Really shy baby Oscar

I just got a baby Oscar today and I let the bag float for 20 mins let him swim out of the bag and then he swam around for a bit then sank to the bottom behind a plant and is breathing slowly. I read articles saying baby oscars are really shy because they think their going to get eaten but I can't confirm that is what's wrong. I tried feeding him bloodworms but he just sat in the sand. When I leave the room for and hour and poke my head in he is barely swimming and then sees me and sinks to the bottom. I have a 55 gallon, canister filter 265gph, 80 degrees, no light just yet, filter floss, filter pads, and biomass rings. I added lots of stress coat to help him but other than that I don't know what to do. If you could help me that would be great! All I want is the best for my fish

 

Give him some time he'll come out of his shell soon. On a side note don't put water from another tank in yours. Net him out of the bag after properly acclamation.

 

You didn't acclimate him properly - floating the bag in the tank only adjusts him to the temp of the water, not the other parameters (pH, KH, GH, nitrates, etc.). That could be stressing him out.

Can you include a pic of your setup?

 

Also you may want to upgrade your tank when he grows. He can get close to 2 feet

 

I added little bits of my tank water in their as well over a time of 30 minutes

 

That's how to do it. Except you don't want to add foreign water to your tank. How's he doing today? Is he eating? Exploring more? Any change?

 

Baby tiger Oscar plays dead

I just got a baby tiger Oscar that was really happy to see me at the fish store but when we were driving home he just sank to the bottom. We acclimated to the new tank correctly and netted him out and he just sank to the bottom. When I poke my head in the room he is just barely swimming then he sees me and then sinks to the bottom. The do I just need to give him time and are their any things I can do to help. It's a 55 with no tank mates and is established

 

How exactly did you acclimate him?

 

I floated the bag In the tank for 30 min then slowly added water from my tank over the period of an hour then netted him out of the bag

 

Do you know about the nitrogen cycle? If so, what test kit did you use?

Did you cycle your tank? And by cycle, I don't mean did you let the tank run for a a week, I mean did you test the water and dose ammonia until you had no ammonia or nitrites showing and you had some nitrates showing? Please don't confuse nitrites with nitrates.

Do you have a heater?

What is the tank temperature?

Do you have a filter? If so, does it move the water around enough to have it be oxygenated? If so but it doesn't move the water around enough, do you have an air pump/bubbler?

How did you acclimate him? Floating? Drip acclimation? Did you pour the bag water in the tank?

55 gallon tall or long? I'm assuming long, but either way, Oscars require an at least 75 gallon. Preferably long.

Do you know if he has a disease? If unsure, can you please post a picture? Sometimes it's hard to identify internal problems, and maybe we can help.

What are your parameters?

Any info you can provide will be very helpful.

 

Did you cycle the tank? What are the readings?

I suggest returning him since Oscars don't fit in a 55 gallon since the width of a 55 is small there should be a width of at least 18 inches. The dimensions of the tank is important. Standard 55s won't do it. That is why a 75 standard is better since the width of the tank is 18".

 

If it's it cycled and you have the right temp and everything else, he's probably just sulking. Oscar's tend to do that when they are put in a new tank. They can be extremely moody fish

 

I completed the fishless nitrogen cycle, 80 degrees, Ph is 7.2, toxic stuff is at 0, width of tank is 48", I did acclimate him for 2 hours, I have a 265gph canister filter that moves the water enough, I have a heater, API test kit. Some of his color has turned into a light grey color.

 

I think that my friend Dave75g has Oscars, so maybe he can help. I'll call him up now.

 

Thank you so much!

He ate some bloodworms and is swimming more with me in the room

 

Good glad to here it. He'll be just fine. He'll be eating feeder guppies in no time.

 

Are light grey stripes usual for them when their stressed?

 

They can get a little grey under stress. Can you snap a photo and post it.

 

Sorry about the flash
He is a tiger. I suck at photos. The tank is cycled, nitrite 0, nitrate 20, ammonia 0, Ph 7.2, and a liquid test kit

 

It's hard to see. He's a tiger? If so it does appear to be a bit stressed. You mind answering a few questions? Is the tank cycled? What are your current parameters? Do you have a liquid test kit?

 

Can you take a pic of the entire tank?

 

Sounds good

 

That's a very bare tank. If you added more hiding places for him, I expect he'd feel more comfortable.

 

I just got a baby tiger Oscar yesterday and he swims very strangely. He drifts sideways then goes upside and swims backwards. Anybody have an explanation?

