Totally Frustrated

[kpoteet]

:rant: I have a 37g freshwater tank with 1 Oscar (about 7" long,3.5" wide) and 1 Armored Catfish. I have had the tank for roughly 4 yrs.

Presently my Oscar is slightly recovering from "popeye" , and now is completely blind. He was eating by being hand fed, but now is not doing so well, not eating at all. Hasn't eaten about 10 days.

My nitrites and nitrates are off the chart. I have tried over and over again to stabalize the water various ways. Water changes, water cond., non-idodized salt, cleaning (not overcleaning), everything.

I have had nothing but problems with this tank. The water where we live is very hard, I have a fear that may be the underlying prob.

Really could use some sound advise. Please help me before I just give up.

Sincerely, Worried, tired, and frustrated.

[OrionGirl]

Well, unfortunately, part of the problem is fish selection. Oscars should get larger than 12 inches, and are very, very messy fish, so need to be in large, well filtered system with frequent water changes. In smaller setups, they are prone to health problems resulting from the build up of toxins.

You don't mention how long you've followed any of the treatments, but my best advice would be to perform daily 50% water cahnges, feed lightly, and plan on getting a bigger tank for the fish.