Hello there folks. I'm Michelle, 23, and I'm currently in the process of setting up a 55 gallon tank for the first time. I fell in love with oscars quite by accident. Someone in my family had the tank, and they bought several oscars, but unfortunately did not take proper care of them. I got the tank shortly after the poor fish had gotten ill, and despite my best efforts and numerous attempts from water changes, medications, food changes, a great deal of time, effort and money, the poor fellows passed away. I was quite attached to them, had named them, and I'm only now, nearly a year later, returning to the idea of keeping a tank.

After a thorough scrubdown, new gravel, filters, plants and various tank things, I finally filled the tank today, and the chemicals have been added, and so it will sit, until the water is balanced and I can begin seeking my fish.

I'm wanting to be thoroughly prepared this time, and I'm wanting to start from raising my oscars from very small to whatever size my tank will allow them to grow to. I do intend to keep two oscars, and I intend to buy juveniles, since I think that that will allow me to bond better with them. I'm currently online today researching tank mates (looking for a decent bottom feeder, as I know Oscars can be quite messy/destructive), and I came across this site. It's nice to see that there's a place where other people share my interest.

I'm determined to do this tank right, it's not fair to these beautiful intelligent fish to do anything less. So I'm hoping to learn a fair bit here, and hopefully have a solid base of knowledge to draw on when I run into stumbling blocks.

Welcome to oscarfishlover Michelle

Okay, it is good to see that you want to do things properly, and I'm glad you've come across us before you have actually buy any fish. Normally, people buy all their fish and then find us, normally because things have started to go wrong.

I'm going to start off by asking you to think again about how many Oscars you want. The tank you have is only big enough for one Oscar. If you get any more, the chances are you're going to start having water quality problems and you will just go down the same route as you have done already with these fish that died. You must also understand that one me save 55 gallons is big enough for one adult Oscar, that means only that fish..

I wish you could see one of my Oscars in the flesh, it is only just over 18 months old but is already a monster approaching 11 inches with plenty of time to grow bigger,.

I know this is probably not what you want to hear but we have to tell it how it is, obviously it's up to you what you do at the end of the day. We can only give you advice which is largely based on experience.

Well, I am planning on having two. I do know that a tank can't support more than that. And I do agree that I should have one, but the issue is, I don't want the fish to get bored, or to be lonely. I'm afraid, with me starting with the fish at a very small juvenile stage, it would be overwhelmed by the tank size. I'm hoping, further down the line, to get a larger tank, probably up to a 90 gallon one.

I've been told recently, as I've been talking to people at pet stores and at a fish shop near where I live, that Oscars only grow to a size compatible with the tank they're in. Would you happen to know if this is a true statement or not? I'm wondering because I really don't want to traumatize a fish, and I would give careful thought to only keeping one if it turns out that this statement is not true.

I really just want to have a tank where I'll have happy, healthy fish. I had thought that having two oscars, raised together, might be a good idea because then the fish would not get lonely. I know they're intelligent enough to get bored, and I had hoped that two fish who have been raised as tankmates might keep each other entertained/make for happy fish.

This is a very common cliche, "fish growing to the size of their tank". It is a load of crap. Fish will grow big if they are fed a lot, and kept in big tanks. In the wild, you always find the biggest fish in the huge lakes and rivers where they've got plenty of room and plenty to eat.

People often see their fish only getting to a certain size in a very small tank. This is where "fish only grow to the size of their tank" comes from. In many cases, the fish is actually stunted, i.e. it doesn't grow any more. This is often due to the fact that you have not been able to keep the water in good condition, therefore it has affected the fish and stunted its growth. The problem with stunted fish as they are often very unhealthy and don't last as long as they should because even though the outside of the fish doesn't grow, quite often, some of the organs still keep growing.

It is simply not right to keep fish in an environment that is not suited for them. Large fish belong in large tanks, there is absolutely no argument with that.

welcome to the site.

if you really want keep a healthy and happy oscar there are a few things that really should not ignored. one is filtration and the other is tank size.

penn is right when he says 55 gallons is not big enough for 2 oscars and i know that they look small and lonely in the tank when they are juveniles. the thing to remember is that oscars grow faster than any other type of cichlid and will reach 8-10 inches within the first year. i did the same thing your thinking of doing when i got into oscar keeping and had to upgrade way to soon to properly house them. if your dead set on having 2 oscars save your self the headache and set yourself up with a 90 gallon tank now..

btw oscars dont get "lonely" as people do therfore a tankmate really isnt necessary