Feeding

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FEEDING

Discus need the right foods in order to survive. Discus are cichlids, so therefore they need to eat meat. They will not eat the other fish in the tank, but you need to feed them meat. You could feed your Discus almost anything imaginable, if they accept it. Discus may be picky sometimes and if you introduce a new food, they may reject it. A Discus keeper may need to be tricky in order to get their fish to eat the new food. You could mix a food they they already accept and the food that they do not and then feed it to them. This will get them accustomed to it, then you could feed it alone. But some foods, by experience, do not work well at all. FLAKE FOODS. My fish will not accept them whatsoever, but I feed it regularly just because of the other fish in the tank. There are many possibilities, just depends on the fish. Below are some of the more common foods to feed Discus, a brief description, and a picture of each.

-- Bloodworms -- Bloodworms are a very good food for Discus. They seem to like them and they help bring out color in the Discus. Mine would eat them all day every day if they could. Bloodworms are about 1/2 an inch long and about 1/8 an inch wide. They are red in color, hence the name "Blood" worms. They can be fed live, which is not reccomended in worms because of the poor living conditions that they are raised in. Frozen ones are sold in cubes. They are also sold in freeze dried form, but I would go with the frozen cubes. Enlarged view of Bloodworms.
-- Brine Shrimp -- Brine Shrimp are the most famous foods for all fish. Discus also seem to love them. They gove the Discus some roughage so that they can pass foods easier. Brine Shrimp are about 1/4 an inch long and about 1/8 an inch wide. They are sold in almost any form imaginable. They are best taken by the Discus in live form or in the frozen form, so that they can recognize the shape of the shrimp. A very enlarged view of Brine Shrimp.
-- Beefheart -- THE best food for Discus. Enhances color, shape, growth, and much more. Beefheart, as I am referring to it, is ground up heart of beef, so that the Discus do not have to peck it half to death.This food can be made by the Discus keeper, or for a more hectic person, it is sold in stores. They sell this in the cube form, and you just wave it around and they will come a swimmin up and eat it all up. My Discus all love this food. Turkeyheart is another alternative, but I stick with the Beef. May appear nasty, but when you see your fishes' reaction to it, you will not even care. You should feed this food from a small age, it boosts their growth hormones and makes them grow big. Be careful though, Beefheart ruins water quality, one of the most important things in Discus keeping, so be careful and do not overfeed, but feed them enough to satisfy them.
-- Prepared Foods -- Prepared foods can work for Discus. Just depends on your fish. Mine, personally were raised on beefheart, bloodworms, brine shrimp and a few portions of blackworms. Tubifix worms are said to be a no-no by many discus keepers. I have heard many tragic stories of what the parasites contained with them can do. If your Discus will accept Prepared Foods, by all means, use them at your own will, but i will say, soak them before you put them in the tank so that it reduces the risk of them getting swim bladder, or where the pellets bloat in their stomachs. Other supplemental foods for Discus are: White worms Glass worms Red worms BLACK WORMS - DISCUS LOVE THEM - be careful of intestinal parasites