[kisame1235]

I recently got a new orange parrot cichlid . He seemed healthy and happy but recently he's developed these brown spots all over him . Is this normal ? And if not how can I fix the problem ?

 

[lauraleellbp]

Can you post any pictures?

And have you checked your water parameters?

How long have you had the fish, & does it have any tankmates?

 

[kisame1235]

I sadly can't post any pictures . The water parameters are pretty good . The only tankmates are 3 discus ( maybe its the brackish water treatment?)

 

[blackandyellow]

I sadly can't post any pictures . The water parameters are pretty good . The only tankmates are 3 discus ( maybe its the brackish water treatment?)

Why do you keep discus in brackish water? they are soft water fish, they don´t like salt in their water.

Without a pic it´s very difficult to diagnose the parrot hybrid, but a guess is that it could be a fungus. Parrots and discus are not a good mix, the parrot is going to attack the discus...

 

[Ariel301]

What do you mean by brackish water treatment?

As already stated, discus and parrots are not good tankmates. The parrots can get very aggressive, while discus are more shy. At the very least, the parrot cichlid will stress out the discus.

Some parrots do have weird spots and unpredictable colors; they are a hybrid after all. And many of them have been dyed or painted, which can lead to color changes and early death. I don't know if that's the case with yours, but it's a possibility.

 

[kisame1235]

Well I figured out the problem which . Apparently they turn brown with age because it wasn't a blood red parrot fish .

 

[kisame1235]

Also at the pet store where I bought the discus one of the employes told me that i'll need brackish water treatment or else my discus will die . So in my defense I wasn't properly informed . Also the parrot cichlid is in there because what's going to be my cichlid tank had a little set back in its cycling and it's supplies ( no filter or heater ) .

 

[lauraleellbp]

Sounds like you had some serious water parameter issues going, if you were adding or changing water over to brackish for a tank with discus and a parrot cichlid.

Also sounds like a good LFS to avoid, or at least, not to seek advice from.

 

[blackandyellow]

A LFS clerk that tells you to keep discus in brackish water is something to run away as fast as possible, unless he sold you something that is not a discus but rather a monodactilus. I did not mean to be rude to you, sorry.

Discus like soft water below 7.0 ph and high temperatures between 82 to 86 F. they can probably tolerate a ph up to 7.5 with no harm, but brackish water is definitely going to affect them.
If your parrot changed colors in your tank it could actually be him showing stress due to the brackish water also, perhaps he had a ph shock from the water change.

For your discus make sure to bring them to neutral water very slowly and in the course of several days changing 15% of your water daily for soft water until you have turned them to neutral acidic water slowly over the course of a week at least. if you do it fast the fish will shock and die. good luck with your fish

 

[Ariel301]

Actually, there are strains of tank-raised discus that are acclimated to hard water. I don't know about any long-term effects it may have on them, but I have seen discus living and breeding in hard water. Just not brackish! lol