Oscar Stunting/Growth Question

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'Merica

'Merica

Polypterus
MFK Member
Jun 19, 2016
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Northern Idaho
6B52459D-51C8-41C7-8C07-F08E68A30698.jpeg6395153F-222F-4AF4-B22F-1328D7022FDD.jpeg Hey Guys,

I found two tiger Oscars in a tank with a bunch of other Oscars. I don’t have much information on them other than the owner who turned them in had a damaged tank and came in with a bunch of them. I measured them as best I could in the water against the acrylic with a tape measurer and they are about 11” long. They are in a 300 gallon tank now.

Some people have expressed that they believe they are stunted due to their eye size and body shape. Realistically, can I expect them to still grow having been stunted, and if so, how big could they get in a 300 gallon overtime? Thanks for your input.
 
They don't appear stunted and eye size is in proportion to body for this species.

As to if they will grow bigger,it's really impossible to say. A lot will depend on the genetics of the fish. Some oscars seem to max out around 14 inches while others can hit 17 inches.
The bottom picture looks like the Oscar has a touch of hith. It may just be a scrape not sure. Pristine water quality and a good varied diet should keep it at bay.
 
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As the others wrote, they don't look especially stunted. They look pretty good condition to me, lovely bright red tigers.
Most won't surpass 14" in captivity, I've never seen one in the UK larger than my old red I had a few years back, he/she was 14" nose to tail tip.
I have a wild Rio Orinoco rapps Oscar that is a solid 12" at a year old and I know he has been well cared for from day dot. Hopefully I can get him to break the 14" mark in a few years.

15153324016002612917706696768177.jpg
 
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Not stunted, as others have stated just keep water quality up and you should see some additional growth over time. Fish grow continuously their entire lives, just at much slower rates once they mature.
 
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Just to add to the above posts, which are spot on, studies have been conducted on many fish that went through unintentionally long bouts where food was scarce and growth was nil. (The best cases are in lakes or rivers where people erected temporary dams or wiped out a portion of the food supply but were able to gather fish size statistics before and after.)

This can occur for long periods (whole seasons or even a year or two.) Once proper conditions are restored, primarily plentiful, nutritious food and clean water, there was a recognizable growth spurt that made up for part or all of the lost growth.

Genetics, of course, doesn't mean each fish will reach the same length. In any spawn, there will always be some that will end up smaller. So these particular fish may not be far from their probable genetic potential or they may have much more growth yet. There's no reason to give up on them especially when they look just fine.
 
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Boomer1224 said:
I would love to see a 14" Oscar in person
Click to expand...

There are some 17" Os on you tube at a public aquarium, they are MASSIVE. Someone here has a 16" O I think (recognize her avatar from youtube)

There is also DJ Jones on you tube who had a 15" O KING ZEUS. He was 6 years old.

space
water changes
dna
great food

seems to be the formula
 
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