hi everyone!
i just recently purchased a oscar fish about a week ago and things seem to have been going great. today though it seems that my fish has taken a turn for the worse . his stomach looks swollen and he is hiding in dark areas of the tank. hes still interested in eating, and when i come close to the take, he still swims over for food or to watch me, but his swollen stomach worries me along with his hiding. here are the stats of my tank. i hope this can help! thank you!!!!

water quality
-nitrite - 0ppm
-ammonia - 0ppm
-nitrate - 10ppm
-Ph- 8.2
-temp - 78degrees
-water changes- once a week, approx 15 gallons
tank is 5months old and cycled

oscar fish behavior
-bloated stomach, but still eating
-hides in dark areas of tank
-sits on bottom of tank
-no signs of ick, or velvet
-became bloated within 24 hours
-oscar is a juvinile, only about 2 1/2 inches big

tank mates
-1 algea eater

tank size
- 75gallons

equipment
-filter- bio flow; its usually used for salt water tanks but it also works for fresh.

chemicals
-tetra aqua; aquasafe

food
- hikari cichlid gold mini pellets
-fed twice a day, 5-8 pellets a time, i usually give him one at a time until he moves away and is done eating.

i hope this info helps some. thank you again!!!

welcome to the site. Does it just look like the stomach is bloated, or most of the body? Could he have eaten anything else that you put in for other fish? Have you seen the Oscar emptying his bowels? Most fish will do this at least once a day. If possible, get a photograph for us.

Your water conditions are fine, no worries there. I can only suggest seeing how things go for the next few days. If the swelling disappears in the next few days then hopefully everything is okay. However if the fish stays bloated than it could be a little more serious. Is he breathing heavily at all?

Try to hold off on the feeding for a day... See what happens... Mine looks like a 9 month pregnant chick after it eats all of his food and the jacks.. lol

thanks for the welcome!
it seems like its mostly his stomach. he did eat a bit more than usual this morning, so im not sure if that could be causing the bloating. as far as i can see he still does void his bowels, and he hasnt eaten anything else besides his pellets. (my algae eater has enough algae to keep him preoccupied). and he doesnt seem to be gasping for air. i have a bubble wand in the tank to help keep movement.

Yes, probably a good idea to hold off on the food for maybe just one day and see what happens, hopefully the swelling will reduce in size.

Wait and see what happens in a day or two, there is not really much more we can do at the moment

my little oscar At about 2 inches big,,,his stomach grew like a big round grape..
Plz keep in mind,,,my little ocscar was a piggy..He would take at least 70 to 80 percent of food put in tank for 2 oscars(he would fight myt biggeer oscar for insects)..

I did some reading on stomach bloating,,and they say it can be a stage towards a more serious fish disease...

but after i reduced his food,and watched him,,,he crapped for like 3 or 4 days non stop,,his stomach reduce to to a normal size.and he was still just as great as ever,still to this day he will jump clear out of the water at feeding.

I should also mention,,that even though i cut feeding down,,it seemed like for the next 12 to 24 hours,,he might have even got a little bigger,,it was about 24 to 36 hours after last feeding i noticed his size starting to get a little smaller.

I could have just been lucky,,i am not saying it is nothing,,,i just wanted to share my experience in this matter with you..

I hope your sitution turns out to be nothing also and your littlr fellow just loved to eat to much too..lol

Yeah... Mine would eat until his gut popped. I have no doubt about it! Then they get a stomach ache and lay on the bottom...Yet if you dropped more food in.... He would be on it like stink on shit.

Lara wrote:

the picture shows your o is just a predator fully stuffed and needs rest.
yes, juvenile eats like a pig and usually rest after ward. what is your
feeding regiment? if you feed it every morning, the belly should be reduced
by late afternoon.

you don't have to worry about it. the color shows he/she is healthy too

thank you guys for all your help! my oscar seems to be doing good tonight. swimming around and begging for food, like usual. my fiancee and i decided to name him pork chop because of his piggy habbits. lol. once again thank you guys!

lol..

I had this happen once, it can either be over eating or from constipation.

The best way to reduce the chances of constipation is to try to feed some food that isnt dried, try and see if he will take peas. It can also be a good idea not to feed them for one day a week or so

i started skipping feeding a day per week on all my fish tanks since i got my puffers, its helped with water quality ALOT, and the fish actually start eating all the food i give instead of having to scoop out a couple pellets after a bit. its good practice that makes for healthy fish!