I wasn't sure where to put this but I had to show everyone! Please feel free to move to a proper location.

So I was searching through That Fish Place.com and fell onto their blog sites. I found this article extremely disturbing.


I would like to welcome another guest blogger, Lexi Jones. Lexi is one of our staff marine biologists, and a Supervisor in our retail store fish room. Welcome Lexi.

Want to keep Oscars? There are many things you must think about before buying Oscars.

First and foremost, they get very large, very fast. It is not recommended to keep one Oscar in a tank smaller than 55 gallons, and some say not smaller than 75 gallons! The Oscar can reach an adult size of 14.” How large they get depends on water quality, how much you feed your Oscar, and tank size. Keeping them in a smaller tank will stunt their growth and thus shorten their lifespan.

Oscars are also very aggressive and territorial, thus they are best kept alone or with other Oscars. However, if the tank is large enough and you insist on keeping a different species with them you can try keeping other cichlids of a similar size like Texas cichlids or Jack Dempsey cichlids.
Also, Oscars need very good filtration, they will put a heavy load on your biological filter. They are messy eaters and create a lot of fish waste. Please avoid undergravel filters; these can not handle the waste Oscars produce and create even more water quality issues. Large power filters or canisters are the best options. Partial water changes (at least 20% per month) will also help keep the tank cleaner and keep the nitrates to a minimum. Testing the water quality once a week is recommended. The pH range for Oscars is be between 6.5 and 7.5; however, for success the pH must remain stable. Ammonia and nitrite readings should be zero, and nitrates should be as low as possible. The temperature that Oscars prefer is between 75 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, so a heater is a must.

So, what can you feed your Oscar? They will eat pretty much anything that will fit in their mouth, but this is not healthy for them. To keep them healthy it best to feed them a variety of flake, pellet, and frozen foods. They come in various sizes for your baby Oscar or a full grown adult. Good choices include: Spectrum pellet foods, mysis shrimp, krill, beef heart, bloodworms, and night crawlers. We recommend not feeding live foods as a primary food source for your Oscars, Feeder goldfish can carry parasites and diseases, and are not a complete source of nutrition. However, it is ok to feed live foods as a treat, or supplement to a varied diet.
Keep in mind that Oscars may look cute when they are little, but they can double or triple their size in a matter of months. Therefore, they absolutely need a large tank to be healthy and happy. Providing a large home from the beginning is much better than continuously moving them from tank to tank.
Thanks for the great blog Lexi, nntil next time.
Dave

Posted by TFP Marine Biologist at 4:42 PM

Anyone find anything disturbing??

This was my comment and what I was answered back with....

Anonymous said...
I find it very disturbing that you only recommend a 20% water change on a monthly basis. Oscars make way too much waste to do only a monthly water change. Even if you had the best filtration on the tank I would recommend at least a weekly water change of 30 - 40%.

December 6, 2007 1:19 PM


TFP Marine Biologist said...
I agree that Oscars, and other large predators, can put an extreme demand on water quality. The article has been modified to recommend water changes of at least 25% monthly.
While you may have had success with 30%-40% weekly water changes, I feel that changing that much water at once is far to dangerous. Removing that volume of water at once can cause rapid, and extreme, changes in water chemistry and temperature, as well as jeopardize the good nitrifying bacteria in your aquarium. Changing that volume of water should only be done in emergency situations. If you have proper mechanical filtration, and good water circulation in your aquarium, the filtration will trap the heavy waste produced, where it can be removed by regular filter maintenance.

Thanks for your input

Dave


What do all of you think?? Maybe I'm just over-reacting. This company is very well known (thanks to the internet) and they are giving out advice like this. wabawhat??

I do agree with you on this Rena!

I do find that sometimes we do go overboard with pristine water conditions for our aquariums thou but 25% monthly is way too little to change unless you have a HUGE tank (over 500 gal)

20 % weekly is what I would recommend


Derek

I do agree with you also, Rena!

I buy all my supplies from this company online, but I would never
take advise from them.

Thanks for sharing and your concern!

Wow! I guess my weekly 50% water changes and subsequent 5 ppm nitrate levels are dangerous to my fish.

It's an answer provided by someone who works for a company that sells aquarium supplies. They don't want the word out that the most important piece is water changes. They want people to buy carbon and nitrate reducing products and ammo-chips and all that stuff. They also want to be very safe in the advice they give for fear of being liable.

I'm actually not surprised. When I worked in a lfs, we were taught to tell customers to do 10% water changes twice a month and to replace all media once a month, even foam.

I did quite the opposite. Nanananaa They couldn't fire me. I was a part time person who had the best sales per hour numbers. Giggly

Count me as agreeing with you too. Someone might "get away" with 20% per month, but 20% per week is more like it to actually do right by the fish.

Which reminds me, I'm behind schedule on my water changes! Blush

The response to you is what really bothers me. I think it would more appropriately apply to doing a large water change if your regular maintenance is only 20-25% once a month! Then you could have those extreme changes in water chemistry.

Exactly, I'm just so speechless that a marine biologist would even recommend these water conditions for any fish. I would hate to see their recommendations on salt water or other fish that are picky with their water conditions. It's no wonder that their stock usually have ick and they don't guarentee 25% of them to last more than 3 days in your water (especially if you are at least a novice @ what good water conditions can do for your fish)! Grrrr Man they make me mad! dumb dumb

I tend to agree that over all more frequent water changes may be necessary- however that would be pending some variables- such as the size of the fish, the size of the tank, size of the filter and media used (ammocarb etc), number of fish, and food that is fed, as these all affect the stability of the water parameters.

I have more of a problem with that article mentioning a 55 gal tank.
I think keeping them in a 75 is pushing it. I wouldnt suggest anything smaller than a 90 Hmmmm

Very True Les!

I totally agree as wel and in fact i just completed my 30% weekly water changes.

That is the most ludicrous thing I've read today, and believe me, I've read some real BS...

One juvenile oscar can make enough of a mess to warrant twice weekly 30-40% water changes with the best filtration imaginable. Their feces looks similar to the feces of a baby elephant.

Marine biologist my A$@...

Can you tell I need a cigarrette today? Blush

Kim

LOL Kim it will be okay! Although this information is BS!