We have recently (3 weeks ago) purchased an albino oscar and black tiger oscar.They are approx 4-5 inches long. Over the last 6 days our once dominant albino now has stopped eating and is less active.We cant see any physical problem except he is holding his mouth open slightly.constantly.We have checked PH and nitrate etc and all is ok,what could possibly be wrong with him as we are new to oscar owning.He has nothing stuck in mouth.,We have tried pellets,beef heart and earth worms and still he is uninterested.We vacuum and replace part water every 5-7 days,but have been told this might be to often,we would love your opinions.We are in Australia,so have treated water as needed.
My oscar wont eat
- Thread starter skipsoscars
- Start date
well i really cant tell you whats wrong, all i can say is your not changing your water to much..... and also, have you tried live feeders?
Can you get him in a tank on his own this might help then put some small feeder fish in there with him might be enough to start him eating again I have used river shrimps with great success and as you mentioned earth worms. "O" how big is the tank and is there any thing else in there?
we havent tried live yet as we been concerned about them carrying disease but will definetly give it a try.
only the two oscars and the tank is 2.5 ft. But we have ordered a 6ft x2ft x2ft tank and awaiting the delivery.As they are only small at the moment but are growing quickly.
if you insist on live feeders to get him feeding try neon tetras the color attracts the O had to use this method once to induce feeding worked great but i would try some frozen krill first O's go crazy for it.
i must agree with the frozen krill and live feeders. feeders carry disease however ive never met anyone whos oscars got a disease from a feeder. hope they get better. oscars not eating definatly tells me that something could be wrong. im going through the same thing with my lil jag, he eat just not eagerly.
Did you cycle the tank before adding fish? What are your readings for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?
If I were you I would stay away from feeder fish, they often carry disease and do not provide an oscar with the right nutrition. If you must use feeders I recommend breeding your own or keeping them in QT for about a month. The best thing to feed your oscar is some kind of high quality cichlid pellet. Since your oscars are not eating anything I suppose feeders might work but don't make a habit out of it.
How long have you had the oscars? Oscars often go through a sulking period where they just lay around upset and don't eat...this normally passes within a few days, sometimes longer.
If I were you I would stay away from feeder fish, they often carry disease and do not provide an oscar with the right nutrition. If you must use feeders I recommend breeding your own or keeping them in QT for about a month. The best thing to feed your oscar is some kind of high quality cichlid pellet. Since your oscars are not eating anything I suppose feeders might work but don't make a habit out of it.
How long have you had the oscars? Oscars often go through a sulking period where they just lay around upset and don't eat...this normally passes within a few days, sometimes longer.
Oscars are also one of the fish that often get hexamita, a mild case can throw them off their feed. Try and see a sample of it's feces, if clear or white and slimy try metronidazole