Teresa Posted December 22, 2011 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Hi, I just arrived in Vermont for the holidays. After greeting the family, one of the first things I noticed is a beautiful tiger oscar swimming in a 1.5 gallon tank with an air tube. My 16 year old sister claims it as hers - "isn't it pretty", she says. "Well yes, JJ," I say, "it's beautiful but . . ." This is where I am stuck. I know everything about saltwater, some about fresh, but nothing about brackish water or the proper environment for cichlids. My aunt did buy her a 20 gallon tank for xmas that will be okay for an intermediate tank. Its one fish so I'm wondering how long the tank needs to cycle, if we need to add salt, etc. any and all advice welcome. Thanks and happy holidays! Teresa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woods Posted December 22, 2011 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Oscars are Freshwater fish, NOT Brackish. They get BIG and are messy eaters. It will grow quickly and will need at least a 55g if not larger within about 6-8 months. It needs to get out of the 1.5g tank ASAP... How big is it now? If you have additional questions, post them and I can help answer them or you can PM me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBReefer Posted December 22, 2011 Share Posted December 22, 2011 +1 Both of the small tanks will not work long term.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robb in Austin Posted December 22, 2011 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Yes to the above. IMO, that one fish will need a 75g at least. With regard to putting it in a new tank, get a HOB filter and some Bio-Spira and get it in there now. If Seachems stability is FW safe and available you might be able to use it instead. I'd do water changes daily to combat the cycle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted December 22, 2011 Author Share Posted December 22, 2011 Thanks for all the advice! I just found out she's been keeping it in this tank for the past 6 months. Oh boy. We're setting up the 20 gallon tank later today. I'll let you'll know how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woods Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 The 20g is only good for a month or 2 and then at least a 55g. Within 6-8 months, Robb said, a 75g or even a 100g tank will be required to properly house this type of fish. If they don't plan on moving to bigger tanks, I would highly recommend exchanging this fish for something that is more appropriate for a 20g. You can stunt the growth of this fish by keeping it in too small of a tank. This generally causes extremely poor water conditions due to the messy eater that it is and then comes the diseases, such as Hole in the Head and FinRot, etc... Good luck Teresa. Guess it is good that you went to visit and can teach them proper care and research for the fish they want to keep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jestep Posted December 23, 2011 Share Posted December 23, 2011 Make sure to use the water and any filtration from the small tank. It may prevent the 20 from cycling. Can't believe it stayed alive for a month in that... I would seriously bring it back and trade it for something appropriate for the size. 75 is not large enough IMO. They are very messy fish, and would require frequent water changes in a 75. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
August Posted December 24, 2011 Share Posted December 24, 2011 +1 on what woods said... remember that when people say it will only grow to the size of the tank they are LYING!! A fish will grow to however big its gonna be no matter what... Oscars also require at least a semi meaty diet which usually consists of live feeder fish from your local petsmart or pet store.... They are SUPER messy and need lots of room.. When I worked at a LFS we went by the rule that Oscars typically need 3-5gal of water per inch of fish. They are more like goldfish. They must have good filtration and air or their life quality will be poor. They are like tangs in the saltwater world in that they need room to swim. They can make very personable fish in that I know people who hand feed their oscar. A 75 gal would probably be minimum as these fish get to be anywhere from 10-15in in length sometimes more... You also should be concerned with the fishes spine at this point which after being kept in a tank that is too small will start to curve and will eventually cause its demise later down the road... I agree the Oscar should be returned and something of more appropriate size should be purchased... Good luck and Happy Holidays Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teresa Posted January 7, 2012 Author Share Posted January 7, 2012 Hi All, Thanks for the advice. The fish is currently setup in the 20 gallon tank. I told my dad about the fish getting sick if it wasn't moved to a bigger tank. Parents don't want to spend money on a larger tank and my sister won't return him. I tried my best. Though they all really like the new set up - so maybe they will start to care more over time. Another question: My dad said he wanted fancy guppies - so I got one of those tank divider sheets and made a separate space for guppies - about 2 gallons at the end of the tank. Can they feed the baby guppies to the Oscar? We kind of already tried, but the Oscar ignored the babies. He does seem very interested in getting to the adults on the other side though. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woods Posted January 7, 2012 Share Posted January 7, 2012 Yes, Oscars are definitely fish eaters. Give him time to grow and he will eat them... He would obviously learn faster if he had another fish in the tank eating them but he will instinctively eat them eventually. He may be a little small yet and if only fed flake or pellets may not be accustomed to eating fish yet. Size will definitely help as it will become more agressive and will go after them. I used to feed my large Oscars goldfish all the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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