Several Questions

[Full3R]

First being how old or how big does an oscar need to be to start breeding

second i wish to use a finer sand type gravel for my oscars but will this be bad as the oscars like to dig with there mouth

Third theres a small oscar about 3 Inches which is black and white SPOTTED almost like a dalmation molly will it stay like this

Forthly how long will an oscar live my Eldest oscar is just over a year old now

if a tiger and a albino oscar breed what will the babies be like?

And thats about it other than my oscar has learnt to calmly and gently ease towards my hand and slowly grab prawns out of my fingers thats it

[William]

First being how old or how big does an oscar need to be to start breeding

Age is more important than size. But think atleast 6 inches.

second i wish to use a finer sand type gravel for my oscars but will this be bad as the oscars like to dig with there mouth.

Most likely no.

Third theres a small oscar about 3 Inches which is black and white SPOTTED almost like a dalmation molly will it stay like this.

Their pattern can change when they get older but the pattern gives you an idea about how it will look later on.

Forthly how long will an oscar live my Eldest oscar is just over a year old now.

It will live for many years to come.

if a tiger and a albino oscar breed what will the babies be like?

That can vary.


And thats about it other than my oscar has learnt to calmly and gently ease towards my hand and slowly grab prawns out of my fingers thats it.

Nice to hear. you can teach your oscars a number of tricks ;-)

[Full3R]

What can i teach them to do?

How would i go about cleaning the sand type gravel i couldnt syphon it with a syphon kit as it would go straight up the hose wouldnt it?

[Full3R]

also my oscar prefer tempretures up around 28oC or 82 farenheight would it be safe to put htem temp up to that permanetly

What would be the best thing to put in my oscar tank for them to lay eggs on?

[William]

You could teach them to shake their heads towards other people to mention one thing.

it is harder to vacuum fine sand but possible.

I think that temperature should work longtime.

A large flat rock is a good place for them to place their eggs.

[Full3R]

thanx william

what do u mean shake there heads at othe rpeople and how do i teach them to do it

[William]

Make a google search for "oscar tricks" and "teach oscar tricks" and I believe you will find a lot of info aabout oscar tricks.

[Full3R]

can i keep fully grown tiger barbs and clown loaches with oscars?

[William]

fully grown loches are ok. But tigre barb might be food for a large oscar.

[tieu]

my oscar is losing its colour i wonder if it will get it back cause wen it was like 1.5 inches it was red all over now it is getting blacker and blacker and losing the red . and the other oscar use to have white stripes now they are fading......

[Full3R]

replying to tieu that happens with all oscars i think they dont stay the same as they do when they are little

Could i use normal beach sand as a substrate for my oscars?

[Full3R]

also if i do use beach sand will it turn the water salty?

[William]

It would turn the water salty. I don't think beach sand would be recommendable. It usually consist of broken down coral reefs which means a lot of chalk which raises pH.

[Full3R]

oh, well i thought u said ph doesnt matter with oscars, its not actual sand from the beach its sand bought from a gardening shop but ok, thanx

[William]

Well yes I did. As in pH doesn't matter much however no fish can survive extreme pH levels. Oscars can survive all normal pH levels but beach sand could potentially drive your pH towards 9 which would be to much even for an oscar.

Remember pH 8 is 10 times more alkaline than pH 7.

Sorry if I misslead you earlier.

If the sand is from a shop it might be okay depending on where they have collected it. Put some beach sand into somw water and wait a couple of weeks to se how the pH reacts to it if you want to check.

[William]

and oh, a bit late but congrats on 1000 posts.

Suprised you didn't brag about it in the chatterbox. Most people seems to do that on most forums.

[Full3R]

i honestly didnt notice but now that i do yes madness i got 1000 posts also i plan to test the sand

how much san should i put per litres of water or whatever

[Full3R]

do u have any idea why my 10 inch albino oscar finn is always hiding when the light is on but my 7 inch red tiger oscar always is out could it be becuase finn only has one eye?

[FishOwner]

If you are talking about regular ole' sand from a garden store then it should be alright. Playsand is about the best to use as it has been sorted and washed. If it's good for kids to play in then it's usually good for your fish.
Don't make the sand too deep as it can develop anerobic (sp?) areas unless you make sure to stir all of the sandbed when you clean the tank. You'll know if you have a problem by the rotten egg smell.

I wanted to add that oscars can live for 15+ years and that if you mate a tiger oscar with an albino that the fry will end up being mostly tiger as that is the dominant gene, followed by a small amount of fry being a cross between tiger and albino (like a washed out tiger but it can look really nice!), the smallest amount would be albino as it is a recessive gene. No two spawns will have the same amount of dominant and recessive traits but in general, the dominant genes will be present in more numbers.
Good luck with your breeding! :D

[casepan]

like 9 inches to breed i had a pair :)

[Full3R]

i just hope i gots a pair lol anyway thanx for the help, do you rekon my albino will still be able to breed properly with one eye weather it be male or female?