Restocking my 55G

[silver dollars]

I am wanting to restock my 55G cause i want something new. i am gonna move the angels into the 75G, keyholes probably leave in there or in the 75G, beta will go to my sister, tetras into my bro's tank, and my female krib(male died, will explain in a different thread) will go into my new 30G with the other kribs. I am wanting to get cichlids, but i don't know which ones to get.

 

[Hamburgler]

Well...do you want a wet pet or a community like mbuna? Geographic preferences? etc.

 

[silver dollars]

Nah no mbuna for me... all ready tried them. I don't know what i want.

 

[Hamburgler]

Hmm, well then lake tang maybe? Very interesting, but still african. Other than that all i can think of is a wet pet, or community of something like cons, fm's etc. Plenty of options.

 

[silver dollars]

I am gonna see if i can go to a lfs tonight and see what they got, and if there isn't anything there, then ill go to another one this weekend.

 

[silver dollars]

What kind of cichlids will do well with the keyhole cichlids???

 

[silver dollars]

I was thinking and i got a good idea that i wanna do(BigV and Katie convinced me)OSCAR!!!!!!!!!!! I can move all the fish out of the tank and get me an oscar At this lfs down the street from my dad, they have tigers, green tigers(?), and albino tigers so i think i am going to get one, but what kind...

 

[Big Vine]

What a terrible idea...you'd have to be nuts to wanna keep an oscar...

BV

 

[silver dollars]

lol BigV! Thats what i am planning on getting this weekend

 

[IDunnoWhy]

What a terrible idea...you'd have to be nuts to wanna keep an oscar...

BV

Yes, what a terrible Idea! The last thing we need is more Oscar threads polluting the forums

But in all fairness, I really like the Oscars like BV's Avatar (Tiger correct?)

But Katie217 & missdixie256 have some really pretty examples too

 

[Big Vine]

Hehe...you da' man! *thumbsups
As for what kind to get...I'd just see which one(s) pick you---you'll know when you get there and take a closer look at them. Sure, there's certain types of oscars like the ones you mentioned, and thus many of them end up looking the same to lots of folks who have never kept them...but in the end they're all unique. You'll see!

BV

 

[silver dollars]

I can't wait How do i tell males from females?

 

[Big Vine]

I'm assuming you want a baby/juvie, in which case you won't be able to sex them. Check this out though:
Flippersandfins.net Oscar FAQ

BV

 

[silver dollars]

Thanks for the info page BigV! Could i put like 5-6 tiger barbs in with him?? Ok and just so i can't make sure NOT to do this, are feeder guppies/goldfish good or bad for oscars?

 

[jessey]

from my research and what others have done, you could put 5-6 tiger barbs in with your O, assuming you are expecting them to become lunch eventually

and i don't think the cheap feeders are good for oscars; i think they're fatty and diseased, for the most part.

 

[Big Vine]

Jessey is right---stay away from the store feeders.
If you want to use feeders, I'd breed your own (guppies, Endler's, platies, and possibly even convicts would make good candidates). If it were me, I'd go with Endler's. From what I hear they breed like crazy, and they don't take up too much tank space at all. Cons might out-maneuver your oscar and end up growing to adulthood in the oscar tank.

You've got to think of it as a really long-term commitment...the oscar should live 10 years or more under the proper conditions. Why expose it to a fatal disease just for the sake of throwing a live store-bought feeder in with it? Breed your own feeders, gut-load them prior to feeding, and feed only as a treat (once every week or every two weeks). Or you could check out the mealworm colony thread in the DIY section, which makes for a nice supplement.

If you plan on upgrading by the time the oscar is about 8", then I'd go for the tiger barbs. Otherwise, skip them. The oscar will need the room.

BV

 

[Katie217]

Good idea Silver!! But seriously, I wanted a Tiger oscar, but I left the store with a common green Let them pick you

 

[Hacker]

You do not pick your Oscar, They pick you. Use endlers as feeders and stay away from Rosy Reds and Goldfish. They cause a disease called fatty liver.

 

[Fuzz16]

you can buy fish then QT and feed them good fatty foods and fill them up with healthy stuff, then you could use them as feeders.

everybodys getting oscars lol

 

[Katie217]

everybodys getting oscars lol

lol it was all a matter of time...now we have an oscar army! *SUPERSMIL