New to Oscar owning..... please help?

[landmineyouth]

Hey everyone. In about a month Im clearing most all my fish out of my 75 gallon tank for a bigger home. I am leaving behind a 7" BGK and a 6" Pleco however...

I decided I want to get an oscar (or 2) to inhabit this tank. I want to buy them small and work them to full size (and Im thinking this would be good for the BGK's survival too).

Would a pair work or would they fight... or is that all up to chance?

I also could really use a list of all the diff type of oscars so i can specifically know wich i want to purchase... Im thinking of a tiger oscar and an albino oscar but what are my other options? (NO LONG FIN VARIAITIONS please)

Also any other general care advice such as feeding, habbits, stories, etc. etc. would be great.

[thatonegirl]

Your BGK is 7", so he should be fine in terms of potential lunch, but aren't they quite peaceful? I've never kept one, but that seems to ring true from what I've heard. If that is true, your BGK may get picked on, maybe not. With moody fish, you win some you lose some. Individual fish's personality is always a major factor.

If you get a typical oscar, it could work, provided the BGK has lots of refuge. But if you get an oscar that delights in terrorizing things like one I had, forget it.

If you mean pair as in pair of oscars, I'd recommend AGAINST getting another one. IME, getting two oscars that can tolerate each other in a 4 foot tank is rare, and even if you do, you're going to be water changing up the wazoo as they grow, especially with the BGK. They are large, messy fish (oscars).

As far as color morphs go, my persoanl favorite are the red oscars. If you don't know better, avoid "blueberry" and "strawberry" oscars; they're dyed, it's unnatural and the color will eventually fade and leave you with a sickly regular old albino.

[ewurm]

Congrats on your choice. I think 75 would be OK for a pair for a while, but I don't know how long. Everyone says 75 for one, but I have no experience. They are messy eaters, so water changes and over filtration are necessary.

[thatonegirl]

Forgot to add: I had oscars for a few years and they are smart, personable fish. They are avid eaters (I had to get feeding techniques to avoid major water splashes and jumping). They respond well to regular stimuli and seem to appreciate being in a more "trafficked" area of the home (my longfin that I kept in the basement always seemed depressed from lack of interaction).

I'll give you a personal example of how smart my fish were: When I moved residence and had to move my oscars, to avoid being netted, they would "protect" each other (I had two). Once I tried to net one, the other would swim over the other to make it difficult. I had called my brother to help me move the tank and when I finally decided to take a break from trying to net either of the fish, I went out on the porch to wait for my brother to get there. When he arrived, I was completely drenched from head to toe with dripping hair and smeared makeup. He took one look at me and busted up laughing, but was really impressed when I tried to net the fish again and they started their defensive behavior again.

[johno27]

I would get a pair of wild from tangled up in cichlids truly an awesome fish when unchanged by breeding in captivity Rapps has a few different types do some research they are cool :)

[Jason_S]

imo, a pair of oscars, a bgk and a pleco will eventually need to be moved to a tank larger than 75 gallons...preferably something along the lines of 125 gallons or more. if you wind up with a breeding pair of oscars then they could cause problems for the bgk and possibly even the pleco and if you wind up with 2 males they will probably fight with each other so getting a compatible pair would be difficult. I'd personally suggest a single oscar instead of 2 for compatibility issues as well as water quality issues as the fish grow to their large adult sizes. :)

[landmineyouth]

Okay, so I've decided to go with a single oscar now. Whats a good group of semi-medium sized fish I can purchase w/ him as he grows, i want to give my tank a bit more life

[sour_girl]

Get a convict! I have one and he is so fun to watch as he swims around so fast! They will get to about 6" so you may be ok as long as you oscar is really small when you get it so he wont eat the convict

[dysfunctionaljd]

I think maybe something peaceful would be best to add with the oscar, instead of another agressive fish. You might be able to do a couple silver dollars, or something along those lines, they are too big to not get eaten by the oscar or the BGK, but won't cause any agression issues.

[xEchOx]

The 65-75g tanks are somewhat of a problem with oscars. They not big enough for two oscars, but they are almost too big for just one. Finding tankmates for a solitary O can be difficult, however in your case you will be able to raise them together. I agree with sour girl, convicts are a good choice, they don't get too big, and are tough enough to live with an O. Dithers would be fine too. Anything bigger than that con might be too big, but really its up to you. Good luck let us know what happens.

[johno27]

How about a sand substrate and a Geo that would be pretty cool combanation of fish

[Lockness' Oscar]

Silver dollars would work.

