Discus and Oscars together?

[twb716]

Would it be possible to keep 2 large Discus and 1 Oscar together in a 100gal tank? The water is automatically changed %30 every other day. I have not purchased any of the fish yet. Thanks in advance.

TB

[NatakuTseng]

Its possible. Oscars aren't overly aggressive and they do come from the same locals in the wild. Its a risky thing though. If you were to try it, I would start with 3-4inch discus, and a small oscar max 3 inches if at all possible and let them grow up together. You may want to up your water changes to that amount every day just simply because of the extra waste, and extra growth inhibiting hormones produced by the oscar. Another thing to think about is the discus are going to need a water temp of around 86 degrees F, this will also increase the aggression level of the oscar. I've often thought about trying this myself. Rather than just two discus you might want to try 4 because of the aggression among the discus themselves. If you do try it, good luck, its gonna be a toss up and an interesting expiriment.

[PumaWard]

I would try the discus first, get your hand at keeping them so you know you can keep them well. I would start with as many as 10 discus and raise them to a 4'' size, culling as needed. Then, I would get the oscar.. I would try a 2'' one, quarentine it for 4 weeks and then add it. I would also not feed the oscar and feeders or any live food

Then, you can go from there. Again, I would start out with the discus and get to know them if you haven't kept them before; the reason being that they are beautiful, friendly fish... and quite expensive to experiment on ;).

HTH

[ninerfan]

I would say no, and that is only due to the fact that oscars are so messy. they blow half the food out their gills, and discus are very picky with their water parameters. But as far as personality goes you would most likely be ok. Some oscars are aggressive but alll the ones I have kept have been fairly dosile and have lived with the likes of corey cats and danios with no problems. ;)

[QCppg]

In terms of agression I'd think you'd be fine, I've seen a fully grown oscar kept with a 3" angelfish in a 55 gallon tank, the angelfish was in perfect condition. IME, based on observation of other people's fish, oscars can beat up just about any other fish, but won't touch other cichlids.

[PumaWard]

I would say no, and that is only due to the fact that oscars are so messy.

So true. The good thing is, discus like to pick stuff up off the bottom of the tank, so they may clean up after it a little. It may also warrant of the purchase of some cories as well.

It may also be wise to go with a bare bottom tank with the oscar... and, like Nataku said, daily 50% water changes are advisable.

[anonapersona]

I am really surprised, I'd have thought that everyone would say no to this mix.

I've never kept Oscars but have heard about what a mess they make while eating.

Can you really keep the water clean enough for the disucs with such a messy eater as the oscar?

[NatakuTseng]

Sure you can. Discus breeders keep huge numbers of fish in smaller tanks and still manage to keep them clean, and discus especially in numbers will quickly produce waste. The key is over filtration, lots of it, and water changes.

[Cearbhaill]

Even beyond that is why anyone would even want too. Aesthetically they are just such different fish- they just don't go together! And they usually appeal to different types of fishkeepers as well.
I'd think the Discus would be terribly bullied at feeding time. Cichlids they may be, but they can be really shy cichlids.

[125gJoe]

I sure do like Red Tiger Oscars - but no way - ever would I have Discus in the same tank with them. As mentioned above, "why experiment?"

While Oscars may not be the most aggressive cichlid, it brings to mind, teaching sharks to be "nice" to mullet! :eek:

A side note, just to mention, Oscars and Discus are my favorites (at this point in time..).

[PumaWard]

Oscars and angelfish have been successfully kept together, so I think it's viable that the same could be done with discus. However, like I mentioned above, the discus should be 4+'' before adding a baby (2'') oscar.

IMO, IME, oscars generally aren't the bullying type unless they were raised to be more aggressive (i.e. feeders or possibly other aggressive tankmates). Even at feeding time, I think they are more interested in the food than anything else; at least mine were when we had them. No to mention that more than one person has successfully kept discus with arowana which I think (not positive) are more aggressive than oscars.

I think it's worth a try in a BB tank with a lot of maintenance(sp?) and up-keep.