ok so earlier today i got myself two oscar cichlids they're of the tiger variety, but ones albino Oo so anyway i decided to put them in the new tank i just set up a few day's ago Oo it's a little cloudy in there but i'm thinking it's just cause it's a fresh tank... so anyway.. i waded them in there in their baggy for a while to adjust to the water then i just opened the bag let some water from the tank in and just let them swim out on their own. once they got in the tank i noticed they swam behind a piece of driftwood and kind of just layed there. it looked like the albino one wasn't breathing and the reg black tiger was just laying there next to him... i did a little research and read that bright light disturbed them and that they're sensitive to moving to new tanks so i turned the light off... a little while later they started swimming around just fine i had my bedroom light on so i could see them pretty well... i dropped some food in there and they started nibbling and ate a bit... but a few hours later i noticed they looked like they were breathing odd... they were opening and closing their mouths non stop... not as if they were hyperventilating but kind of like my kissing gourramis in my other tank... so i'm wondering if i should be worried Oo if i have to absolutely transfer them to a already cycled fish tank i could put them in my community tank but i'd rather not if i don't have to... i just don't want to wake up to dead oscars tomorrow any help would be great!


just a quick update... i'm probably gonna go to sleep right now. it's been about an hour since i posted Oo so hopefully i'll get some responses tomorrow but anyway... the two oscars are kind of just swimmin around teh bottom opening and closing their mouths... not as if they're freaking out just open and close... i saw the albing kind of swim a little to the tops then they both kind of stared at me and came to the front of the tank Oo i hope they'll be good

Firstly, Oscar shouldn't really open and close their mouths constantly. There are various reasons that can cause a fish to do this. Stress can cause the fish to do this, lack of oxygen, & toxins present in the water. You haven't told us whether or not you have cycled your tank, if you didn't, there is a risk that toxins are starting to build up. You need to check for ammonia, and nitrite. Also check your pH and nitrates.

Make sure that there is plenty of surfaced agitation caused by the water coming back in from your filtration, this'll help to oxygenate your tank. At the moment, don't feed your fish too much food. At the moment, we don't want too much waste going into your water.

So please test your water and give us the results, it's extremely important mean I exactly what they are.

tested the water yesterday ph and all were great Oo but im sure that's changed Oo luckily the fish are doing alright Oo i won't feed them today not untill tonight seeing as i fed them last night ummmm i have to go to work for a few hours so i'll come back in about 3 hours and post the results of the nitrates and current ph Oo i've good great water agitation going on Oo i have my air pump on one end and my aqua clear filter on the other so the water's constantly getting agitated

ok so i just tested my ph and it was 7.4
tested nitrates and it's between 10 and 20 ppm
the fish my oscars are both just kind of hudled behind the piece of driftwood...they don't look like they're gasping but they're not very active... they're alive for sure though Oo i hope nothing goes wrong over the next week or so

Was about ammonia and nitrite? they really shouldn't be any higher than zero. If they are, feed very sparingly, and carry out a small water change every day.

yeah i just finished the ammonia test a few seconds ago and it's at .25! Oo yeah i just did a 10 % maybe a little more of a water change Oo
i think i'm wondering if i should gets some API stress zyme it was recommended to me Oo but i'm not sure if it will harm the oscars or stress them out any more than i'm sure they already are. i really want them to make it to old age i've gotbig plans for them

i also just noticed that the oscars are a little less lifeless than they were previous to the water change

Unfortunately your ammonia is too high. I've used prime in the past when ammonia and nitrites have been present. Oscars can sometimes get little stressed after a water change. However, you've got to carry out these water changes to keep the ammonia under control. It will be helpful to know what your nitrite levels are.

mmk so i've added 2 new fish to my tank Oo two pretty grown up cory catfish Oo one of them also albino and the two oscars have been having a good time now that the tanks all cleared up... but today i noticed one of my oscars has had a pellet in hi smouth for quite some time now Oo it looks like he's just holding it in his mouth it's kind of odd... Oo i kind of want to grab him out and take whatever is in his mouth out but i don't want to trip him out... any suggestions?

well, oscars are extremely sensitive to ammonia. they sell filter cartridges or bags that remove ammonia. all though ive never had any problems with ammonia, i still use them from time to time just in case. as for the stress zyme, once again i havent used it personally, but my friend has and it really helped him get his tank going quickly. and it wouldnt hurt as well.

your best bet might be actually to move the os into the other tank. unless the oscars can eat them whole, especially juveniles (which im going to take a guess and say you have) you have nothing to worry about.

also, im just wondering, how big is the tank they are in.

if i may ask, how long have you set up the tank?
i mean is your tank fully cycled before putting
those fishes? what kind and capacity is your filtration?
how big are your oscars? and other fishes?

First off it seems like you have new tank syndrome.
The only 2 cures for this the first and easiest is don't get the fish so early - but as this is already too late the second is as suggested before lots of 10% water changes.
I have already placed some ammonia remover in my filter just as a precaution. It does wok as do some of the propriatry removers ( i don't like adding to many chemicals to my tanks though - as I found out to my cost they can react to each other!!)

When I introduced my oscars they were very shy for the first week or so and it took alot of standing infront of the tank holding treats for them ( lance fish are good - they can't resist the movement if you move them slowly) to get them to be less shy.

Now unfortunately I have only to be within 6 ft of my tank for my oscars to be at the front of the tank almost saying why aren't you feeding me?

As for Cory's I don't know of any that get more than 3" and so when oscar grows up will make a nice sized treat - if you like them get them out.
I have a Banjo cat in with mine and he does a great job of cleaning up the mess that the oscars leave behind. I bought him at 5" so big enough to hold his own.