a free 5ft tank! oh the joys of freecycle heheh

anyway, if all going well I can pick it up at the weekend and go get gravel etc but I need to ask a few Qs first.. Lol

I want to keep Oscars. I have kept them in the past we fed bought frozen white fish (cant remember the type) and thaw them out n chop them up.

Does anyone have more info on Oscars (I will be getting a few books on them 1st!). Should i just get a pair??

What kind of plants does Oscars like to have in there tank? And what other fish can go with them? Can I put a plec in with oscars??


Tank needs a bit of work done on the lid and the stand needs painted so wont even be setting it up for a while, but how long should you leave a 5foot tank to cycle for??

x

__________________

Okey dokey, first of all I would just keep one oscar in a tank of that size. Plants are best avoided as these will be uprooted by the fish. As for other fish you might be able to keep a larger Panaque species or possibly a Common plec (Liposarcus multiradiatus/pardalis) however a slightly larger tank would be preferable once the fish is fully grown.

Like all fish Oscars should be offered a variety of foods which should include a high-quality cichlid pellet supplemented with frozen and/or live foods including daphnia, brineshrimp and bloodworm. Some people feed their oscars on beefheart and other meat products however I wouldn't recomment it as they are quite fatty.

thanks

x

__________________

a pair will be fine in a 5ft tankdont bother with plants,they will be ripped up go for a interesting rock display insteadi fed mine on a good quality pellet diet,if you have a look around some aquatic stores you may be able to purchase some older ,larger fish.I have just got a free 6ft tank in a cabinet too,complete with a tiger oscar,and 2 other chiclids (not sure what yet)i had two 16" oscars and two 15" plecs in my old 5ft tank,they were fine,you will need a good filter though.

__________________
(formally clare7577)

I wouldn't go with two fish, while it may seem OK to keep a pair in a 5ft tank a larger tank is usually recommended. Also Common plecs can top 22"/55cm.

Ops got my fish names mixed up... its discus i want, not oscars! lol

x

__________________