I have a juvi JD that's about 3.5" in a 75g long with a bichir that's about 5". They have been in the tank alone together for about 8 months with no issues. I recently tried to put a 3" oscar with them and the JD was instantly bothering him and chasing him around. When i bought the oscar he actually jumped out of the bag as the employee at the LFS was putting him in and he looked fine till i put him in the tank and noticed he was in rough shape and weak.The JD kept him in the same corner for about 2 days.So now i took him out of the 75 and put him in a 30g so he can recover if he even does. So my question would be what are some good tankmates for a Male JD and am i better off giving the oscar back to my LFS or once he heals should i try it again but add something else? comments and suggestions? thank you
Jack Dempsey agression... Tankmates?
- Thread starter calleja_aquariums
- Start date
Being that the JD has lived in the tank for some time adding another fish is going to be a little difficult. In my experience young Oscars are ill equipped to deal with aggression of larger already established cichlids. So you have two choices
1.let the Oscar put on some size rearrange the tank and try again
2.take him back and get a female JD or a cichlid similar in size to the JD
Although if he's been alone in that tank for a while he might not want company
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1.let the Oscar put on some size rearrange the tank and try again
2.take him back and get a female JD or a cichlid similar in size to the JD
Although if he's been alone in that tank for a while he might not want company
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Make sure the new tankmate is about the same size/mass as the JD, and rearrange the decor too beforehand to change up the fish's perception of 'his' territory. Post a list of about 5 or 6 cichlids or dither fish that are interesting to you, and hopefully the community can help you pick out some compatible tankmates.
well I tried mixing the tank up before I put the Oscar in but I guess it didn't really matter. Im interested in severums,green terrors, blood parrots, red devils, Oscars, and as for dithers I don't really know what dithers work with SA cichlids, but I heard silver dollars do, they aren't very appealing to me but I want my tank to look more full. Thanks for the help guys
Severums and GTs are good with JDs. I find that they tend not to start anything, but won't let themselves get pushed around either. Try to find a GT that is about 4", or a 5" severum. Good luck! 
At the size of tank you have i would keep the JD and get rid of the O if your thinking of adding a Severum and a GT.
okay thanks sunley213, but if I add the severum and the GT should I add them at the same time, and also should I get any dithers? if so what kind?
Same time is always the best and silver dollars or lager tetras make good dithers
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