Hey guys,

First of all, i'm relatively new to keeping oscars, and i'd just like to say thanks to the creators of this site, and all the contributors to the various articles. The info i've found on this site has been incredibly useful in helping me understand whats involved in keeping, what i think, are some of the coolest fish in existance.

My questions is in regards to breeding your own feeder fish for your oscar. My oscar loves chasing around little feeders and gobbling them up, but i've kept it to a minimum as i share the same concerns about the health of these fish and the risk that poses, in turn, to my oscar.

The feeders at my local fish shops, i beleive, are all little Koi fish.

I was wandering what you guys feed your oscars when it comes to live fish?

And which fish you'd recommend for overall good nutritional content?

Also any hints to fish which aren't too difficult to breed for a beginner?

I heard that goldfish aren't great cos they're quite fatty. My girlfriend managed to breed a fair few guppies in a pretty short period of time, which is pretty much what i'm trying to acheive in order to have a sort of ongoing supply of food for my little buddy. He's also only 4in at the moment so only really manages to easily eat small, 1 inch fish, but im sure that'll change pretty soon

Any helps greatly appreciated.
Cheers,
Andrej.

welcome to the site Andrej

okay, I don't bother feeding live fish to my Oscars. There are various reasons for this. Firstly, if you don't breed them yourself, they are a very expensive meal. Secondly, you have to have an additional tank to keep them in. That means extra tank maintenance, water changes and of course electricity. I know they are only feeders, but they have to be looked after like any other fish. And finally, there isn't an awful lot of nutritional value in a small fish.

In the wild, Oscars will feed in the flooded area of the forest for large parts of the year. There are rich pickings to be found which include a lots of insects/bugs like beetles, crickets, spiders etc. A lot of these little critters will end up falling into the water, or will actually have to swim , when this happens, they make an easy meal for any fish. I prefer to feed my fish on life food such as mealworms, and the little beetles that the mealworms turn into.

Although I've never bred them before, I believe convict cichlids are prolific breeders as our Severums, I do happen to have a paier and they will lay eggs every two weeks. But remember you will always have to have a holding tank for the Fry. And they probably won't be a worthwhile meal for quite a few weeks so you may end up having to have quite a big feeder tank if you want food for all the year.

Breeding live feeders is not something I would consider worthwhile when you consider the wide variety of food that is actually available nowadays. Of course if you want to do it as an additional hobby, then you would probably enjoy it just as much as keeping the Oscars.

hey guys just talking about feeder fish.

i tried to but i coudlnt commit the extra time to raising the fry. I just catch them frmo my local lake.

I was wondering.. could having large feeder fish in the same tank as my oscar be bad?

hes etaing one now and it sticking out of his mouth.

well it is just sticking out of his mouth and he hasn't swallowed it, it's obviously too big. Fish will become stressed if they do get things stuck in their throat and mouth so only feed them what they are able to eat properly.

As for keeping feeder fish in with the Oscars, I don't think this is a good idea. Firstly, it will add to your bioload [the amount of waste going into the water] secondly, you want to limit the amount of food that you feed your fish. What Oscars tend to do is gorge themselves. You don't want your Oscar grabbing hold of as many feeder fish as he can and then not being able to eat them. You just want to feed the fish the amount of food you want to give them so it's best to keep live food separate.

thanks OFL.

took them out last night, it didnt seem like a good idea.

Do oscars exhibit any special behaviours if they ahve been overfed?

Im not sure if its because its after water change.. but my oscar tends to swim very lethargically.. and swims vertical head up sometmies.