Oscar breeding questions

[Ynot]

I currently have a 75 gallon tank, and I am considering an Oscar pair. I already have a 4-5 inch oscar, 3 clown loachs, pleco, an a bullnose catfish.

**Is this tank an ok size for a pair of Oscars, let alone breeding?
**I know you can't sex an Oscar without venting or witnessing egg laying, should I by a handful of Oscars to get a pair?
**How exactly do I tell I have a pair, so I can take the other Oscars back to the store.

Thank you everyone for your feedback.

 

[Dennis]

I currently have a 75 gallon tank, and I am considering an Oscar pair. I already have a 4-5 inch oscar, 3 clown loachs, pleco, an a bullnose catfish.

**Is this tank an ok size for a pair of Oscars, let alone breeding?
**I know you can't sex an Oscar without venting or witnessing egg laying, should I by a handful of Oscars to get a pair?
**How exactly do I tell I have a pair, so I can take the other Oscars back to the store.

Thank you everyone for your feedback.

I would say a 75 gallon is a little small for a full grown pair of oscars. Should be ok up to 6 inches or so. The ideal way to get a pair is to get several and let them choose themselves. Trouble with this method is tank size, as they don't tend to start pairing off until 6+ inches, by which time it gets a bit cramped. Yeah venting is the only sure way to tell them apart as its not uncommon for 2 females to pair off and spawn together. My pictures show a pair, first is the male, but as you can see there is no difference. I only know because of successful spawnings. They are 11 inches each, and 3 years old by the way.

 

[smpage]

Definitely upgrade your tank size!

 

[Cakilla]

going to need to upgrade your tank size

 

[Ynot]

Alright, cool thank you everyone.

 

[poly-nomial]

I currently have a 75 gallon tank, and I am considering an Oscar pair. I already have a 4-5 inch oscar, 3 clown loachs, pleco, an a bullnose catfish.

**Is this tank an ok size for a pair of Oscars, let alone breeding?
Hmmm, bigger is always better but really the main thing here is length and width, the female needs space to escape from the male so he does not totally destroy her
**I know you can't sex an Oscar without venting or witnessing egg laying, should I by a handful of Oscars to get a pair?
Pairs are much more expensive not to mention many people don't sell breeding oscars as a hobby/income job, so i would buy around 10, than sell the extra ones, make sure they are very good quality if you want quality fry
**How exactly do I tell I have a pair, so I can take the other Oscars back to the store. They will start lip locking and than start cleaning off areas to breed the, female will stay in a corner/pot/cave and the male will desperately fight off any other intruders.I don't think you can actually determine when an Oscar will become sexually mature by its size alone. Depending on what you feed your fish, what size tank you keep it in, and how well you look after it will play quite an important role in the growth of the fish. it is also worth noting that Oscars will not pair off until they become sexually mature so you will have a long wait if you buy them as babies. They should be fully sexually mature after 2 years and will have babies every month or so. It is advisable to not have any tankmates with them because they will be massacred.

Thank you everyone for your feedback.

Good luck