My Oscar is acting wierd

[FishyBoy]

Hay Everyone. From the land down under where we're all mad! :18:

I am so glad to have found this community forum :ssmile:

I have a question. My Oscar is about 14 months old. 10"-11" long (hard to measure him lol). He has not eaten nor even wanting to for last 4 days. He has also been staying in his sleeping corner, not coming out much. Totally unlike him. I recently put him in a 6' tank. He immediately loved it. Ate well. I used old water after filtering it so he had the god bacteria etc. I have checked water religiously. Always good. Slight pH prob but too easily fixed. Ammonia/Nitrate levels fine.

Only thing I put it down to was his tank temp was a little cool. He likes it above 80f (28). He actually stayed lying on one of the heaters for hours when I noticed the temp drop.

Today I attempted feeding him his usual stable diet of pellets. The only ones he'll eat. He used to love peas until he got very sick very early in his life. He bounced back as he always does. He's indestructable really. Anyway, he wouldn't eat again. It's like he couldn't be bothered.

I got him some Slater Bugs as he loves these to death. He wouldn't come out of his corner. So, as a last resort, I fed him i his corner. Yeah!!! He ate them all.

So, what the hell gives? Why the not eating? Comments so appreciated. Thanks in advance thumbs2:

[MCHRKiller]

Oscars are weird fish, you stated your recently put him into the 6' tank so Im sure that could be the reason if water parms are checking out. What are the specifics on them? If hes still eating in his corner I wouldnt worry so much about his health, just give him a couple of weeks to adjust to the change.

[FishyBoy]

Oscars are weird fish, you stated your recently put him into the 6' tank so Im sure that could be the reason if water parms are checking out. What are the specifics on them? If hes still eating in his corner I wouldnt worry so much about his health, just give him a couple of weeks to adjust to the change.

thanks for reply, I don't think the tank change had anything to do with it as it was weeks ago now & he has loved it ever since, until the other day?

I know they sulk but he rarely goes off his food.

[Northernguy]

Welcome to the Fabulous AC!
Can you please list what your perameters are at?
Whats your water change schedule like? How much how often?

[FishyBoy]

Welcome to the Fabulous AC!
Can you please list what your perameters are at?
Whats your water change schedule like? How much how often?

thanks for the welcome!

Parameters:

pH = 7.2
Ammonia = 0.5mg/L max
Nitrate = 10ppm
GH = 10
KH = 10-12

[MCHRKiller]

What is your nitrite? Your ammonia really should be 0, any could be causing some slight stress to potentially throw him off feeding.

[Northernguy]

Nitrites kill too!
You didn't mention your water changes.They are so important because of the oscars high bio load.50% every week is a must.More often is even better.

[FishyBoy]

I have never been able to get ammonia 0 in 12 months. I have no idea what nitrite is. I have only a nitrate tester. Do I need a testing set for nitrite?

btw, it's never worried him before, even with higher ammonia levels in the bad old days when sertting tank up. I have added more beneficial bacteria/water conditioner & aloe today & adjusted pH as it was below 7.0. He likes it above that.

[FishyBoy]

Nitrites kill too!
You didn't mention your water changes.They are so important because of the oscars high bio load.50% every week is a must.More often is even better.

so, do I need a nitrite test kit? I do change water regularly but since he's in a 6 foot tank, as apposed to 3 foot one he was in, shouldn't need so much changing I woulda thought? Advice is very welcome as I am always learning

[mommy1]

do you mess with the filter during tank maintenance. and how often do you change water and clean the tank. after your tank is cycled you shouldnt have any ammonia or nitrites, unless you are changing out the filter cartridge.
and yes checking for nitrites from time to time is important. as NG says they can kill just as easily as ammonia.

[FishyBoy]

yeah I do clean filter foam every 2nd water change. I use tank water to rinse though not tap water. I thought you had to keep filter cartridges clean & rinsed often?

[mommy1]

you want to rinse them in old tank water when necessary. if the flow of water flowing through them is restricted, then yes swish them around in old tank water. but you dont want to change them out completely very often. this can set off an ammonia spike.
i can leave the material in my filter about 6 months. and i swish it around in old tank water about once a month. i change mine when the material is falling apart, about 2-4 wks before i change it i put extra material in the filter and let it sit there. then i take the old material out and leave the new.

[FishyBoy]

thanks. I know what to do now. Maybe it just needs more frequent water changes & yeah, I'll leave filter until it really needs doing.

Thanks heaps

[Northernguy]

Here is a great read on Oscars.
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]
You can get a liquid master test kit at most fish stores.Its neccesary is with fish.It tells you whats up with your water and fish.
I have two oscars and a pleco in a 135.I have 300gals of filtration on this tank.I still change between 40 and 50% of the water every week and it needs it!They get a quality pellet and other foods.They love shrimp chunks!
These fish live 20yrs if taken care of properly.

