A few questions about my oscar.

[golden_betta]

Well,im not sure what kind of oscar he (or she) is but its white with redish orange waves and strpes on the side.right now i have it in a 12 gallon (cycled) tank,i thought since it was so small (its only a little over 2 inches) the fish would not feel so boxed in you know and wouldnt grow much larger but i can be wrong.(im sure i am).Right now it is just laying on the bottom of the tank and doesnt move around alot but sometimes he swimes around for a few minuits but goes back to the bottom.it will eat,but not while anyone is in the room,it must be shy. today i bought another tank,a 25 gallon and i set it up earlier and im going to give it a few days to cycle then i might move the oscar to that tank.Well any thoughts so far? any ideas and thoughts are wanted asap! :)

[fishbooger]

Sounds like an albino tiger oscar to me. Give us your water readings, how new ur tank is, frequecy of water changes.....etc. Your Oscar may just be bored and/or lonely. They have a lot of personality. They grow up to 16" and need at least a 55 gallon to thrive. Fish do not grow grow to the size of their tank. they get stunted and stressed leading to an early demise, and are more prone to disease. The 25 g is fine for now, but you need to watch how fast he grows and get the appropriate size tank before he gets to be 6"7". If he is bored then you should put some distractions in the tank (something that floats and is not toxic), rearrange the decor every once in a while or get him an appropriate tank mate. Perhaps another cichlid or a couple of tinfoil barbs.....maybe a few clown loaches or a pleco. Then you'd need a bigger tank though. BTW your tank will need a lot more than a few days to cycle. However, when I got a bigger tank I put everything (fish, water, decor, filters...) from my 55 into the 75 - just as it was - and slowly added more water (over 2 days). It worked out for me, but that is only a suggestion! Good luck!

[AngelMom]

First, the oscar will need a 50 gallon tank minimum. Fish will become stunted (the skeletal structure becomes damaged and stops maturing, but the internal organs continue to grow, eventually causing a slow, painful death) if they aren't given enough room to grow. You must keep in mind that you have chosen a pet that will live (if properly cared for) for at least 10 years, and like any 4 legged pet must have their needs met.

Second, a tank will not cycle until there is an ammonia source. If you are unclear on the whole cycle process, there is a link in my signature to a good article on the nitrogen cycle. So, you either need to move everything from the smaller tank (preferably to a 50 gallon tank) and hope that's enough to prevent a full cycle, or do a fishless cycle with pure ammonia (there is a thread somewhere on the forums on fishless cycling).

Third, what are your water test results? I doubt that your fish is shy ... more likely he is suffering from poor water quality from being in a tank that is too small.


ETA: Looks like ypou beat me to the punch Fishbooger! I'm gonna be a pain and not alter my post though. :rolleyes:

[golden_betta]

first off,i have this stuff called CYCLE (the lable on the bottle says"reduces fish loss,MORE nitrifiers,keeps aqquariums healthy,RAPIDLY MATURES NEW AQUARIUMS) and i use it for every new tank i set up.the tank my oscar is in is one of my 12 gallons (im cycling the 25 gal for him right now) the tank hes in now is a couple days old and i have done one 25% water change so far (added the cycle when i first set it up).My readings are less than .25 ppm ammonia,nitrate 0,nitrite 0,hardness150 ppm,alkilinity 180 ppm, ph 7.2.Yea i think hes just bored,since he had all those tank mates at wal-mart where i got him,he was in there for ever,noone bought him intill now haha.do you need any more info? i hope so i want to learn as much as i can,im getting to be a pretty good fish keeper i think,i havnt had any fish die yet,and my living room is full of fish tanks with all my healthy happy friends!

