Who Gives A Fish Forums

Re: Any of you HAVE to have dithers?

I've tried a few different types of dither fish with my discus. Neons and cardinals didn't work out - they got eaten. But I've had success with a school of rummie noses in one of my tanks. The discus just ignore them. In another tank, I had rams, but they didn't last long. They seem to be pretty short-lived. Now I'm using bosemani rainbows instead. They're a good choice for a few reasons: they school, they don't bother the discus, and they can grow up to 5 inches. Plus, they live a long time. My discus have laid eggs in both tanks, so I don't think the dither fish are affecting their breeding. I think the key is to choose a schooling fish that's always moving. That's what really calms down the discus. Most of the time, my discus only jump or dart when someone walks by the tank. But with the schooling fish swimming around all the time, they just seem to relax.

Re: Any of you HAVE to have dithers?

I've also got a school of rummies swimming with my discus - they school really well and the discus just ignore them. I recently added some West African Butterfly Cichlids, which are super peaceful and get along great. For bottom feeders, I've got Corys and BN Plecos, which are also very compatible with the discus.

Re: Any of you HAVE to have dithers?











i am worried my discuss are easily spooked and hurt themselves. if i intorduce dither fish, will they still breed? thinking neon blue rams and or albino cory (what size do they have to be not to be eaten by a large adult pair of dsicus)


I've found dithers actually calm my discus down, rather than make them jumpy. Rams and most cories work well in discus tanks, just steer clear of the dwarf species - they're likely to become a snack for your discus. I've had success with cories and bushynose plecos in my breeding tanks, they leave the eggs alone. I've even made a pretty penny selling dither spawns over the years - probably more than I've made from discus fry, to be honest.

Re: Any of you HAVE to have dithers?

You've got to be careful when choosing dithers for your discus. I learned the hard way - they can be finicky eaters. My big pair downstairs has a voracious appetite, and I've lost a few dithers already.

I had a small school of neons that didn't last long. They were gone in no time. Then, I added a tiny fancy goldfish as a companion, but it didn't even make it through the day.

I also tried adding three small cory cats, but two of them vanished without a trace. It's like they never existed.

On the other hand, Hillstream Loaches and plecos seem to do well with my discus. Maybe they're just not tasty enough? I'm willing to give fancy goldfish another try, but this time, I'll choose ones that are a bit larger, not those tiny, cute ones that seem to be discus snacks.

Re: Any of you HAVE to have dithers?

Blimey, Vinnie's fish must be starving or something, eating corys and goldfish like they're at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Guess they grew up with some fierce tankmates, eh.