lonely oscar

[floater]

Does an oscar prefer having a companion or woul it be happy in a 40 gallon breeder all alone?

 

[Geordie]

because of the size of the tank he is better off alone, adding anything else in a small space may lead to whatever u add getting its head kicked in!
Though saying that ive just bought 2 oscars for my 75 gallon tank and they are never more than 2 inches away from each other and seem to enjoy rubbing and touching fins, get a bigger tank if u want to give it a companion!

 

[floater]

will he be happy alone? I already have 4 tahnks and dont have room for one more. If he will be miserable then will get a different fish

 

[Geordie]

as far as im aware they are fine alone and each oscars personality is different, if he does seem a bit down after a while you can always give him things to play with to keep him entertained!

 

[juanveldez]

just going to cut to the chase for you because there will be other to follow me that will tell you the same.... you are going to have to get a bigger tank if you plan on keeping the oscar for the entirty of his life.

 

[floater]

Juanvaldez what size tank would you recomend for one adult oscar. The 40 gallon brreder has a larger surface areea than a 55 gallon tank. I read that for surface area you want at least 600 per O. The 40 breeder is 650.

plus according to this calculator my tank holds 50 gallons of water. Not too sure why they call it a 40 gallon breeder.
Results computed by FishTank Online September 26, 2003, 4:04 am CDT
http/boonedocks.net/fishtank

Water Type..............................Freshwater
Material................................Glass
Tank Overhead Shape.....................Rectangular
Length..................................36.00 in.
Width...................................18.00 in.
Height..................................18.00 in.
Wall-thickness..........................0.25 in.
Volume..................................50.49 gal (US)
Tank Material Weight....................61.93 lbf
Water Volume............................48.72 gal (US)
Water Weight............................405.37 lbf
Substrate Type..........................Small Diameter Rocks
Average Substrate Depth.................1.00 in.
Substrate Weight........................34.51 lbf
Approximate Total Weight................501.81 lbf
Room Air Temperature....................78.00 °F
Water Temperature.......................78.00 °F
Heating Capability Required.............0.00 W
Approx. Total Fish Length...............54.00 in.
Mass Required for 1 PPM.................183.87 in.

I also have 2 AC 500 powerfilters and a fluval 404 canister so bioload wont be a problem

 

[juanveldez]

well floater I aom going to say at leat a 75 gallon tank this is another case of why it doesn't help to stock a tank by the inches of fish I mean come on.... an adult Oscar can reach 16 or more inches. do you honestly think that a 16 inch fish is going to be able to fit into a 40 gallon tank or even a 55 gallon tank and live comortably?

 

[cichlidmaster]

This is really a hard call!!

I would tend to say the surface are is adequate, but the height of the tank may be suspect.

An oscar is a beep bodied fish when adult and I just don't think a tank 18" high will be in it's best interest.

The filtration you plan on is certainly good tho.

Tough call, but if I had to make it I would have to say....go with the 70 gallon.

JMO!!

CM

 

[smb]

I have to agree with the others. I would say a 75g is the minimum for SA/CA's that get 12" and up. I don't see it as an issue of a fish being able to "live" in a certain amount of space but rather a fish being happy about it and thriving. (ie. being able to swim more than just a few inches either way around the tank)

I agree also that I'd rather have a 40g breeder than a 55g. 55g's aren't made for the bigger cichlids because of the width.

 

[freshmike]

I have that same 50g.....I love the dimensions of it!

 

[floater]

I think I am going to go with a 120 gallon aquarium. found a really nice used one online for 400. Includes filter, stand, hood, lights... Any oscar would be happy in this setup right? Could I get a pair if I get this setup ? If I do I am going to swap the 40 for a reef system.

 

[cichlidmaster]

Can most definitely keep a pair in a 120 along with a few good sized dither fish as well.

A few red hook silver dollars would make a nice addition to a pair of oscars.

CM