Worried About Oscar

[john2708]

i bought an oscar on friday 4 inches so a nice size he is eating but spends all his time laying on the bottom or in the java fern what could be wrong with him no visable signs of illness and like i said he is eating ate a hole silver side the day i bought him and is eating blood worm fine any ideas

 

[star4]

Oscars are known for sulking for days and even weeks when they have been moved.

 

[john2708]

lets hope thats what he is doing

 

[Tolak]

Need the usual, tank size, results of water tests, how long the tank had been running/cycled & so on. If all this is good it's just a pouting oscar, they do this if you move them, rearrange their tank, and so on.

If he's eating he's fine, just trying to come to terms with his new accommodations.

 

[john2708]

tank size 700litre water results are all fine tanks been running for three years all the other fish are fine the other two new arrivals that came with the oscar are fine so i am guessing he is a mardy oscar

 

[john2708]

on closer inspection of the the oscars eyes are cloudie his scales look like there shedding like a reptile and his fins are ropey bits missing any ideas

 

[star4]

What are the other fish in the tank? the loose/flaking scales are making me suspect he has been bullied by another fish, cloudy eyes could be they have been damaged somehow, eye flukes or a bacterial infection. Do you have a seperate tank you could put him in? just in case its not bullying and something is up with him.

 

[markandhisfish]

cloudy eyes could be bacterial , if so then myxazin by waterlife is very good , the fins could be fin rot / infection . not sure about the scales tho . maybe an idea to post in tropical emergencies with full list of symptoms , tank stats etc

 

[john2708]

im using myxazin just started tonight his tank mates are 4 pike cichlids dont know the names of by hand 2 jags a midas a texas and an ornate bichir all seem to get along have there own little parts of the tank my ammonia seems to be high at 2ppm and nitrate is 160ppm i think of the top of my head but my nitrite is 0ppm which is weird will do a 50% water change tomorrow and keep doing daily doses of myxazine hopfully he will get better all other fish seem to be ok np with them just the oscar

 

[markandhisfish]

if you have 2ppm amonia i wouldnt wait until tomorrow , id do a big waterchange now .

 

[john2708]

i cant its so cold the hose pipe keeps freezing pluss ill wake the missus as this tanks in my bedroom ill doit first thing in the morning

 

[mark4785]

I'd guess that the ammonia rise is due to the large addition of stock to the aquarium ("Oscar and 2 new arrivals"). You are probably going to have to cope with a mini-nitrogen cycle which will eventually right itself providing you do 1-2 very large water changes per day and research into what is contained in any medications you use to remedy the fin/eye ailments as some medications can contain things like copper/methylne blue which destroy your filter bacteria. You should try to get the ammonia problem sorted by lowering your nitrate level to a consistent 0-40 ppm before attempting the use of medication.