Oscar Care
- Thread starter PhilK
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2005
- Messages
- 4,588
I don't keep oscars, but can you go ahead and tell us what you've got set up so far/what you know? That makes things easier.
I'll never understand why people don't post these threads BEFORE they get the animal, though.
I'll never understand why people don't post these threads BEFORE they get the animal, though.
- Joined
- Jun 12, 2006
- Messages
- 285
oscars are garbage cans with fins. they will eat ANYTHING.
they will get 12-17" (i owned one that big, ive heard of larger, but havnt personally seen one bigger). i raised mine in a 600g tank and it was pretty old, this i think has a lot to do with ultimate size.
in short, a well heated tank of atleast 100 gallons will work if you want your fish to have room to swim. one can fit in a 55g, but i personally wouldnt ever house one in anything that small perminantly. heavy filtration is a must. most importantly...WATER CHANGES. i did 50% water changes 1-2 times a week on all my cichlid tanks, i never saw them get sick or develope 'hole in the head'.
tankmates should be like-sized and share a similar temperment. i did keep my wild caughts with large central american cichlids, but the oscars were at the bottom of the pecking order
dont feed them goldfish. i can write a page on why not but im too lazy. in short, they are not good for them. dont feed them hotdogs, for some reason alot of people do...again, im not going to go into it.
a high quality pellet food is best as a staple (omega one IMO is the best, new life spectrum is also good). raw prawns, crickets, mealworms, earth worms, fish fellets, cut clams and squid are also good for rounding out the diet.
but again, key to healthy, well formed, and large cichlids is frequent large water changes.
they will get 12-17" (i owned one that big, ive heard of larger, but havnt personally seen one bigger). i raised mine in a 600g tank and it was pretty old, this i think has a lot to do with ultimate size.
in short, a well heated tank of atleast 100 gallons will work if you want your fish to have room to swim. one can fit in a 55g, but i personally wouldnt ever house one in anything that small perminantly. heavy filtration is a must. most importantly...WATER CHANGES. i did 50% water changes 1-2 times a week on all my cichlid tanks, i never saw them get sick or develope 'hole in the head'.
tankmates should be like-sized and share a similar temperment. i did keep my wild caughts with large central american cichlids, but the oscars were at the bottom of the pecking order
dont feed them goldfish. i can write a page on why not but im too lazy. in short, they are not good for them. dont feed them hotdogs, for some reason alot of people do...again, im not going to go into it.
a high quality pellet food is best as a staple (omega one IMO is the best, new life spectrum is also good). raw prawns, crickets, mealworms, earth worms, fish fellets, cut clams and squid are also good for rounding out the diet.
but again, key to healthy, well formed, and large cichlids is frequent large water changes.
- Joined
- Aug 17, 2005
- Messages
- 1,407
When dealing with an Oscar, be prepared for VERY few tank mates to choose from. A single oscar will get by in a 75 gal aquaria (i have seen people keep them in 55 gal, but would not recommend it). Keeping them in anything smaller will result in HITH (Hole In The Head disease) which is where a hole rots out of the top of their head.
Would not recommend fancy decorations or live plants (NO live plants, whatsoever!!!).... they tend to destroy them. HOWEVER, they are one of the most intelligent fish, and will actually do things most fish will not. One good example is when they get larger they tend to 'play' with ping pong balls. Throw one in and watch your fish have a blast with it. Also, they will jump out of the water and take food and all that good stuff.
If you want decorations stick to drift wood/large rock decorations and the sort. They are a bit needy as far as tank size goes, but other than that they are hardy and make really neat pets whose personality goes beyond the normal fish 'zone' of 'follow the finger'. They also get quite large and can occasionally be fed live feeders for variety purposes.
Be sure to clean the tank regularly. The larger the tank, and better the filter, the better off you are. I would recommend a canister filter above anything else. When you get the canister filter, get one set for a higher gallon setup than you are using, you will NEED the extra filteration. For example.... for 75 gallon setup, i would get the Filstar XP3, or perhaps XP4 (Going larger is best, they are adjustable with flow rate). Also, a 50/50 water change once or twice a week will be needed depending on how good your filteration is and if you supplement with live feeders.
A good site for aquatic supplies is Big Al's, they have excellent prices and a good variety of stuff.
By far my favorite fish, and i am sure you will feel the same way.
-Nate
Would not recommend fancy decorations or live plants (NO live plants, whatsoever!!!).... they tend to destroy them. HOWEVER, they are one of the most intelligent fish, and will actually do things most fish will not. One good example is when they get larger they tend to 'play' with ping pong balls. Throw one in and watch your fish have a blast with it. Also, they will jump out of the water and take food and all that good stuff.
If you want decorations stick to drift wood/large rock decorations and the sort. They are a bit needy as far as tank size goes, but other than that they are hardy and make really neat pets whose personality goes beyond the normal fish 'zone' of 'follow the finger'. They also get quite large and can occasionally be fed live feeders for variety purposes.
Be sure to clean the tank regularly. The larger the tank, and better the filter, the better off you are. I would recommend a canister filter above anything else. When you get the canister filter, get one set for a higher gallon setup than you are using, you will NEED the extra filteration. For example.... for 75 gallon setup, i would get the Filstar XP3, or perhaps XP4 (Going larger is best, they are adjustable with flow rate). Also, a 50/50 water change once or twice a week will be needed depending on how good your filteration is and if you supplement with live feeders.
A good site for aquatic supplies is Big Al's, they have excellent prices and a good variety of stuff.
By far my favorite fish, and i am sure you will feel the same way
.-Nate