[fishbooger]

well, the only thing i've seen recommended here is biospira. hopefully cycle works out 4 you, it seems so, if thats all u've used. Your water quality mayb ok for now, but keep an eye on it as ur tank is cycling. I believe tho that he's bored. My friend has one, went on vacation for a week and when he got back, said his oscar was laying flat on the bottom looking like he was contemplating suicide! He said he put in some peas, a rubber duck and a ping pong ball and he perked right up. That was his oscar though. Don't discount water readings entirely! Good luck

[oscarbartoni]

It sounds like the tank is just beginning to cycle. That I believe because there is no nitrite and a bit f ammonia. Keep an eye on the ammonia, if it gets too high then do a partial water change, this will also slow down the cycling process but is easier on the fish.

[AngelMom]

"Cycle" is a manmade bacteria product and will interfere with the naturally occurring nitrozoma/nitrobacter bacteria that naturally cycle a tank. When I was a new fishkeeper I tried using it and soon regretted it ... it just messes up what nature does so perfectly.

Frankly, to be a really good fishkeeper, one must understand the needs of the animals we want to keep and make sure we can either provide that or wait until we can before we purchase a particular fish. ;)

[golden_betta]

today i just checked ammonia,it was a little higher, at .25 ppm,nitrate and nitrite still 0,hardness 150 ppm,alkilinity 150 ppm,ph has went up to 7.8 (remember this is the 12 gal my oscar is in right now and is a few days older than the 25 gall that is fishlessly cycling for him right now) hes swiming around more and not loafing half sideways on the bottom all the time,i guess thats a good thing. the readings in the 25 gal are,ammonia,more than 0 but way way less than .25 ppm, ph 7.8,alkilinity 200 ppm,hardness 200 ppm,nitrate nitrite 0.

P.S Did you know my brothers common pleco will acually let him pet him, haha. (a little off topic but nonetheless :D )

[fishbooger]

Oh, I thought you had him in a 25g. I've never used the artificial cycling stuff. I agree with angelmom. Nature is much better. If you have a friend with a well established/disease free tank, ask if you can get a handful of substate or filter sponge/floss to help with your cycle. Good luck!

[oscarbartoni]

I try to have a few extra sponge filters in my tanks so that when I set up a new tank, I can put one of the extra sponge filters in the new tank and it will be on it's way to being cycled faster than with no sponge filter. I will also take the filter cartridges from my established tanks and rinse them in the new tank. This will add plenty of good bacteria to really jump start a tank. Do not keep the oscar in the small tank too long or it will get stressed and maybe even stunted.

[golden_betta]

ok my oscar is in the 25 gal,its been in there for a while.I bought it a tank mate the other day,its another oscar, not sure what kind though hes (or shes) all black with faint white vertical stripes on the side and orangish spots on the fins.there both the same size,about 3 maybe 3 1/2 inches.they grow fast! the water readings are ammonia-0,alkilinity-180 ppm, ph-7.8, hardness200 ppm,nitrite-3.0 ppm,nitrate-20 ppm.I plan to get a bigger tank when the oscars get bigger but i think 25 gal is good for now,they swim around alot and not loaf all day, they eat good, so i hope everything is good for now,but the nitrite is a problem but should decrease soon as the tank cycles.any thoughts?

[fishbooger]

You can do a small water change if you feel its necessary, but if the oscars are showing no signs of stress or illness, then let ur tank finish cycling naturally. I would approximate (depending on how often, how much and what you feed them) that they should be in that tank only another 3-4 months. You need to get a bigger tank before they outgrow this one. Remember the bigger tank will need to cycle too. They do grow fast and need more room than the average (community) fish to swim. They will also want their own territory, so eventually they should be put in a 75g tank, minimum. Good luck!

[AngelMom]

And just for the record, they will outgrow that 25 in a few months. Adding more fish to an already over crowded tank is never a good idea.

[oscarbartoni]

It sounds like you have the wild coloration of the second oscar. I would start saving up for the 75 gallon tank (or even larger) now so that it will be there when the oscars get too large for the 22 gallon tank that you have them in now. If you are lucky (or maybe unlucky) you might wind up with a mated pare, you will need the extra room for the babies.