Oscars

[RedStarFishy]

My boyfriend has one tiger oscars and two reds and as much as i think they're funny looking, their personailty are adorable. i find it hard to admit, but i love those guys. i'm thinking of getting one myself. i heard they're aggressive (tho my boyfriend's three aren't, only at dinner time) so should be kept in a cichlid only tank. what are the chances of getting two oscars and having them be aggressive together? would something like a synodontis catfish (sorry if wrong spelling) be an alright tank mate? i'd hate for him to be by his lonesome self in a tank. and size of tank is no problem, we have wide variety of sizes to choice from in our apartment.

my other question is i've heard oscars are trainable and very smart. has anybody trained their oscars, and what can they do? i'm always curious about through the hoop while its out of water (tho i would never do it, it would be my luck i would get the special one that hurts himself when he comes back down). any tips on how to train them or is it really hard to do so?

sorry this is so long and thanks for answering

 

[rvm]

Oscars are full of personality, and whilst they can be aggressive, mine is a right wet blanket. As for 2 in the same tank, I would be looking at 100g plus for that and then tou've got to be careful and either get an established pair or get a group from young wait until a pair forms then take the rest back.
I've seen three in a 55 gallon that were about 12" each and didn't fight, but I would say this is the exception rather than the norm!!
They are generally fine with other large fish as long as they have the space. (check my gallery and click the link for my 140g to see what I have in with mine!) As for training them, I don't think you'd be able to get them to jump through hoops, but they are very responsive and mine recognises me and gets excited when I go near the tank cos he thinks he's going to get fed!!
I've heard of people putting ping pong balls in the tank for them to play with, but I've not tried this myself.
If you've got the tank space for them, I can't recommend as Oscar highly enough. They are great fish, and I wouldn't be without mine now!!!

 

[Vip]

what are the chances of getting two oscars and having them be aggressive together?

Its not to hard for that to happen, once they hit 6" all hell tends to break loose with these guys, i had 2 in a 79g tank and everything thing was fine untill they hit 6", now they are in differnt tanks, as rvm said get a tank of 100g+ no less because when they fight they fight to the death.

 

[CatLover]

Yes, for two or more oscars, you should get at least a 100G or higher.
If you have a 55G or higher, you could get one though.

Oscars are known for their aggression, and tank size plays a huge role in how aggressive they will be toward one another. Each fish must have plenty of room to stake its own territory.

Aside from aggression, tank size is also very important because of the waste they produce. Oscars are very messy fish, and creating a filthy tank is no problem for them. Also, no matter what size tank they're in, you need a good, heavy filtration system because of this fact.

 

[jmelnek]

I used to have an oscar that would jump about 4" out of the water and take a pellet out of my fingers....

 

[Unphased]

mine does that to. its great to get people to "feed" him and then he scares the mess out of them.

ahh the memorys..

 

[swampcat]

Aside from aggression, tank size is also very important because of the waste they produce. Oscars are very messy fish, and creating a filthy tank is no problem for them. Also, no matter what size tank they're in, you need a good, heavy filtration system because of this fact.

Double the filtration for sure! Their a mess. Oscars also decorate the tank to their liking also. No matter how you set up your tank they will move everything, even heavy things! Will dig holes, move gravel to one side of tank, you name it.

 

[Ben]

agreed with what others have said

put a ping pong ball in his tank and you'll be entertained for ages

 

[Losi]

If you put a ping pong ball in make sure it is NOT dyed!!

There are some funny stories on the net about Oscars if you search for 'Oscar fish Stories'.