Suitable Tank Mates For Oscar

[lloyd]

yes i no it all depends on the fish but why take the risk is all im saying. oscars are suprisingly sociable most of the time so really if your gonna have one u should have at least another, other wise you can get wierd love relationships or lonely ocars. equally u might get a oscar that hates the world including its own kind.

 

[lloyd]

Want something with a bit more colour than the silver dollars. Think il go with the JD or green terror what ideally should i be feeding the oscars now at a young age and then what do i feed them when they are older?

look into geophagus good community cichlids in general before you make any decisions. red hook silver dollars are also a little bit different. severums are a good choice though, i would get a couple though. you should contact micko he seems very clued up on severums

 

[Dieses Madchen]

yes i no it all depends on the fish but why take the risk is all im saying. oscars are suprisingly sociable most of the time so really if your gonna have one u should have at least another, other wise you can get wierd love relationships or lonely ocars. equally u might get a oscar that hates the world including its own kind.

You run the risk when putting multiple cichlids in a tank whether they are oscars or not. Cichlids by nature are aggressive fish. Which is why it is up to the individual fish on whom he likes as every fish personality is different. Why risk having multiple Malawi cichlids in a tank? They are just as aggressive and choosy, but a single Malawi will be stressed. It is trial and error with cichlids. The only thing about choosing potential tankmates is to have a back-up plan in case things go wrong. Simple as that.

And reread your statement. It made absolutely no sense.

 

[dbanner]

Lots of great advice but not so sure on adding another fish at this point... Kind of getting mixed messages... Do i go with just keeping the 2 Oscar, add a Severum or 2 or some larger barbs?? Ahh I don't know

 

[Dieses Madchen]

I have 2 severums, 2 oscars and 2 jack dempseys. All gentle fish. The best thing to do is go with a fish that is the same saze as your oscars. Severums are a good choice as they are a mild mannered fish. They even got along with jewel cichlid. They are currently living with a shoal of convicts and I have never seen them misbehave. With cichlids, it will always be trial and error. I personally would give the severums a shot. Just make sure when you buy them, that you can return them if it doesnt work. This is the rule with any cichlid unfortunately

 

[dbanner]

Ok well this seems fair. How many severums would you get? What do they eat? Same as oscars or?? Thanks for the reply by the way

 

[Dieses Madchen]

I would do 1 or two, as severums get rather large (9-10 inches) and be prepared to possibly buy a larger tank in the future. How big are your oscars?

 

[dbanner]

The tank they will be going in soon will b 125 gal and the oscars at the mo are only around 2 inch

 

[Dieses Madchen]

severums are pretty easy to find at that size. mine are about 3 inches, got them at an inch. 125g is really good for right now as it provides a lot of room. 150g is usually considered the minimun for two oscars alone. Keep that in mind. I personally and looking to upgrade to a 200-250 for my oscars and severums alone at full size. Just so you know, this will be the case with any fish you choose to try with your oscars as any fish you get, you want them to end up about the same size as the oscars.

 

[dbanner]

At the moment i wouldn't have room for a tank of that size. 125 is the most i could go. This may well change in the future as I'm hoping to get my own place

 

[Dieses Madchen]

You have some time. I just want you to be full aware of what to plan for. You could always keep the oscars alone. They have each other so they arent lonely. My two oscars are alone at the moment and do just fine. Just take what information you have, and weigh on it.

 

[dbanner]

Yeah ok i may just do that. At least then i weigh up my options, see whether i can get a tank of around that size or not. If i can't then il be happy enough to stick with the oscars alone. See how things go

 

[ripil]

think i'd go with tinfoil, firemouth, bala shark mate.

 

[Dieses Madchen]

Good choices, ripil, I hadnt thought of those. Oh, and if you choose to later up your tank size, do not be discouraged by the price of a new tank. I buy all my tank used for a fraction of the cost and they work just was well.

Bala sharks would make a nice addition. but be warned. My mom had bala sharks and the oscars ate them

 

[snake007]

IMO balas need a bigger tank than that, very very very very fast fish, very skittish and grow huge.