Pauly Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 Hey people , Just a point of interest , where do we in NZ find nice discus .Most of the lfs's have colourless stunted fish , nothing that resembles the discus that we see in books or on other web sites .Sure there are people out there with nice healthy discus but what about veriety .Do the wholesale importers not see a demand for discus , or am I looking in all the wrong places .Also why are they so damn expensive, they are not the hardest aquarium fish to breed ,and if so why are there so many different strains all over the world , but only a few expensive verietys here . Please help me find the " king of aquarium fishes " all I can find are pawns . Pauly. PS. check out simplydiscus.com to see what we are missing out on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennis Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 i kown what u mean i seen good fish but u pay about $200 a fish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 Hi Pauly I have been keeping Discus for a few years and i know a couple others that also keep them . I have to disagree in regaurds to the quaily of fish Discus availble in NZ . I have found especially over the last 12 months that there have been some really nice fish at shops . I know that goldfish bowl , hollywood , jansens and living waters have all had some execallant fish in stock , Maybe you are not looking in the right places . Yes Discus are very expesive and are not that hard to keep . The same can be said for some of the more exotic catfish . If you want good quality you unfortanley need to pay . Discus are easily bred but there aren't many people that i know breeding them anymore . Maybe people don't find them challingin g anymore or jst not interested in that side of these awsome fish . If there were local breeders surely the price would come down making discus more obtainable to fishy folk . Yep discus are the king of the aquarium Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ira Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 I'd say the price is a big factor, not many people are willing to spend $150 on "Just a fish" I for one wouldn't spend that much on something as common as discus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted June 29, 2003 Report Share Posted June 29, 2003 I wouldn't pay $150 for a fish that wasn't common! I am a scrooge The most I have ever paid for a fish would be around $17 and even then the moths in the wallet got agitated :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pauly Posted June 30, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 30, 2003 Bugger !! I just wrote a whole chapter and then the server kicked me off. Thats exactly what I mean they' re pretty common .But why so exspensive , and why are there only just six or so kinds in the shops ? Maybe if they were cheaper they would be more popular ,and the wholsalers would import better fish and more veriety. Arn't the wholesalers and lfs's shooting themselves in the foot by haveing such high prices . If there were wholesale breeders in NZ they could make a fortune at these prices . (Hmmmm now if only I could find some good quality cheap discus I might have a well paying hobbie . Na I'm dreaming the discus types I like are all overseas) Pauly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajbroome Posted June 30, 2003 Report Share Posted June 30, 2003 Pauly said... > ... if only I could find some good quality cheap discus ... There-in lies the problem. People have put a lot of time and effort into breeding what are considered 'quality' discus (you don't want to get me started on that though :roll: ) and as such they want to get some of their money back. So they sell at high prices to the exporter who sells them at higher prices to the importer/wholesaler who sells them at higher prices to the retailer who generally at least double the wholesale price as the final retail price. This is all more expensive that whipping a net through a rearing pond in Singapore and sending a bag of neons (or guppys or swords or whatever) to NZ. Also, if the fish were cheap then their perceived 'value' is lower and people would want them cheaper still. Certainly no one would bother breeding them when they can get the same price for other cheap easier fish. IMHO while discus are *much* more breedable than they were in the past they're still not the kind of fish you can churn out by the 100s with a minimum of effort (like Zebra danios or something for example). One last point to remember, most of the discus we see in shops are juveniles and it takes a while for them to colour up to look like their parents. I've seen some nice adult discus out there. These are just my thoughts, of course. Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave Posted June 30, 2003 Report Share Posted June 30, 2003 Totally agree with andrew . His last comment that most dicus you see are young and you don' really apreciate there ture worth untill they are young adults Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted July 1, 2003 Report Share Posted July 1, 2003 I agree too. I've purchased quite a few discus at $150-200. I've also purchased many at $25-30. The old story rings true, - you get what you pay for. The more expensive fish are brilliantly coloured, have excellent fins and no defects. The cheap ones all have some kind of defect even if it is relatively minor. When breeding discus (which is very easy), you need good stock. If your stock is inferior then the fry will generally inherit similar characteristics. If only average fish are bred all the time then the average quality keeps dropping. The quality discus are expensive because they are generally quite good. In saying that I have seen a few expensive discus that are poor quality. If you want good ones you need to do the following. Find the best, closest fish shop to you. Develop a good relationship with someone fairly important in the shop (the manager is always good start). Spend some money to prove you are a real customer and not just a tire kicker. The shop will then be your best friend. You can ask them to call you when they get a new shipment of fish and you’ll get the first pick. You only need to get 4-6 discus to get a good breeding pair, then you’ve got all the discus you’ll ever need. Discus need to be culled hard so only the best ones are left. I’ve bred discus many times but have never sold any to anyone. I have given a few away to people who I know will never breed from them. The reason is the quality of the fish I’ve bred has never been what I consider good enough to put back into circulation for others. I’d rather have no discus that poor quality ones. Besides, it helps keep my Borneo’s nice and fat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joze Posted July 1, 2003 Report Share Posted July 1, 2003 Even though one day I plan to breed I would rather start of with very average discus, I dont know whether my lazy methods of fish keeping are even compatible (dont have problems with anything else). There is no way I can afford to pay $200 per fish for something I may kill. I agree with these guys. Average breeds average, so I would not even contemplate breeding average fish. Not that my breeding efforts with anything get me far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajbroome Posted July 1, 2003 Report Share Posted July 1, 2003 Joze said... > Average breeds average, so I would not even contemplate > breeding average fish. There's an argument (one which I perhaps subscribe to) which suggests we should not be trying to 'improve' fish but rather maintain species as close to the 'wild type' as possible. This is certainly a popular position in the killifish hobby. I think, if you get a nice healthy pair of discus and breed them then you're to be congratulated and encouraged. Distribute good healthy youngsters and you're doing the hobby a favour. Sure, there'll be people who'll have the latest whizzy-do 'Snakeblood Pigeonskin Green Emperor Peruvian Heckel' discus but to me, to some degree, these are more suitable as Borneo Tiger food than a nice healthy colourful (not so, anymore) common brown or blue discus. Remember all the labelled 'designer fish' came from wild caught fish sometime in their ancestry. See, I told you not to get me started... I do agree with Warren though that all sorts of things are available to people who have a good relationship with their retailer and that this takes time and effort. Andrew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren Posted July 2, 2003 Report Share Posted July 2, 2003 Hi Andrew, I agree. It wasn't really mentioned in my last post, but what you've suggested it actually what I meant. The two types of discus I currently have are brown and snakeskin. While the brown is a true wildcaught type the snakeskin is not (correct me if I am wrong). The browns are identical in character to photos of wildcaught ones. The snakeskins however... If I was to breed the snakeskins, I would be looking to keep only ones that look the same as the parents. It still does not guarantee there won't be deviations when the new fish finally spawn, but if the fry from the breeding is kept the same as the parents then you've done all you can to keep the strain as solid as you can. Most discus today (the hybrids) have been developed the same way goldfish were, - a mutation from a spawning has been kept and selectively bred to create a new type (not species). There are after all only 4 different true wild discus (I think). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pauly Posted July 2, 2003 Author Report Share Posted July 2, 2003 Thanks for your response guys , All of you are correct in what you say . There are good fish out there , and it is good to keep a speices as true to type as possible , just look at some of the more easily and over bred fish out there (Ie. tigerbarbs , kribs).They are no way has nice as the original wild caught fish. But some of us fish keepers like the challenge and discipline of makeing brighter and more interesting fish . Just look at guppies , fighting fish and the good old goldfish . And if it wasnt for this way of thinking where whould we be without all the wonderful types and forms of cats , dogs and horses . It's just my view , thats all. Thinking this way I look for the best specimen of the type and strain I am wanting to keep ( Lol collect might be a better term ). My problem is that , these ones are the most expensive to obtain (collect) and find , especailly when not many people want them . I hope I didnt sound like I was complaining too much . :-? I only want to know where to get some different and nice veriety discus , here in NZ . Are there any good breeders or wholesalers around ? I do try to get to know the guys at the lfs's and find them all very helpfull . I just dont like their mark up .lol Cheers guys Pauly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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