View Full Version : oscars wont eat
KAIKS
04-23-2003, 12:24 AM
as some of you know i scored two 6" oscars and a 30g
well i bought them home and they arent eating, ive had them since friday, ive tried feeders, pellets
anyone got any ideas on whats going on?
note: the current owner did not clean the tank in about 17 months, the water was green a filled with fungus
What size tank are they in now. Pleaseeeeeeeee tell me you put them in a new tank.
It's completely normal for fish not to eat after stressful events. The tank relocation and a massive water change for the first time in over a year...I would call that stressful.
Healthy fish can go 2 weeks without eating. I wouldn't be concerned...yet. It's more important to make sure their current environment is adequate at this point. As said above, a larger tank is in order.
Often, when fish are neglected for a long period and suddenly tank conditions are improved, causes the fish's health to decrease rapidly. I guess their systems get acclimated to poor conditions. Good luck with your Oscars.
ChilDawg
04-23-2003, 8:13 PM
I would start feeding them small livefoods with dry foods mixed in so as to stimulate the appetite, but be very careful not to get your fish accustomed to livefoods unless that will be the staple of their diet.
2 6" Oscars in a 30 is overkill, so you will need at least a 60 for them at this point, and you may as well buy a 90+ in order to keep them long-term.
Hope this helps,
Matthew
yeah man. 30g for one oscar is way way way to small. as far as not eating, im sure they will eat eventually. the largest oscar that i own, about 10 inches was neglected for a long time, and when he was put in a bigger tank, he didnt know what to do with the extra room. from what i have been told about oscars though, that you need 5 gallons per inch of oscar. oscars get very large, and can be alot of work sometimes.
Goodluck.
scott
04-23-2003, 10:18 PM
I have had luck getting stubborn/sick fish to eat by rehydrating freeze dried krill in a mixture of garlic puree and water. Just let it soak for a couple of hours and it will sink down to them, what doesn't sink just scoop off of the top and save for later.
KAIKS
04-23-2003, 10:43 PM
i know the tank is small. i dont plan on keeping the oscars, im looking for a home for them. i would love to keep them but i dont have a big enough tank.
thanks for the help :D
Dragon_Lord_Tia
04-24-2003, 4:00 AM
my oscar wouldn't eat unless its a gold fish when i first got him but i got him on meal worms but at the moment he is sick so i take the food to him buy:
getting a metre or cotton string
and tying it to a peice of meat either beef heart,or a bit of steak and gangle it in front of them and they should snap it up
p.s.don't wrap the string around the meat just ty it to a loose bit so when they grap it it breakes off and u can rebait it simple as pie
id like to meet that guy who use to own them you know what i meen:mad: ;)
GEV83
04-24-2003, 10:50 AM
Hey wouldnt those oscars be stunted already there only 6" an was in the same tank without water changes for 17months???
AikidoGuy
04-24-2003, 11:21 AM
i wouldnt say that they are permenently stunted. Ive had fish ive gotten from people that kept them in horrible conditons. In those situations the fish would be quarentined for a few days and id watch the eating habits. once the fish gets my stamp of approval and is eating, id place it into its Appropriate tank which would also include a raised tempature, and large water changes (50%)at least every other day. That should get it growing and healthy in no time. Of course if the fish is severly deformed, like curled spine of something drastic as a result of it previous enviroment then it would just get the deep freeze...
Originally posted by AikidoGuy
Of course if the fish is severly deformed, like curled spine of something drastic as a result of it previous enviroment then it would just get the deep freeze...
whats curled spine? whats the deep freeze?
AikidoGuy
04-24-2003, 3:16 PM
if the fish was severely stunted its back would be arched and curved or its tail would be bent and curled, it would look downright crippled. In that case, it couldnt be healed and would just suffer, so i would place it in the freezer and let it go to sleep..
well the guy wasent 100%
and one of the oscars is about 8 inches and the other is about 6
i think the bigger one has curled spine