where can i buy live prawns and lance fish? i do not live close to any ocean. is it okay if i were to feed them frozen prawns and lance fish or freeze-dried prawns and lance fish? if yes where? is it safe to feed them feeder from store like petsmart to feed my oscar? if not of how can i farm my own feeder?

You need to tell us what country you live in so someone from that country can help you

Frozen prawns are ok to feed to oscars but defrost them first as are freeze dried prawns. Lance fish are ok to feed to oscars. Pellets should make up the bulk of your oscars diet

i live in the united states. i live in south carolina

delboybully wrote:


Frozen prawns from supermarkets are generally coated in salt for preservation so be sure to rinse them off after you have defrosted them.

petoscar wrote:


Feeders are not safe from pet stores, many times they are kept in deplorable conditions in a tank with 1000 or more others, often dead ones not being removed etc (go check and I am willing to BET you will find dead ones floating around)....very easy for them to contract diseases and give them to your fish. This doesn't mean that this is always going to be the case, but it's kind of like playing russian roulette with your fish, and they are very poor nutritionally so it doesn't seem to me like it's worth the inherent risk. Other fish are not an oscars primary food choice in the wild, mainly a target of opportunity--insects usually are.

If you feel like you HAVE to use live feeders You could 'quarantine' them in a separate small tank to ensure they are healthy, or you could raise your own minnows and such in a separate tank..(you would raise them just like any other small tank fish w/o any bells and whistles like decor, etc., just a tank, filter, some aeration, and a stable temp. similar to your regular fish tank), which again, imo, is a lot of hassle for not much benefit. Frozen fish are much safer and in many cases more nutritious.