[landmineyouth]

would full grown angelfish work???

[Tongue33]

If you have ever had a chance to own a trully awesome fish, this is one you'll own then he/she will own you!! Mine is much more than a fish now.. My O is like my best friend.. When I am sad he comes to the glass and literally calls me over to watch him. He'll change several different AMAZING colors till he gets me to smile and then will just fan out completely to show off his brilliance! I have a hard time choosing fish cause I am in love with the structure of Oscars.. but even with them it takes for ever.. I spent 3 years looking for the friend I have had for the past 3.5 yrs. I didn't own an O for 3 years after letting the other two go!!

[ridether]

If you have ever had a chance to own a trully awesome fish, this is one you'll own then he/she will own you!! Mine is much more than a fish now.. My O is like my best friend.. When I am sad he comes to the glass and literally calls me over to watch him. He'll change several different AMAZING colors till he gets me to smile and then will just fan out completely to show off his brilliance! I have a hard time choosing fish cause I am in love with the structure of Oscars.. but even with them it takes for ever.. I spent 3 years looking for the friend I have had for the past 3.5 yrs. I didn't own an O for 3 years after letting the other two go!!
:cry:That’s a very touching story. :asianarow :stingray: :arapaimag :hearts:
In a way many people here can relate. while i can.

[thatonegirl]

would full grown angelfish work???

I'd say no. Angels are pretty peaceful in general, and although oscars are less aggressive than most territorial cichlids, they're still pretty moody.

[hemiboo]

If you want two oscars in a tank, raise them together from a young age...otherwise it's bad news bears. They can get moody twards other oscars but are kinda timid compared to other cichlids. I love mine to death and my favorite is.....the wild looking one. The "regular" oscar is the best looking with it's camo pattern and it tends to shift it's colors more than the red tiger or the all red one. The ruby red ones do look pretty sweet too, but they show any scars they get for a long time. Good luck and happy mfking.

[Kuda]

The 65-75g tanks are somewhat of a problem with oscars. They not big enough for two oscars, but they are almost too big for just one. Finding tankmates for a solitary O can be difficult, however in your case you will be able to raise them together. I agree with sour girl, convicts are a good choice, they don't get too big, and are tough enough to live with an O. Dithers would be fine too. Anything bigger than that con might be too big, but really its up to you. Good luck let us know what happens.

ok you can house 2 oscars in a 55 sooo, a 75 would be fine for 2 oscars, oscars have awsome personalities and there all different its a really good idea to get em small you u can grow him and and he will learn to tolerate you and again the personalitie will be great, your plecos are gonna get big i dont know much about bgks but id say your gonna be fine and you should see some of the tank mates ive had with my oscar, you will prolly wanna upgrade tanks in the future but dont worry your fine right now, good luck

oh yea and i have a tiger oscar, red oscars are really cool, and theres albino and common oscars

Tiger
http://www.flower-horn.de/Oscar_Data/Ocellatus.jpg
Albino
http://www.fishowners.com/gallery/images/cichlids/oscar_albinotiger1_lg.jpg
Red
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/your-fish/oscar_rope.jpg

[thatonegirl]

IME, I'd really only recommend one oscar in a 75. I know there are many different opinions, but from my own persoanl experience, one oscar deserves a 75 gallon tank to itself and possibly a non-obtrusive tankmate. Just my opinion, but I've got experience to back that up.

Your chances of having 2 in a 75 that get along are better if you raise them together from juvies, but even then once they hit maturity at 6-8" things could change and you may wind up with two that adored each other for months that all of the sudden want to kill each other.

[Scottfree]

Forgot to add: I had oscars for a few years and they are smart, personable fish. They are avid eaters (I had to get feeding techniques to avoid major water splashes and jumping). They respond well to regular stimuli and seem to appreciate being in a more "trafficked" area of the home (my longfin that I kept in the basement always seemed depressed from lack of interaction).

I'll give you a personal example of how smart my fish were: When I moved residence and had to move my oscars, to avoid being netted, they would "protect" each other (I had two). Once I tried to net one, the other would swim over the other to make it difficult. I had called my brother to help me move the tank and when I finally decided to take a break from trying to net either of the fish, I went out on the porch to wait for my brother to get there. When he arrived, I was completely drenched from head to toe with dripping hair and smeared makeup. He took one look at me and busted up laughing, but was really impressed when I tried to net the fish again and they started their defensive behavior again.


You're a keeper....