hey

Question
QUESTION: i have an oscar in a 20 gallon tank. He has been fine up till a few days ago. He isn't eating and he is laying around on his side a lot and doing a lot of hiding as well. He also usually responds well to our voices and eats out of our hands and things but has not taken any interest in us lately. Please help me to get him back to normal.

ANSWER: Hi Heather,
 Are you doing regular weekly partial water changes?  You need to be changing 25% of his water once a week, every week.  This is particularly important given that you have him in a very small tank.
You should strongly consider looking for a larger tank for him.

-- Ron C.
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>


---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: yes i have been doing water changes. The tank that we got him from at walmart 2 months ago was about 10 gallons and they had three in the tank together. He had a small divet in his head when we got him and that has actually filled in very nicely. The pet store lady told us that we should keep him in a 10 gallon for a month on his own and then in a 20 gallon for a month. Our 55 gallon tank will be here on the 20th. He hasn't eaten in 4 days.

Answer
Hi Heather,
 I have no idea why the "pet store lady" would tell you such garbage.  The larger the tank you can get him in the better.  An oscar can quickly get sick and die in a 10 gallon tank.  They are very sensitive to the buildup of ammonia which happens really quickly in a small tank.

 I strongly encourage you to buy fish from a fish store.  They know a lot more about what they are selling and doing.

-- Ron C.
  rcoleman@cichlidresearch.com
  Cichlid Research Home Page <http://cichlidresearch.com>