oscar tankmates

You will probably get a lot of advice saying that a 54 gallon tank is only large enough for one Oscar. This is probably correct since oscars grow SOOO fast and are really messy on every front (eating, waste, etc). You might get away with having a Jack Dempsey, but the Oscar will grow much quicker and will soon start bullying the JD. I had to get rid of my oscar b/c of this. He started out less than one inch and in three months was about 4 inches and beating up my JD (who was almost three inches when the oscar was purchased.) Oscars are tough to match anything with because of their growth rate and total size. (Maybe you could trade it in for a severum or a smaller SA/CA cichlid so you can have more than one fish in your tank) Good luck and sorry I wasn't more help for you.

I would think a corner tank would be better for an oscar than a long tank, easier for them to turn around. There arent many options for tankmates for oscars, especially in a tank that small. I wouldnt add any type of large waste producer like pleco or large catfish. I would think a few giant danios or something like that would be Ok, but dont be suprised to see them disappear over time, but they are pretty quick.

corner tank actually isn't ideal for an Oscar as they are territorial and tend to take ground space. The more floor space...the less aggressive. Back to the question though, I wouldn't put anything with an oscar in a 54...not enough water for more than the one. I've done it and had trouble keeping the water transparent let alone clean. Just go with the one O for the 55 and keep up the weekly water changes and you should be OK.

i wouldn't add anything else.

maybe look into a 72 gallon corner and then maybe you can add a convict?


nate

if you haven't already gotten the tank, you really might want to look at going a little bigger, like a 72 or even a 90. with a 72 you could have an oscar, some giant danios, and a single other fish - convict, severum, mid-sized pleco. with a 90 you could have two oscars.

Hi, I have to huge Oscars in with 2 pecostamus and 2 bigger koi, but they have all been in together since they were little. 1 Oscar all by itself after awhile won't want too many friends in my opinion. I have a 55 gallon and a 100 gallon with all cichlids and eels. Not a pro here though either.