Your Aqua Discus shipment is packed to last 120 hours before opening if it remains sealed. We use both Carton and Thermocol boxes for the shipment based on the orders from your end. When you receive your box from our end, avoid keeping it from direct sunlight. Request you to record a video clip during unboxing fishes if something goes bad DOA(Death On Arrival) and send the clip back to us to claim 100% refund or replacement for the same. (It is to be noted that we have achieved 0% mortality rate in outstation shipments counting to 800+ in the history for the last 8 years).

Step 1 - Acclimation

Unseal your box slowly and remove the rubber bands of all the plastic bags tied up. Repeat this for all the tropical fish bags you have purchased incase if there are more parcels belonging to your order. Add little quantity of water from your tank to the bag slowly as a part of Acclimation. Ensure you do not add water from plastic bags into the tank. When acclimating fish that have been shipped, it is very important that the fishes in the plastic bags need time to adjust to your tanks pH. While the temperature difference between your tank and the water in the bag is important, the difference in pH is more important. After 30 minutes of slow acclimation, gently place the Discus fishes into your tank. You can use your hands directly for the same or a hand glove as well.

Step 2 - Lighting

Once they are added safely into your tank, its the time for them to settle. Please do not disturb the fishes just received using nets or striking hard at them. It is most important to switch OFF the lights for the first 48hrs. Higher is the time given for them to settle, faster is their perfect adaptation in your tank.

Step 3 - Bullying

Incase if the Discus fishes are the newly added Discus species to your tank for the first time, they will start free swimming in 8 hours of time. Otherwise, the existing Discus fishes in your tank will start bullying the newly settled ones leading the new fishes to stay corner most of the times. Once the fish calms down, relaxes, and once they relieve themselves from the stress of the trip, they immediately start creating their own pecking order. It will be very aggressive at first and a lot of our clients get highly worried during this transition phase. Once this initial behavior is over, and the pecking order is established, the only time you’ll see aggression again is during feeding time. During feeding time is when you may notice the top Kings go up to eat first and then the rest of the discus will follow afterward.

Step 4 - Feeding

The newly acclimated Discus fishes will be shy for next 48hrs and it all depends on the tank mates and tank parameters in your tank. Please allow them to settle well as they follow a high level of Quarantine period from our end. Feed a very little quantity of pellets(ONLY pellets), say 2 to 4 pieces per day meal for first 3 days and leave them unnoticed. It will disappear when you are back after some hours and this will indicate their feed intake in shyness. This will improve on course of time to take the feed from their Master soon by coming to the top surface of the water level.

Remember Discus Keeping requires a lot of patience and it’s the key for successful Discus Keeping. So please bear in mind not to hurry in this regard which will make you to feed unsterilized and uncategorized Discus feed, which may kill your Discus upon taking such feeds faster. We have a lot of such crazy clients’ history who could not be patient and finally ended up in devastating the full Discus tank.

 

For Discus pellet products, please refer our Discus food Products page.

 

Discus that are newly introduced into the aquarium will likely be nervous for the first week or two while they get used to their new surroundings. This is normal and nothing to worry until their fins are erect. However if you have discus that have been acting this way for a prolonged period of time it is well worth considered to get back to us for more queries.