i need help

angelbubby28

I am new to this site I bought a ten gallon tank and was told because i knew nothing about fish that i could put 2 oscars and 1 Jack Dempsey in the tank together (stupid petstore employees) needless to say one Oscar died and had to get another tank for the jack still didn't know that they both needed larger tanks so bought another ten gallon tank the jack would not leave the Oscar alone and vise versa so got them both their own tanks then decided that maybe i should get some kind of info on them yes i now know should of done that first and am very sorry i didn't the Oscar has grown so big his name is Del a Hoya i just got a 55 gallon tank today both fish are doing good i am making sure i keep the tanks clean and checking levels

Ok so now on to my question
I am don't know everything and the books i have bought are not as good to me as someones elses information the books say that i need to cycle the tank and i know that but i am worried about my del a hoya i love this fish and am trying to do everything i can for him he is as big as my hand and i am not sure how to go about moving him into the new 55 gallon without hurting him i have a big net but i use a small one to help get some of his poop and stuff out because the filters work but the tank is way to small for a messy fish like an Oscar he attacks the small net when i put it in there he is very territorial (i did not think a fish could grow so big so quickly) i don't have tons of money so for right now the Oscar is getting the big tank he needs it more also how long is long enough for letting a tank cycle the papers that came with the big tank say 24 to 48 hours and i have water treaters but experince always is better so please can some one help me thanks so much

herefishy

First of all welcome to the forum.

Here is a link that should help you with any question(s) you have. If it doesn't feel free to PM me and I will try to answer those left unanswered.

http://www.fishforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=348

angelbubby28

thank you that does help any ideas on what to do with the ten gallon that an 11 year girl can take care of other then Goldfish she wants an Oscar like mine so made a deal that i would let her have it in her room if she could take care of it herself

Cody

Not an Oscar. No no no. As you read, they need at least a 55G for a grow-out tank, but 75G should be a MINIMUM for one Oscar. The fish can reach 14-16" long; how can it turn in a 12" tank?

You can, however, add some small, community fish to her tank. These can be Neon Tetras, Pgymy Corydoras Catfish, many other types of tetras, guppies...the list can go on. [/i]

Flashygrrl

Goldfish actually also require big tanks, 55 gallons and up (they poop too much). Cycle the tank, get her some guppies or a Betta, some cories and a heater, and call it good.

As for your fish, eventually you'll be wanting a 75 gallon tank at least for the Oscar and then the jacks need to have bigger homes too. If you can't afford to have big tanks for all of them (god knows I wouldn't), then I'd advise you to start looking for some new homes.

kritas

Flashy, I think you seem to forget that bettas and cories are both tropical fish, Goldfish being a coldwater fish, they are not compatible now are they... Also I think you forget that a betta would rip that goldfishes fins apart, maybe they aren't as territorial as we used to think, but they are still considered aggressive and should be treated so.

Cody

She never said anything about combining them...Just said the tank size for a Goldfish.

Angel, why dont you go check out your fish store, write down the names of the fish your daughter likes, and then post them on here? That way, we can figure out what can work.

jeaninel

When you get ready to move your Oscar over to his big tank move the filter from his existing tank also. Run it along with the new filter. It will help your new tank to cycle quicker.

kritas

Sorry, I misunderstood what you said Flashy. Ignore that post please

angelbubby28

well we went to the pet store and she likes this fish called glow fish i believe thats what they were called they are pink, green, and yellow. The only other fish she liked were the fancy tailed guppys but how many of those can you put in a ten gallon tank that could happily live with no problems i have everything for freshwater fish heater, fliters and air bubbles do you think that would work