Rocky Mountain Discus Fish Hatchery now offers healthy exotic catfish which are compatible with discus fish and make excellent additions to the discus aquarium. Stocking unsuitable fish into the discus fish aquarium can make the discus fish very uncomfortable. In addition there is the risk of introducing disease to the discus fish. Active fish such as clown loaches and cordy cats can make the discus fish nervous. When the discus fish go for food they will keep a lookout for intruders. This distraction, keeping an eye on the food and an eye on the surroundings commonly causes discus fish to miss the bite of food. Frequently this behavior is incorrectly attributed to eye problems with discus fish. When food sits on the bottom of the tank, discus fish blow a stream of water onto it to bring it up into their strike zone. As discus fish eat food off the bottom in this manner there is no need for bottom cleaner catfish in the discus aquarium.
Certain types of peaceful catfish do co-exist beautifully with discus fish. These catfish are not bottom feeders such as cordy cats. Note they are not plecos. Ordinary pleco catfish generally cause problems in discus aquariums. Bristlenose ancistrus do not cause problems with the discus fish or disturb them, and will keep the interior of the discus aquarium clean, which reduces your work load. I have seen discus breeders in Germany place one bristlenose ancistrus catfish in a discus fish aquarium with a young discus breeder pair to help reinforce bonding and parental care of eggs and discus fry. If the catfish gets too close to the discus eggs he is chased away by the attentive parents. Bristlenose catfish are fun and easy to spawn also. Most discus hobbyists fall in love with bristlenose catfish in a very short time.

Bristlenose catfish are mostly vegetarians and should be regularly fed hi quality algae wafers and fresh greens such as spinach or zucchini. Bristlenose catfish will also eat frozen bloodworms. The bristlenose catfish are considered dwarf size and grow to the size of your index finger. They are peaceful, cute and lots of fun to watch. Most bristlenose catfish are dimorphic which means males and females look very different and are easy to tell apart. For instance the male bristlenose catfish have certain characteristics (such as bristles around the mouth) while females have much less pronounced features. As adults a male bristlenose catfish will prefer the company of two females. Catfish breeders call this a "trio". The male bristlenose catfish do not bond to the females in the same manner as discus fish. A female bristlenose catfish will enter the males living area, usually a cave of pvc, pottery or a clay flower pot turned on it's side. The female bristlenose catfish lays the eggs in the males cave, then leaves the area. The male bristlenose catfish stays with the eggs and fans and guards them until they hatch. Upon hatching the fry will eat hi quality algae wafers. These peaceful catfish do not eat their fry and it is not unusual to see fry of various ages from different spawns growing together. However, should you decide to place a lone specimen in your tank it will do fine. These are not schooling fish like cordy cats. If you like pristine interiors, including squeaky clean airline tubing and heater lines in your discus fish aquarium, you will love the bristlenose catfish.

The dwarf bristlenose ancistrus are found in the wild in the Amazon River where wild discus are found. The common types have been around the tropical fish trade for years. However, during the last few years dozens of new types have been discovered in the wild. Catfish breeders have an excellent selection of wild stock to choose from as new variants are discovered in the wild on a regular basis. My love affair with ancistrus and exotic catfish began over a decade ago and continues to this day. Quite simply they are truly the perfect tank mate for your discus fish.

We breed these catfish  for the sole purpose of providing healthy, disease and parasite free tank mates for the discus fish aquarium. They will clean the interior of the aquarium but will not disturb plants.

To view a catfish photo image click on the name of the catfish. Our catfish make excellent tank mates for the discus aquarium. It only seems fitting that the discus "king" of tropical fish have an exotic colorful tank mate of the highest order. These catfish are healthy and some of the finest highly sought after catfish in existence.

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