 

Did you cycle your tank? And I don't mean just letting your filter run for a week or so. What are the parameters: Nitrates, ammonia, temperature, etc

 

Yes the tank is cycled, ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 20, and Ph 7.2

80 degrees

 

He might have some kind of problem such as disease or disability. Did you notice something at the store? That is why when I buy fish I carefully look to see if the fish are sick since if they are I will just go to another store.

What size tank? An oscar should be in a 75 gallon. Due to the width of a 55 gallon, which is 12 inches and oscars usually get to 12+ inches a 55 gallon is too small. A 75 gallon has a width of 18 inches which is perfect enough for an adult oscar to comfortably turn.

 

He was swimming fine at the store. He looked healthy. Maybe he is just really stressed

 

What size tank? An oscar should be in a 75 gallon. Due to the width of a 55 gallon, which is 12 inches and oscars usually get to 12+ inches a 55 gallon is too small. A 75 gallon has a width of 18 inches which is perfect enough for an adult oscar to comfortably turn.

This has nothing to do with the OPs question.


Did you acclimate the fish properly before adding it to the tank? If the parameters in the store water were very different from yours he could have osmotic shock.

 

It actually does since I am caring for the well-being of the fish when it becomes an adult. Many people keep oscars in a 55 gallon and when it becomes an adult the fish has a hard time turning. It is better to plan for the future.

 

It actually does since I am caring for the well-being of the fish when it becomes an adult. Many people keep oscars in a 55 gallon and when it becomes an adult the fish has a hard time turning. It is better to plan for the future.

It's important to pick your battles. The OPs fish is obviously sick; it can't even suspend itself properly in the water column. Makes more sense to help him with that issue as opposed to bringing in information that has no bearing on the current situation.

It doesn't mean that you're incorrect. I'm not saying you are, but it really turns people off when they're new coming to a forum and the first thing they hear is "this is wrong, and this is wrong, and so on - when they were looking for an answer to a totally unrelated (and far more pressing) question.

 

Ok, thanks! But back to the problem I would suggest returning the fish to the pet store and ask them about their water parameters. It might be the fish is in shock due to the different waters if it wasn't acclimated properly. This is why I usually like the drip acclimation system since although it might take an hour or more depending on the size of fish and how much water it makes it so that the water change is very slowly.

Just gonna say but your going to have to upgrade in a year or 2 to a 75 gallon when the Oscar become over 12 inch. A 55 gallon width is 12 inches so when he becomes an adult he will have a harder time turning but for right now a 55 if good enough. So if you did acclimate him correctly which it looks like you did most likely he is very shy. Right now the oscar is a small fish and it probably knows that. You need to add hiding places for him to completely hide since right now it probably feels defenseless since he is in open water. Add some caves or go to the hardware store and get some big and small planting pots. An easy way although its uneasy on the eye is getting PVC pipes as hiding place but I think the pots are better. But all in all its best to add hiding places cause if he keeps stressing out he could die since he will be susceptible to disease or the stress overwhelmed him.

 

Let it be for some time... Oscars need some time to settle down...

 

Let it be for some time... Oscars need some time to settle down...

My thoughts exactly. Once he realizes he's in no danger he'll come out of his shell.

 

I would still add more decor. He'd appreciate it.

 

Sounds like you did pretty much everything right my Oscar did the same thing for like a day or so and it took a while for me not to make the pellets sink but to to the surface to eat. They are very pouty and moody I would guess he is fine just keep an eye on his head to make sure there's no HITH or any physical signs of parasites or sickness. If he doesn't perk up in another day or so Id start dosing him with antibiotics and ick treatment but only as a last resort. I don't like chemicals IMO. And I had the same setup for my Oscar pup, your gonna wanna upgrade your tank in around a year maybe less to a 75gal but then its possible to have 2 in a tank if they get along and that's pushing the limits of a 75 but Ive done it. My current albino is growing almost 1" per month right now. He's gonna start to grow like wildfire soon. Your going to LOVE being an Oscar owner!

 

You mean I'm not the only one that doesn't use prime or water conditioners or slime coat. I only use meds when absolutely nessesery.

 

I wouldn't add any meds unless you know what the issue is. If he's still hiding for a few days, please don't add meds.

 

So I turned the water flow down in my filter and he is swimming normally now and he follows me!

 

Well, looks like we solved the problem and we overlooked it