I'm not sure if this is the right thread for this but,
My tank finally finished cycling the other day so i went out and bought myself 4 baby O's, unfortunately i could only find a max of 2 at each LFS i trust and there was a little bit of size difference between them. Two were 2" and Two were 4".
I thought about it and i decided i would give it a try, and put some neon tetras in just to displace any aggression (they seem to be all missing now...)

I eventually wish to have a breeding pair, and have talked to my LFS for when i get a pair i can return 2 without drama.

anyway specs as follows for my set up,
Tank: 450ltr
Filtration: Eheim classic 2217
I do intend on getting another Eheim 2217 down the track for when the O's get bigger and i have some more funds

and i know you all like to see the water parameters so
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: not quite zero, but so close it shouldn't matter
Nitrate: between 20 and 40, so we will say 30

I'll be posting some nice shots (Hopefully) when i get my hands on a DSLR in the coming days

Sam

Hi Sam, Congrats on the cycle...

I know getting new babies is a LOT of fun, and very exciting..

I do have a piece of info you may not know, and it may complicate the situation.

Oscars don't "Pair" until they reach sexual maturity. They reach sexual maturity at about 2 years of age. So You are looking at having 4 - 10 inch or larger Oscars in your tank before you know weather or not you have a pair. Besides this, you may still not end up with a male and female.... 2 Females will behave much in the same manor.

Another thing, your tank converts to 118 US gallons... This is big enough for 2 Oscars. NOT 4!!! So you will be looking at a great deal of water quality issues, and aggression due to lack of space.

I didn't mean to burst your bubble, but I just want you to think about these things!

nicki-sue is right, oscars dont breed until full sized and if you keep 4 oscar in a 450l tank (100g uk) then you will end up poor water quality and aggression problems. In short if you keep all 4 you wil be posting on here in several months with problem. If i were you i would rehome 2 now. Your oscars may look small now but they will quickly become massive.

Its a lot of fun watching oscars grow

Nicki--Sue wrote:



i suspect that to be the reason why you couldn't get more than 2 at one lfs...
so rehome, or upgrade ,imo, to stay in the game of healthy and happy fishkeeping!

well you came to the right site to go on an "Oscar Adventure".

Welcome, and congratulations on your purchase!

Unfortunately, I may have to agree with my cohorts here. 4 Oscars is a bit much for a 118 Gallon Tank. However, I don't think 3 in unreasonable. I have 3 (2 are almost full grown) in my 125, among other fish, and I have been doing just fine.

Keep an eye on your water quality! Oscars are a TON of fun when they are healthy and happy.

Welcome Sam,
I am a relative new comer to Oscar keeping, and this site.
You did the right thing joining this forum. i have in a short time learnt a lot from fellow members. mostly about mistakes I have made.DOH. I too was a bit over exuberent about the number of fish I wished to keep and I have a smaller tank than yours. I have reduced the number but will have cotinue to do so as they get bigger. Best of luck.

Kanga-Fish wrote:


i just recently saw a maximum sized oscar and i must admit that seeing this full sized monster, made me fear that even my 180Gl may be a bit small for 2 oscars...

upgrade upgrade, start thinking about it now LOL, it's a very good excuse, and it can keep you going LOL
I have 7 Oscar and 2 Giant Gourami and recently upgraded from 50G tank to 150G tank
next planning 500G may be it'll be concrete with Glass. Can't be another Glass tank imagine the tank with for least 19mm thick Glass. calculated a Glass tank by that glass for 4feet 8feet and 3 feet it could weight more than half a ton itself

thanks for all the replys!
i knew it took about 18 months for O's to reach sexual maturity but i didn't realize that they would be full size.
and noddy i know what you mean i saw a full sized red a while back and it was HUGE, he was part of the reason i liked them so much
but that's OK ill wait a month and see what ones colour up the most and make the dreaded decision of what ones to keep
still i think my girlfriend would KILL me if i bought another bigger tank at the moment hahahaha

Engmuk from the way you posted it sounds like you have 7 Oscars and 2 Giant Gourami in a 150g tank? i hope this isn't true...

Sam

Mistal wrote:

I have heard this one before...