Why is my tiger oscar losing his color?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Ok sounds like you have everything under control in the housing and water department. It is not uncommon for O's to go through stages of changing patterns and morphs on their way to adulthood. It's color could change again and become more orange or it could lose it's tiger pattern altogether and resemble a wild type with more green and interspersed sections of orange. The juvinile pattern and color could be nothing like the adult fish. Look at some of the Amphilophus species and the transformations they go through as they grow. I have seen Os go through awkward adolesent stages only to develope into beautiful adults. Hang in there and wate a while you might be plesently suprized one day.
 
mine have been just the opposite actually

they started with great color and they have just gotten more as theyve grown

Im sure yours will color up again
 
The tank move probably had something to do with it. That and the fact that most Oscars are drama queens and tend to show it when the dislike anything, be it a move, tank mate or decoration. I wouldnt worry too much, my tiger has gone through several color morphs in the last year and a half or so that I've had him. He was also from a big chain (petsmart).

Also, is the substrate in your show tank a different color than the one in the 55 he was raised in? This may also be a factor.
 
The color change happened before I moved him. but yes, substrate is different. 55 has white sand, the 210 has black.

Supposidly, NLS thera A is color enhancing.
 
Carefree_Dude said:
The color change happened before I moved him. but yes, substrate is different. 55 has white sand, the 210 has black.

Supposidly, NLS thera A is color enhancing.
Click to expand...

NLS is one of the best diets you can use I wouldn't change it.

Some fish look good on a dark substrate most don't. I use PFS and in a couple of tanks have some natural gravel mixed in and a little black sand but the overall effect is still a light color. I tried black sand in a tank once and I didn't like it at all. I also agree with PDRed O's get very moody if one little thing is out of place they'll lay on the bottom and sulk.

The RD in my avatar is over a mixed subsrtate but mostly PFS about 75%.
 
Yeah, I admit I hate the black sand... I'm just using it because I spent so much money on it. the white sand looks sooo much better.

I haven't seen the oscar sulk yet and he seems happy, but fish are weird.
 
Yea Aquanero is right. . .sorry, i didnt mean to jump the gun and just say 90% of all oscars lose their colour, iv never actually owned one, but all of my buddies have had a few each and this happened to all of theirs, including the skew lip thing, in all the petshops around here, i have never seen a decent adult Oscar, although my uncles Oscar is now about 30cm and it is this pitch black body with this magnificent ford focus orange streaking through, its a magnificent specimen, i just assumed that this oscar is one of the 10%. Sorry for jumping to conclusions. Listen to the pro's ;-)
 
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