scats with oscars?

[dean30bb]

hi everyone lust wondering if silver scats and red scats could go with oscar ive got 1 red and 1 silver and i want to free up a tank to buy a breeding pair of flowerhorn that i can get so yeah just seeing if they can mix i also have 2 silver dollars with the oscars aswell so i dnt no wheather that makes a difference

thanks

[MCHRKiller]

Scats really do need to be kept in brackish conditions for their longterm health. I would advise against it.

[dean30bb]

thanks for that also this mite be a stupid question but what dose brackish waters meen

[Billythefish]

Its in the middle of fresh water and salt water,

[MCHRKiller]

Brackish is essentially where FW meets SW. FW has a specific gravity(SG) of 1.000 and SW usually begins at 1.024. Brackish is technically everything in between that, but generally any SG reading below 1.005 is generally not even regarded as having enough salt content to matter and typically anything over 1.020 is rendered marine. So to have true brackish conditions your SG will fall between 1.005-1.020.

[dean30bb]

awsomethanks for that always wonderd wat it was but how do u get them exact salt mesurments in the water thinking of buying some in a tank on there own

[MCHRKiller]

Brackish fish are very tollerant and actually benefit from SG swings as where they originate from there is constant tidal changes in the amount of saltwater and freswater that they encounter. For the sake of your benefitial bacteria dont let it swing more than .002 at a time tho. Id get some sea salt(I prefer Oceanic brand) and a hydrometer that reads lower levels of SG readings. Id mix in a few cups full until you get a reading of about 1.005 to start with you can gradually increase it as they age because at maturity most brackish fish do best in near marine conditions :)

[cocoa_pleco]

awsomethanks for that always wonderd wat it was but how do u get them exact salt mesurments in the water thinking of buying some in a tank on there own

you just need some aquarium sea salt, and a hydrometer or a refractometer. hydrometers and refractometers measure the salinity, and have numbers to tell you how salty it is, refractometers cost more, but are more exact

[dean30bb]

ive always just kedt my scats in normal freshwater tho there only young but about 3inches long my lfs had them in the normal freshwater too when i brought him so i think i mite take ur advice with the brackish water

thanks heeps

[cocoa_pleco]

if you decide to go brackish, up the salinity slowly so you dont shock them

im not surprised they were sold in FW, lots of crabs that are supposed to be in brackish water are sold in stores as FW and die young, same with fish

[dean30bb]

will do thanks