and added a few drops and mixed it up. Fill the turkey baster with it and very gently squirt it over the different groups of fry. I'd feed mine that way 5-6 times a day but I'm a bit lucky because I work from home. I found it gave them a feed for 2-3 days and they were strong enough to swim to the parents for a munch.

Don't worry too much if it happens, sooner or later you will blast them, I'm sure we all do it at some stage and especially if we get distracted, I know I did. I've seen 'em go from the bottom of a tank to the top of 18 inches of water at warp speed! I hope that helps save a few fry for you and may you not propell too many.

Your male is a very nice shaped fish with a a good red eye and form. You've obviously grown him out well, his eyes tell that story. It's hard to tell from the pic but he may have a slight dip in the nose area which is not an admirable trait but at worst it's slight. I'd be proud to have him swimming around in one of my tanks regardless.

Maybe it's just me or the fish I've owned but Turqs always appear to be a bit "chunky" for the want of a better term and especially around the head area. She's a little to torpedo shaped for my liking but that may be a bit unfair because she's fanning and not opened up properly. Nice fish but for mine not a patch on the male. That male has a very nice shape.

Best of luck with them Carole.
Cheers
MAC

[carolerex]

Thanks for your comments mistakes r crucial we have had some luck since I posted last we will keep your advice on micro feed in mind when we dont have a batch of baby brine shrimp on hand. While we had no filter (approx 4days) we had two airstones going and did 20% water changes the day before they hatched and two days after. We had about 150 wrigglers and estimate we now have about 100 feeding from the parents, so we are reasonably happy with that. They are now day 4 free swimming and are getting three feeds a day of frozen baby brine shrimp and we have a batch of live shrimp hatching tomorrow. As soon as we can we will switch to the live shrimp and step up the number of feeds.
I have one more question please what type do you think the male is? He was sold to us as a chequer board but is he a pigeon? what do you think.
I will get a photo of the babies tomorrow and post it.

[carolerex]

Thanks for your comments mistakes r crucial we have had some luck since I posted last we will keep your advice on micro feed in mind when we dont have a batch of baby brine shrimp on hand. While we had no filter (approx 4days) we had two airstones going and did 20% water changes the day before they hatched and two days after. We had about 150 wrigglers and estimate we now have about 100 feeding from the parents, so we are reasonably happy with that. They are now day 4 free swimming and are getting three feeds a day of frozen baby brine shrimp and we have a batch of live shrimp hatching tomorrow. As soon as we can we will switch to the live shrimp and step up the number of feeds.
I have one more question please what type do you think the male is? He was sold to us as a chequer board but is he a pigeon? what do you think.
I will get a photo of the babies tomorrow and post it.

[mistakes r crucial]

My opinion is a PB and a very nice one.
MAC

[mistakes r crucial]

Just regarding the micro feed, I'm talking about the first 48 hours, they will take that way before they will take BB.
MAC

[carolerex]

Thanks for explaining about the micro feed I will get some and keep on hand incase we need it for future wrigglers. Yes I too thought the male was a PB but I dont have much experience so thanks for clearing that up.