Bad cats - good pictures

•  If a cat does something, we call it instinct; if we do the same thing, for the same reason, we call it intelligence. - Will Cuppy - Funny cat thieves

• There's no need for a piece of sculpture in a home that has a cat. - Wesley Bates

• The trouble with cats is that they've got no tact. - P. G. Wodehouse 

• Cats' hearing apparatus is built to allow the human voice to easily go in one ear and out the other. - Stephen Baker

•  Cats always know whether people like or dislike them. They do not always care enough to do anything about it. - Winifred Carriere

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The discus is a social fish

The discus lives in large groups in their native waters, and has a very advanced social behaviour; they are one of the few real schooling cichlids. Remember to keep this in mind when starting care for discus; always purchase a group of animals. They need the social interaction to develop their character to its best potential.

Currently, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find the original colour variants in pet shops, only the Heckel is sometimes imported. Most of the discus fish you encounter today are captive bred colour variants. At this time the list of described colour variants is nearly endless. Some of the discus colour variants have lost their stripes and therefore their natural ability to communicate in the school. But as always these new variants are finding their way to the aquarium hobbyist quickly for exceptionally high prices and this will stimulate the breeders to try to find a new one. One of the advantages of the captive bred discus is that they are now much easier, not easy, to maintain as the imported ones. They are much more tolerant concerning water conditions.

It is getting increasingly easier to keep discus with new technology to improve water quality and health of discus fish which could be the cause of the rise in demand. New dealers and breeders are growing rapidly and even small aquatic shops are stocking a range of Discus.

They are beautiful but yet still remain a challenge to keep and breed with the later been very rewarding and will even pay for the hobby. Most people that keep Discus will at some stage want to breed them as it is a great experience.

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Pets have wide range of healthy benefits

There are several benefits associated with the keeping of pets. Studies conducted by psychologists from Miami and Saint Louis universities have shown that pets have wide range of healthy benefits to most ordinary people. Studies have shown that people who own pets were better adapted to changes in the social and economic spheres than those who without pets. It was also derived that pet owners were far ahead in inter-relationship than those without pets. On the same vein, they were better placed to handle loneliness and other human relation deficiencies. Thus they could cope well and maintain self image amidst tensions. Contrary to previous assumptions, it was proved that pet owners had better interrelationship among their brethren than what was initially believed. It was established that, among those who were HIV- positive, those with pets faired better compared with those who didn't had.
Depending on a research conducted from people of different financial status, it was proved that those who owned pets faired better than those without regardless of the prevailing circumstances. Through this research, it was proved that in the midst of social and economic upheavals, those with pets were better adapted to withstand changes than those without. Pet owners were found to be more interacting and understanding than those who were highly educated and with higher annual turnovers. The study proved that whereas majority assumed that pet owners were preoccupied with pets at the expense of the human relationships, the reverse is the truth. Pet owners had better interacting skills than those without making one to feel better when in their company.
Those who owned pets faired better than those who didn't in a wide range of circumstances. Regardless of the social and economic differences, those who own pets are better and well adapted than those without. In fact pet owners seem to have an upper hand when it comes to matters of social and economic changes. Living with pets, helps one to develop better communication skills which brings understanding and quality relationships. It is now quite clear that, every one should have a pet for the purpose of improving his interrelation skills among other benefits. With that said and done the overall benefits of having a nice pet will not only ensure that you gain self esteem but will most likely contribute to your well being in the long run.
Whereas the issue of owning pets was viewed from an external point of view, it has now been proved that pets play an important role for human health as well as his general welfare. The next time you feel discouraged and out of place it might be because you have poor inter -human relationships which isolate you. The best way out would be for you to consider looking for a pet. This will not only provide for you a close companion, but will teach you some important lessons which will enhance your way of dealing with others. The overall benefits of such a venture will attract friends to you to ensure that you no longer feel lonely or isolated.

