Types of Oscar Fish - Oscar Fish Care and Tips

There are several types of Oscar Fish available to the Oscar enthusiast. The most frequently found are (in alphabetical order) the Albino Oscar, Lemon Oscar, Lutino Oscar, Red Oscar, Tiger Oscar, and the Yellow Oscar.

Oscar fish are reasonably easy fish to breed and this has given us many cross types of Oscar Fish from the above list and adds more interest to the hobby.

The photo you see here is just one such cross breeds. This is an Albino Tiger Oscar fish obviously bread from an Albino Oscar and a Tiger Oscar and I think makes a very attractive variety.

We even have long-finned Oscar fish now, also referred to as Veil Tail Oscars. I have seen a good few pictures of this beautiful fish but as yet never seen one in a live situation. By all accounts this fish appears to be fairly scarce but I'm sure, like everything else as the demand increases so to will the supply of this stunning breed.

Bear in mind that all these types of Oscar Fish originate from the common Oscar/Cichlid family, native to the mighty South American rivers like the Amazon and the Orinoco. Due to breeders of Oscars we now have a greater selection to choose from.

Photo of an Albino Tiger Oscar Fish

Oscar fish care, once learned will prove to be invaluable to anyone who has just purchased an Oscar fish or Perhaps thinking about buying one or even a pair. These fish are more than a little different from other fish you may have at the moment and will require you to understand about their traits.

The size that Oscar fish can grow to must be taken into account and care should be taken when choosing the size of aquarium. Bear in mind, the weight of the tank will be really heavy when filled with water and furnishings and a sturdy base should be a priority.

There is really so much to learn regarding Oscar fish care that it would be a good idea if you had your own personal reference book to hand to deal with each situation as it arose.

I have managed to source an inexpensive e-book "Oscar Fish Secrets" that you could download. Below you will find just some of the topics and tips in this E-book.

* What diet is best for your Oscar?
* Tell when your Oscar fish is sick and how to give it the best care?
* Choosing the right tankmates?
* How to identify male and female Oscar's?
* Breeding Oscars and more importantly how to take care of the Oscar Fry?
* Calculating the tank size you will require?
* What play toys or objects to keep Oscar's entertained?

To read more about what the book offers and see if it fills your needs, visit
Oscar Fish Secrets

Oscar fish, or to give it its proper name, Astronotus Ocellatus is a species of fish from the Cichlid family. The Oscar fish is a South American Cichlid. They are piscivorous, which means they eat other fish, so care should be taken with what else you put in the tank. A section below "Fish Tankmates for Oscars" covers this in more detail.

Oscars are often classed as aggressive freshwater aquarium fish but there are many people who would disagree. They find their Oscar has traits more like a dog. They will feed from their hand and when the keeper approaches the tank the fish will come to the front to see them. Oscar Fish are an excellent choice and when in a well kept aquarium, they can enhance any room.

Oscars prefer larger rocks, and slate in the tank if you are planning on breeding.
They will keep a tank stirred up with their frequent temper tantrums. Some traits of Oscar fish is to dig up all plants and light objects, pick up gravel in their mouths and spit it out in a corner making holes. This behavior is certainly more entertaining than more passive species. The purchase of a good freshwater fish book about Oscar fish is advisable and can provide you with answers to many questions that will crop up.

Photo of an Oscar Fish eating

A lot of Oscar fish info that I have come across has not necessarily been correct, although in other cases the information has been really very useful,of course this will depend on the readers needs and how important the factuality of this information will require to be.

If it is just a casual reader and not someone who has just started keeping Oscar fish or, intending in stocking a fish tank, then it wouldn't matter to much. But for anyone spending good money the last thing they need is, the wrong advice and seeing their fish die and their efforts gone to waste.

An Ebook I have purchased myself and would recommend to anyone looking for Oscar fish info is "Oscar Fish Secrets" that is handy for reference when I require it.

