grouping fish help

[ptucceri]

Hey guys, new to the forum. Figured after its been a couple years and i still cant get the tank to be perfect and see stuff grow i should seek help. so anyhow i talk to pet stores from petco to pet-smart to small specicalty family owned stores. ....they all tell me something different. *twirlysmi--making me crazy


anyhow my problem now:
40gal breeder fresh water tank
chemicals are fine
I have a "sucker fish" and a small little cat fish with the whiskers. I just got a blood parrot and a small red Oscar..........the blood parrot is always bothering the Oscar.......i herd once the Oscar gets bigger he wont be bothered anymore....the tank got ick because its all stressful in there and im almost done treating it.......is there anything i can do to keep these fish in there together..........i got some small basic rocks, a good amount of fake plants, and two ceramic pots that they can hide under/inside......HELP !!!! *GOLDFISH*

 

[OrangeCones]

How long has the tank been set up? What are the readings of ammonia, nitrite and nitrate? What is your waterchange schedule like?

 

[ptucceri]

I just use one of thoes fast test, test stripts, everythings according with high ph like thoes fish like. Water changes every 2weeks of around 20-30%. This week i did like 3 small water changes because my water was also really cloudy. Another thing i had that small cat fish thing die last night, looked bloaded? I just want to keep the blood parrot and oscar.......wat to do?

 

[OrangeCones]

I just use one of thoes fast test, test stripts, everythings according with high ph like thoes fish like. Water changes every 2weeks of around 20-30%. This week i did like 3 small water changes because my water was also really cloudy. Another thing i had that small cat fish thing die last night, looked bloaded? I just want to keep the blood parrot and oscar.......wat to do?

Test strips are not known to be very accurate, and 'everythings according' isn't really an answer. Perhaps an aquarium store could test it for you, and post the actual numbers for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate?

Cloudy water may indicate that there is a bacteria bloom going on, which could be from spikes in ammonia and/or nitrite.

Not all cichlids get along. You are mixing an oscar with an 'unknown' since the blood parrot is a hybrid. Some blood parrots are docile and some are very aggressive. The tank size may be an issue also. One oscar needs a larger tank (55 gallons) so it may be that they will never get along as they both are looking for their own territory.

 

[ptucceri]

yeah, i will have it tested tonight at a pet store, but can i do anything else? or i basically haft to get rid of one of the fish? could i get another fish and maybe they will have another guy to hang around with and maybe not just pick on eachother?

 

[OrangeCones]

You might want to post on the cichlid section of the forum, as more cichlid folks come on there to read and answer questions.

I think you'll have problems with the oscar in a 40gallon tank, let alone the oscar plus others in a 40gallon tank. He/she really needs a larger home in my experience.

 

[tropicalcrazy]

my best advice seeing as to where you are in the hobby, split them up or give one away. dont do anything more, except the water changes and stuff, and start doing tons of reading and asking tons of questions. dont throw your money down the drain if you dont know what you are doing and plus it is cruel to the fish. also before you buy fish, read about them and know what they are called. it will help you out a lot in getting advice and things will go much smoother rather than guessing. there are many types of breeds and hybrid fish so generalizing doesnt usually give much information or any at all. also dont listen to those shops cuz more than likely they dont know what they are talking about. this forum has many intelligent and very experienced people. you have hit one of the best sites to ask questions. keep them a rolling and remember there is no such thing as a dumb question. and never stop reading or asking questions.

also an fyi, your oscar will get big and probably mean to where you cant add any other fish. there will be a few compatible fish but like orangecones said, go to the cichlid part of this forum as you will get the best info there.

 

[littletankbigworld]

I would get rid of the Oscar and talk to the people in the cichlid forum to see if you can keep just one cichlid in there. Please buy a liquid test kit and do not add anymore fish. Also, never listen to the people at pet stores! They care more about selling you fish and earning money than they do making sure your fish are in the right sized tank.

 

[tropicalcrazy]

I would get rid of the Oscar and talk to the people in the cichlid forum to see if you can keep just one cichlid in there. Please buy a liquid test kit and do not add anymore fish. Also, never listen to the people at pet stores! They care more about selling you fish and earning money than they do making sure your fish are in the right sized tank.

i 10 times that. there is only 1 guy between 10 petcos and petsmarts fish associates in this area that is half way knowledgeable. there are also a couple other lfs's that arent that great around here either. there are a few people in town that half way know what they are talking about but if i have questions it is here i ask. but yes dont buy anymore fish and i would get rid of that oscar unless you want minimal fish.

and if you are like me, when you get into the hobby you dont pay attention to what you are doing and start buying what you think is cool. more than likely you will want more fish and different ones. so think this thru before throwing a whole bunch of money down the drain and do LOTS of reading and LOTS of asking questions on big time forums like this. just my 2 cents worth