My new baby Oscars

Got them on Saturday.

Wanted a Tiger and Albino Tiger, but the breeder's are saying Albino Tigers are becoming rarer by the day, and Red Albinos are the norm now.

So I wasn't prepared to wait for the odd chance of getting one later down the line, and took two Tigers different enough in colour and personality to be told apart.

These guys are tiny as you as you can see by the not so very good pics, but in very good health and very inquisitive, already learning to eat from my hand this evening.





Not much going on with decoration at this point in time, but will hopefully change that as soon as I have enough gravel to work with.



Dante on the left, Pandora on the right.

 

aaaaaah cute man!

Do you have a 2M ready for them?

 

They are beautiful SauRon, keep us posted with their growth.

Are these little dudes quite fussy to keep?

 

They grow huge so as long as u got a big enough tank and want no other fish in your tank other than that they are great

 

Very Very Nice ---- I WANT Some !!!!!!!!

 

They are so cute - it's amazing looking at them this size to realise just how large they become!

And Zafgak - where are you going to put them? LOL

 

Well this one fits a little bit more than the minimum requirements of 75 gallons (taking the Pleco out and so on of course).

I'll keep an eye on the water quality as we go along, will either end up getting a bigger tank or something like an FX5 to keep the water clean.

Will cross than bridge when we get there, but after seeing how much an FX5 costs might as well buy another tank

Water quality is your main concern, which is why a massive tank is generally recommended because there's just more water to go around.

They are quite messy, and will eat anything that goes in their mouth. Thermometers, heaters...whatever.

 

Its not just water quality, its actual swimming space. I had 1 Oscar in a 4ft and it was unhappy and did not have enough swimming space. That was with over 2000lph filtration.

Yes they are messy fish. Hardly heater eaters

 

i've seen a fully grown oscar break open a glass heater....

 

I've seen docile ones that aren't aggressive at all. Depends on the actual fish

 

I've had two thermometers magically disappear in the past. No traces of mercury, with the only hint being the little piece of calibration paper.

Which is why I've got digital ones now.

Which is where the swimming space problem comes in.

You don't know what you are getting until they grow up.

You could have an Oscar perfectly happy floating about all day in a normal sized tank, or you could have a hellbringer who wants to destroy a 2m.

I've seen pairs quite happy in a large 1,2m and then I've seen single Oscars going mad in a massive 2,5m all on their own.


Ultimately we'll just have to wait and see.

I'm planning to hand feed them as well, which hopefully will instill a more relaxed temperament.

I'm just quite pissed off about the numerous glass scratches that I either never saw before, or that I caused.

 

Bah, seems the one came with a spot of Ich.

Upped the temperate and added some salt this morning, hopefully it passes over without needing medication.

Just goes to show, just because you can't see it, doesn't mean it's not there.

 

Sorry to hear that SauRoN, hope it comes right - will be holding thumbs for your babies..

 

Hey Sauron - If you keep fish and you have never had Ich - then you have never kept fish..
Hope all goes well and a small amount of patience is all that is required

 

Yeah, white spot comes with the territory.

Well fortunately everyone is in pristine health, and the one is already outgrowing the other.

 

Hi SauRon,
Chatted with a breeder over the weekend about ich - he says his trick is to raise the temperature to 31 for a while, and that's all he does.... No salt.

Not sure how effective it is, but he swears by it.

 

I generally like adding Salt to my tank, instead of all sorts of chemicals, so it's not a problem for me.

I believe the salts help fish heal from wounds faster.

 

This treatment would depend on what type of fish you are treating - not all fish would stand those temps for the week or so that it may take to potentially get rid of any ich.

 

Thanks Veegal, I didn't know that...
Have to be honest, I've never had ich in my tank. But good to know these things.

I also avoid chemicals SauRon, trying to keep it nat-u-ral.