Discus care begins as soon as you bring them home from the pet store, even before you add them to the tank with their new friends. These aquatic creatures are especially sensitive to stress, so minimizing stress on them is extremely important for their long-term health. This article will discuss how to minimize the stress of adding a fish to the tank on both the one being added and the existing ones in the tank.

Step 1 – Shop for a healthy fish

At the pet store, choose a fish with healthy, even eyes. Make sure they look healthy in their behavior and the way they swim. Finally, make sure the scales look even and don’t look sick.

Step 2: Float the Bag

Your fish will come from the pet store in a plastic bag. Float the bag with the fish in the aquarium for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the temperature in the bag is the same as the temperature in the tank.

Step 3 – Mix the water

For discus care, combine the water in the bag with the water in the tank. Once the temperature stabilizes between the two environments, open the bag and place a cup of aquarium water in the bag with the fish, then reseal the bag. This will equalize the chemicals between the aquarium and the bag.

Step 4 – Add the Fish to the Aquarium

About 10 minutes after the water has combined, you can transfer the fish from the bag to the aquarium.

Additional Tips

If possible, I recommend transferring the fish from the bag to a quarantine tank to make sure it’s okay before adding it to the general population. After a week or so in the quarantine tank, repeat the steps above to transfer the new fish to the permanent aquarium.

Adding more than one or two fish to the aquarium at a time should be avoided. Adding too many fish at once, or adding incompatible fish to an aquarium, can cause undue stress to existing fish.