I am a begginer to the site and will admit i am to being a fish carer as well. I have two oscars one albino and one tiger. For the first week or so of my tank everything was going smoothly, the water was imaculant, the fish were lively and they ate everyday. As of tonight i had got off work and returned home to see the Tiger oscar staying less active then usual and seems to be covered in whitish patches, i have looked ich up and my oscars patches seem o be much bigger, almost even just a solid colour change on most of the body. I am super worried about the fish's well being and would greatly appreciate it if someone could give me some advice.
Thank you,
some extra info: no real plants in tank, fish are about 2-3 inches.

Dillon7 wrote:


-Sounds like your fish might be producing excess slime coast in response to infection or environment.
Can you take a pic?

Are the patches 'fuzzy' or smooth?

Is the fish gasping or rubbing up against objects in the tank?

What are your water readings?

- Dont kill me , they are both in a 20 gal with a 20-40 gal filter on it. carbon i believe(two inserts).
I know this is completely unacceptable for two Oscars but it was temporary as its just housing them until they exceed 3-4 inches.
Yet again im a noob, i have a few pictures that aren't to clear but i cant find a attachment button on here, if you could inform me on that that would be great.

- And your correct, the patches are smooth and not fuzzy.

- i feed them carnivore sticks for cichilds and bloodworms. They have tried feeders but are quite small still so i dont tend to buy them.

- The not affected one is a albino oscar so no white is visible but i dont think he is yet infected as he is still decently active compared to my other.
Thanks so much, Dill

Dillon7 wrote:


yikes.




It's inadvisable for only one oscar, actually, and even at the size they're at now. I think we're probably seeing the results. I would recommend upgrading to at least a 90 gallon as soon as it's feasible. If you cannot obtain that size of a tank at a minimum you might have to think about rehoming one of the oscars, as one requires 55 gallons minimum even at something like 4 inches.


Do you have a test kit? If so, what are your readings?

For starters I'm just going to assume the water quality is poor and that the fish is stressed b/c of it--lethargy and excess slime coat production can be good indicators. (there's a possibility it might still be ich...just that the spots have joined together to form what look like patches).

I would do a 50% water change right off the bat regardless.

Do you have a test kit? If so, what are your readings?

--What type of water change schedule have you been doing? How do you treat the water?

--Is the fish simply lethargic... is it gasping and/or rubbing up against objects? laying at the bottom?





--upload it to photobucket or any image hosting site

--copy the URL code and paste it into the 'image link' box in the menu options at the top when you are making a post.

--click 'insert'

(or, you could just upload it to photobucket and link us to it in the post)




i would stay away from feeders...too many health risks.

No doubt, i knew i would hear it for this. I feel bad enough for the week or so ive homed them in this tank trust me. Already have a order on a 65 gal tank and a buddy with a 120 will be looking after my other with his. (let me know if thats not good to mix them randomly like that for territorial reasons or something if you could please)


Im no professional but with some kind people like yourself online i have been able to get some information. I have done regular 25% water changes every 2-3 days a week, making sure it be chlorinated and right temp. The tank is around 28 because of the heat right now where i live, but usually stays around 26 (Celsius). It is crystal clear, But unfrotuantly i just seen the spots after work tonight and wont be able to get test strips until tomorrow morning sometime.
And yes heavy inhaling or gasping, he is simply sort of backed himself under a decoration ship.
Sorry for the poor pic qualirty but the colour difference on the black one is a little visible where the black goes whiter. In person is is VERY noticable, unlike my pictures.http://
Thanks again.

Well, to be honest having pple bitching at you about the tank isn't really gonna help anyways, so I wouldn't worry about that at all and just concentrate on what you can do from here to keep them alive if you want to persevere with it.

I think your best and first course of action would definitely be to get a test kit and post the results asap.

Try and get the bottles/test tubes rather than the strips-- more expensive but they are far more accurate and they last a long time. Definitely worth it. The API (aquarium Parmaceuticals) ones are widely available in local pet stores and chains.

As to the oscar going into another tank for the time being...is Is the other oscar fully mature? You mentioned these are very small yet I think...that's kind of tricky, you really don't know. Could be fine, could be a little bullying, could be a major issue. I would be a bit cautious with that.
If the other oscar is full grown and doesn't particularly care for a houseguest you might want to invest in a divider to avoid serious injury.

You also want to be a bit careful b/c we might be dealing with infection here and you don't want to contaminate the other tank. Anyways, first things first...get those test results.

How long have they been in that tank? A week? Is/was the tank cycled properly?

the way i follow your post, it looks like you did get an oscars but the
tank is not yet fully cycled.... the white coating is a protection against
bad water condition... if the water will not become good sooner, it will
turns into infection and could die....

while cycling the tank, you must apply some prime to lessen the toxicity
of the water. i hope the fish can cope with the situation.

On my way for the strips now, The tank was cycled for 2-3 days before the fish were added, of course later on i learned it should of been longer.
Also, right now the marks seem to be dissapearing the next day. Should i be quarantining him from my other fish for the time being?
Or do some water changes?

-Been in tank almost 2 weeks.
- Sorry again, but also whats 'prime' when your speaking of lessening the toxicity of the water ?
Thanks a ton, will post result shortly.

Dillon7 wrote:


Not the strips...the test tubes and droppers.

Prime is a water conditioner you add to tap water before putting it into the tank. It usually works fairly instantly and declorinates, detoxifies ammonia, and helps eliminate nitrates. It also is said to aid slime coat, although personally I'm a tad dubious about any claims about that. Regardless, IMO it's the best out there and avaliable pretty much everywhere.

www.petco.com/product/7929/Seachem-Prime.aspx

You're gonna want to use it for every water change.

I'm guessing your tank wasn't cycled properly.

--I would try and get some substrate/filter media from your buddy asap to put in your tank to help the process along. The bacteria from an established cycled tank will accelerate the process. Maybe Squeeze the water from the filter sponges onto yours and scoop out some of the gravel and tank water. Keep the materials wet (not with tap water....tank water) and transfer them to your tank.
Pet stores also sell pre-packaged 'bacteria boosters' you can add to your aquarium to again speed the process. This is a subject of some debate as to if this is truly beneficial, but in your case I don't think it can hurt.


We need that test result though

Any test results yet?