There are many topics covered in this book. One in particular made me laugh, maybe thats just me! Under one of the chapter headings "Why is My Oscar Always Hungry?" was a sub-heading "Help! My Oscar Has a Beer Belly!" This just set my imagination going with visions of the fish with a bottle to its mouth, swimming about a bit funny and singing. What is the saying "Drinking like a fish"

Here is a small sample of some of the other info included: Housing your Oscar; Types of Filtration; Water Quality; Info on how to keep your fish healthy and a good section on Breeding. Pictures of Oscars throughout and of fry from 3 days old and the Oscar fish called "Nemo" who has grown to three inches at 2 1/2 months old.

There were two major pluses at the end of this Ebook that many Ebooks I have previously bought don't have. Firstly was a Conclusion called "Lets review what we just learned about Oscars" which is handy for quick reference.

Secondly, an Index of what page to look for certain terms mentioned in the book. A bit of a shame because there are no numbered pages, at least not in my copy. Anyway, this gives me an idea where to scroll, top, middle or bottom. All in all I found lots of Oscar fish tips here and as for the last problem I mentioned with the book I hope the author will rectify it.

Find out more Oscar Fish Info here.

A question often asked what are suitable fish tankmates for Oscars? A lot will depend on what size of tank you have. As Oscar fish will grow big depending on the size of Aquarium they are in. Oscars together are fine as long as you add them at the same time and are the same size.

Introducing young Oscars to a tank with larger Oscars wont do, as they could finish up being a meal. Oscars tend to be greedy eaters and will eat just about anything that will fit into their proportionally large mouths.

My number 1 choice of fish tankmates for Oscars would be other Cichlids providing they are not the larger breeds of Cichlids which have a very aggressive nature and could cause a lot of disruption in the tank

Some other fish you could have with Oscar fish would be, Clown Loach, some Catfish such as Black Lancer and the Synodontis again providing these are large enough and not just young fish. Silver dollars are another choice you could go for.

If you are lucky enough to be the owner of a larger fish tank say 400 or 500 gallons, it is possible to add some shoals of smaller varieties of fish providing you follow certain criteria. With this amount of space you should put in plenty of plants and rocks etc. to create lots of hiding places for these smaller fish. You should monitor this situation, as you should with any new introductions of fish to your aquarium, to make sure all is well.

Obviously this situation of introducing these small fish to your tank could prove risky and instead of having fish tankmates for Oscars you would have fish food for Oscars. So you should take a regular head count and be vigilant, these smaller fish can be removed if not successful. If everything works out alright you will finish up with a really beautiful display.

It is recommended that you provide, as a minimum, an aquarium which holds between 55-75 "gallons" per Oscar. This will allow for the fact that it can grow 12 inches in the first year and large males can grow up to 16 inches. If you want to have a pair of Oscars in the same tank then the larger 75 gallon tank is advisable.

This avoids stunting their growth which could harm their internal organs and reduce their life expectancy of around 15 years. Most varieties will only grow as big as the tank will allow, this is not the case with Oscar fish. It is advisable not to over feed them as they will outgrow the tank. The more you feed them, the bigger they become. There are many places that supply Tropical Fish Tanks online today and this link is just one of them.

A photo of an Albino Oscar fish

Oscar fish are both carnivorous and pisciverous and appreciate live food. This is why some people choose to feed their Oscars live fish, known as feeder fish. A point to bear in mind is that live fish can carry parasites or disease, which is caused by stress having being transported long distances and kept in unsuitable conditions. Some people would look at this practice as being cruel and believe these feeder fish could do your Oscar more harm than good, so the practice is not recommended. A good compromise would be to breed your own feeder fish to feed your Oscar these knowing them to be healthy.

In an Oscar fishes natural habitat in South America, more than 50% of their diet is provided by insects, therefore if you would like to treat your Oscar on occasion, collect a few insects from your garden or neighborhood they will adore them.

Oscar fish's recommended staple diet are Cichlid pellets because they are nutritionally balanced. This diet can be supplemented with things they eat naturally like, prawns or shrimps and bloodworms which they love.

You can use frozen meat from your freezer but you should restrict the amount of meat from pigs, sheep and cattle, as too much of mammal protein is not good for them either, the best choice possibly being lean beef heart. You should restrict the amount of protein you feed your Oscar fish if you want them to be a bit more docile.

A photo of Red Oscar fish