[gadget228]

Welcome to the AC... :22:

[annageckos]

You don't need or want to be messing around with the ph. Ph from 6.5-7.5 would be fine. The most important thing is to keep it stable. When you start trying to change the ph chances are you will have ph swings and that is dangerous to the fish. You said he never got upset about the ammoina. But you can't alway see the damage it does. It is kind of like smoking or second hand smoke. You don't see what it does to you until it is too late. Ammonia can burn and irritate the fishs skin and gills, making it harder for the fish to take up oxygen. You need ammonia and nitrite to be at 0. Get a good liqiud test kit and check them often untill you have them at 0 consistanly.

[FishyBoy]

thanks guys/gals. You all been really helpful. FishyBoy is back to his vibrant self after doing a full water change, 1/3 by 1/3 till I got it down to extremely low parameters. He's always happy & swimming up to his feeding corner, eating his heart out again lol. I did get a nitrite kit & read that the nitrite quickly gets converted to nitrate by bthe biological filter anyway. The nitrite is now 0ppm; pH stable @ 7.0; Ammonia almost 0 but, always have Nitrate a little higher no matter what I do. Still only 5ppm. Also, he still seems to labour in breathing? Not all the time, mainly when he is resting on the bottom. I know the temp is a litle higher than I like. 28C. Could it simply be the temp too high?

[annageckos]

Glad to hear he is doing better. Higher temps = less oxygen in the water. You could try adding an air pump. Also, ammonia burns the gills making it harder for fish to breath, and the damage will be perminet.

[Northernguy]

Have you read about how the nitrogen cycle works yet?
This is from the ebook I suggested you read and I still suggest it!lol

Cycling
There is one more step that needs to be completed before you can add the fish and this
step probably the most crucial of them all. The water in which the fish live is a whole
new ecosystem in itself. There are other microorganisms living in this water beside the
fish, algae and plants. All the living organisms in your aquarium will produce waste that
can become toxic. Fortunately, there is also a class of organisms that work in tandem to
decompose this waste and to make it beneficial for the habitat. Understanding this basic
but sometimes overlooked fact and doing your best to aid this process will make your
aquarium a definite success.
Why probe into the details when you know that the waste that will be produced will also
be efficiently decomposed? Well, since the ecosystem in an aquarium is an artificial one
that you have created it can sometimes require your assistance. An aquarium that is just a
few weeks or days old is at its most fragile. The water is new; microorganisms in the
water may be beneficial or toxic. The key here is to minimize the undesirable organisms
while boosting the colony of desirable and helpful bacteria. This is where the
NITROGEN CYCLE comes in.
Nitrogen based substances are the most frequent byproducts of decomposition. The
Nitrogen cycle refers to the process in which this decomposition takes place. Nitrogenous
waste products in your aquarium will first break down into ammonia. Ammonia can be
very toxic for fish. If ammonia can be detected by your test-kit, then the levels are too
high for your fish.
Nitrifying bacteria are the microscopic organisms that aid the nitrogen cycle and convert
harmful ammonia to a more harmless form - nitrate. In nature, there are vast colonies of
these bacteria, but when you first set up your aquarium this type of bacteria is only
minimal in your water. In the first few weeks, you have to induce this bacterial colony to
multiply and reach an optimum level. A good nitrifying bacterial colony goes a long way
in ensuring the health of your aquarium. The initial period when this bacterium is being
coaxed to multiply is known as cycling the aquarium.
Certain conditions are optimal for the growth of the nitrifying bacteria. They grow well in
areas that have a rich supply of oxygen. Lesser sunlight means less heat and less light.
These are ideal for the growth of bacteria. Portions of the aquarium that are not disturbed
by currents, and are relatively unmoved are also good breeding grounds for the nitrifying
bacteria. This is however only the first half of the nitrogen cycle.
Slowly, as nitrites get converted, nitrates start building up. The second half of the
nitrogen cycle converts the nitrites into nitrates which are relatively harmless through a
process called denitrifying. This is then converted into nitrogen gas, which escapes into
the air. It is however impossible to get rid of all the fish waste by simply letting nitrogen
gas evaporate. If you do not perform frequent water changes, the levels of nitrate will
sooner or later become high enough to seriously harm your fish and eventually kill it.
Your aquarium can never be a perfectly balanced ecosystem. You are for instance adding
new organic compounds to the system every time you feed your fish.
Courtesy of Aquaticcommunity.com

I moved it here because its an an info thread now.lol
Go introduce yourself again if you like!

[FishyBoy]

thanks again Northernguy for article piece & all you top people for helping me understand the more refined info. Btw, I do use air pump & water jet filters annageckos, finding he likes to swim under the jetting water & under filters

Cheers!

[FishyBoy]

Got FishyBoy another huge air stone & a few more artificial plants to make his tank a little moe exciting lol. He loves swimming along back wall of the tank, ducking under the Fluval filters & through all the airflow.