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Discus fish : Water

Water Preparation
If after testing your water you are happy that it fits the water chemistry required to keep Discus Fish you can do a couple of things. You can simply add a treatment like Tetra Aqua Safe which will take out chlorine, chloride and some metals. You can also use a heavy metal filter which will take out all heavy metals and make the water perfect. Or you can mix the two like I do to save on time and money If your water doesn’t match and you have poor water to start with, you will need to filter it through a Reverse Osmosis unit. These can cost a packet, but are worth it if you need them. This filtration process will remove a very high percentage of heavy metals, chlorine, pesticides, silica, nitrates and most of the Total Dissolved Solids, it will also lower the pH of freshwater. The product water, as with distilled water, on its own is unsuitable for Discus. The reason for this is that there are no salts in this water which would buffer any drops or peaks in pH. What you do is add to it a supplement containing electrolytes and salts, or some de-chlorinated tap water. Better still mix RO water with a percentage of water prepared with a HMA filter. The exact percentages to mix really are determined by your geographical location, but as a rule 75% RO to 25% tap is usually about right.

If you wish to breed Discus Aquarium Fish and to care for the fry you need a supply of very soft water, in order to keep the water very soft, i.e. less than 50 ppm; you use less tap water in the mix. But a word of warning, soft water is very unstable and must be changed daily to avoid pH crash.

Water changes
It is very important to change the water in your Discus tank on a regular basis, in a display tank I recommend around once or twice a week and with the later for breeding tanks and anything up to once a day for growing on tanks. I like to change in between 20-40% of the water in the tank but in the fish farms in the Far East they change 100% of the water once a day in the growing on tanks with great results. The reason for this is that discus like other fish, secrete a hormone into the water that inhibits their growth. This allows the fish to stay appropriately sized for the volume of water it is contained in. It is for this reason that wild specimens and those subjected to abundant water changes grow to such large sizes. When changing the water clean the bottom of the tank and suck up all of the debris on the tank floor but try and disturb the Discus Fish as least as possible. Once they feel more secure, you can clean aggressively, but do not cause them stress by being noisy about it, just remember that sounds are amplified in water as it is a much better conductor of sound and shock.

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Discus Fish Photo Gallery

 

 Daddy defending his young

Mommy with young

 Baby Discus after being fed brine shrimp

 Powder Blues

 New Strain - Red Centurion (based on pattern on gill plates)

 Pigeon Blood - Reds

 Pigeon Blood - Reds

 Discus in pairing out tanks - Turquoise Greens

Discus in pairing out tanks - Turquoise Greens

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Sinking Fish Food for Discus

 There are different types of discus fish foods, which mainly contains three categories: frozen food ,dry food and live discus food. These can be further classified as slow sinking food ,sinking food and floating fish food. Since discus, fish are mostly mid water feeders slow sinking fish food for discus is most preferred.

Different types of sinking fish food for discus are:

Pellets: Small and mostly round shaped, pellets are both sinking and floating. Giving dry pellets to fish can cause them to bloat therefore soak them in water for a little while before feeding.
Granules: These are smaller forms of pellets are can be fed in the same way you feed the pellets. Flakes: Flakes come under the category of top floating food but if you pinch them a big before feeding they sink down.
Wafers and tablets: These are one of the most popular forms of sinking fish food for discus. They have a very well balanced ingredient content. Although they sink rapidly but since they are small enough to be eaten in one bite the fish eat them up quickly. Also they don't cloud the water.

 Gels: These are pre-processed slow sinking food for fish. These than be thawed, then mixed with homemade food or other frozen food and then frozen again to feed the fish. They can be used to give your fish a varied diet.  
Slow sinking discus fish food is preferred because then the fish can reach it easily. If the fish sinks too fast then they will not be able to reach it and it will rot in the bottom and can harm the fish.

 Discus fish follow a routine and therefore you have to keep in mind to feed them at fixed times every day.

Also, since discus fish like to follow a routine therefore feed them at regular intervals and give small feedings at a time.

They like to eat frequently and hence if you give them feed only once or twice a day.

Any variation from the routine will make them confused and disrupt their system.

Harry Koots is an experienced Aquarius and he has been teaching people on how to successfully breed Discus.

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